From the course: Making a Case for Accessibility in Your Organization

Improve the ecosystem

From the course: Making a Case for Accessibility in Your Organization

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Improve the ecosystem

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- You may be taking this course because you and your company's goal is to make accessible products and services for people with disabilities. One way to improve accessibility is to work with third-party suppliers to provide accessible deliverables. Here are a few things to keep in mind when working together towards that goal. First, make sure the contractual documentation for your deliverable includes the appropriate accessibility requirements. Contractual documentation includes documents like statements of work, cloud service orders, and purchase orders. Next, be transparent with suppliers about accessible procurement requirements. It may be helpful to provide your suppliers with documentation on your company's expectations or policies. Consider creating a toolkit with resources for your suppliers on how to create accessible deliverables. Then ask the suppliers to provide you with accessibility conformance reports. Conformance reports will describe how your product or service supports the recognized accessibility standards such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, US Section 508 guidelines, and EN 301 549, the European Developed Accessibility Standard for ICT Products and Services. Finally, when deliverables arrive verify that they are actually accessible. Use the information and tools provided in the course to check accessibility of the products and services. After making a purchase, buyers should be aware of the status of accessibility conformance because a product update may impact the accessibility and usability of the product. Remember to check for accessibility on a regular basis, not just during the initial procurement phase. Accessibility language should be part of the post-contract governance and included in the warranty section of new and renewed agreements. Internal processes for remediation tracking should also be established. Ensuring third-party deliverables are accessible helps to guarantee that your products and services are usable for everyone. Your company is on the right track to create a more welcoming and inclusive culture for people with disabilities like me.

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