7 tips to ensure digital accessibility in your organization, so that your websites remain accessible
Digital accessibility requires constant attention.
Many organizations have been working on digital accessibility since the legal obligation came into force in 2018. In my role as a consultant on digital accessibility, I have helped many websites become more accessible. Once a website is accessible, we are not done, as many might hope.
By implementing these 7 actions, you will ensure digital accessibility in your organization for the future.
Action 1: Create management support
Management support is necessary to make your digital channels accessible.
It is important that a senior manager or executive take ultimate responsibility for the digital accessibility of the organization. Without this support from above, you will not get the whole organization involved. And this is necessary to anchor accessibility across the organization.
In order to engage the management, you can do the following:
- Inform them about the Digital Government Act and what this means for your organization.
- Inform them of the steps taken to ensure that all digital channels meet accessibility requirements.
- Let them sign the accessibility declarations in accordance with the directives.
Action 2: Engage internal specialists
You cannot do it alone.
The web team cannot ensure digital accessibility by themselves. It is from and for the entire organization. It requires the commitment of all employees.
The following officials play an important role:
- Policy Officer (Accessibility Officer): for coordination, organizing measures to be taken, and monitoring progress.
- Legal or compliance manager: to test the accessibility declaration and guide the formulation and implementation of the policies.
- Purchasing Officer: for the inclusion of the conditions surrounding digital accessibility in the ICT purchase conditions.
- Document Creator or Administrator: for accessing and managing digital documents for online publication and using appropriate software for this purpose.
- Content manager or editor: for properly importing digitally accessible content.
- Communication Advisor: for ensuring accessibility in the communication strategy and projects by taking into account people with functional disabilities.
- ICT Specialist: for setting up the systems used by the organization.
- HR Advisor: for acquiring skills and knowledge from various employees in the field of digital accessibility.
Crucial for this action is the collaboration with the responsible manager for digital accessibility in your organization. You knew that from the first action. Together with the manager, you get the necessary departments, their executives, and then the officials, to the table.
Action 3: Notify suppliers
Close the water tap; otherwise, mopping is no use.
The providers or web builders of your websites should be aware of the new requirements for digital accessibility. Inform them about this and talk to them. As an organization, you depend on your web developer to implement the necessary measures.
In addition, let them indicate what they are already doing for the accessibility of the website and how they support this in their organization. For example, training their web developers.
Action 4: Making a policy
Make sure that the rules for digital accessibility are described.
The accessibility policy should include what is needed to make the organization accessible. This is based on the risk management system being inaccessible. This is directly contrary to the government’s legal obligations. The policy should be in line with the organization’s objectives and serve as a safety net when something is inaccessible.
Involve the legal department and again the highest manager as the final responsible for digital accessibility.
Action 5: Hire an expert in digital accessibility
Without the necessary expertise, you won’t get far.
The knowledge and skills for digital accessibility are often not present in an organization. It is therefore necessary to hire them externally. This can be in the form of a project manager or a digital accessibility consultant. This person can also be temporarily appointed as a digital accessibility officer.
This hired officer:
- Can help develop and monitor digital accessibility policies and provide support in the implementation of these policies.
- Is the point of contact for accessibility issues and ensures that the organization complies with its legal obligations.
- Monitor the execution of the necessary tasks and measures to be taken. This is done in close cooperation with all levels of the organization.
Action 6: Organize information meetings (awareness)
As an organization, becoming digitally accessible requires a cultural change.
This requires awareness first. It usually works well to organize informational meetings for colleagues. This can take various forms, such as a large webinar that anyone can join or smaller presentations per department. Both also work, of course.
In addition, you can use other channels within your organization, such as an intranet, offline advertising such as posters, or just talk to your colleagues and ask them about their familiarity with the topic and how it might affect their tasks.
Action 7: Organize training sessions (skill)
People themselves also need to change for lasting change across the organization.
After awareness-raising, the internal specialists involved in various fields of online media should be fully aware of digital accessibility. This knowledge is obtained through training. In this way, they become familiar with the basic requirements of accessibility in the field of web content; such as the use of images, headers, color, media, forms, etc. They know the global content of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and know how to test the website globally. They also know what to think about when posting videos on the website.
By constantly paying attention to digital accessibility, your organization will (slowly) change toward this.
