Accessibility, Inclusion, and Ethics

"We must broaden our definition of design and designers. We must test our assumptions about human beings. We must wonder 'who am I excluding?' and allow the answers to change our solutions." - Kat Holmes

For many of us who’ve been in the corporate UX world for a while, we’re considered seasoned veterans when it comes to the perceived tug of war between profit and human interest. We’ve honed our focus on users. We’ve crafted intricate workflow diagrams with people at the center, reached out to the clients who use our products for feedback, and talked in the language of jobs and needs rather than feature lists. And yet, we’ve also been blissfully unaware of our skewed view of users, often because the corporations we’ve worked with never asked for more.

For many of us, that well-intentioned ignorance has bred monsters of our own making we are only now realizing: Dark patterns. Subverted designs. Opinionated data. Unconscious bias. Frictionless discrimination. Inaccessible interactions.

These are the bogeymen of the modern UX practice. And in addressing these issues, I believe any UXer can add immeasurable value to their company, especially as more corporations begin to learn the importance of diversity and inclusion.

Guideline Conformance

As shown by the two contrast errors on the page - brand colors can prove a challenge. There’s still more work to be done here.

As shown by the two contrast errors on the page - brand colors can prove a challenge. There’s still more work to be done here.

When talking about accessibility (also referred to as a11y), an important subset of inclusive design, almost everyone starts in the same place: WCAG 2.1 standards.

I have touched many aspects of these standards over my career. As a developer defining keyboard navigation and ARIA tags, as a designer concerned with color-contrast and movement, and as an architect refining copy and hierarchy. Working with integrations like WAVE or Deque’s robust axe DevTools makes this process easier and more automated. However, the guidelines are subjective enough that human touch is always needed.

I enjoy learning how to close a11y gaps in products by speaking with real people and designing beyond what is strictly required by WCAG.

Design Techniques

In addition to the countless software addons to Firefox, Chrome, or programs like Sketch to make accessibility easier, there are many design techniques that can be followed for more inclusive products. By using them as often as possible, I introduce the tenants of inclusive design to the entire team early in the development cycle. This is critical not only for users who need these designs, but also for companies who may pay up to 30 times more if they catch these issues after release.

My personal favorites include accessibility lenses when personas are used, trying to ‘be the bad guy’ and subvert happy path designs once they’ve been established, and working with stakeholders to define guardrails for data. I believe in meaningful friction instead of frictionless designs which encourage decision-by-bias.

I’ve run workshops on all the inclusive design techniques listed in this section.

Building a Culture of Inclusion

No matter what ambition your company has regarding Diversity and Inclusion, it’s unsustainable without a culture where inclusion is pursued by everyone. I take pride in being an advocate for inclusion and accessibility beyond my deliverables, building education programs, workshops, and presentations to create an atmosphere of empathy among all product roles.

One place I suggest most people start because they all have an opportunity to practice is more accessible presentations. I even have a presentation on how to present more accessibly - contact me if you want to learn more.

Part of this is about slide layout: simple, straightforward language, easy to read text, and removing unnecessary distractions on each slide.

Part is about how you present: speaking aloud every point written on your slides, moving supporting data you won’t be talking about to an appendix, and verbally explaining any visual elements.

And part is about what happens next: providing your slides along with a transcript, video, and captions if at all possible.

Inclusion is in large part about our ability to connect with one another, and that starts with good communication. By doing this, people become more aware of how they present their thoughts in their day-to-day lives. It fosters a sense of pride that they know how to do one, actionable good thing. From there, a solid foundation has been laid for inclusion efforts in the future.