How to Incorporate Accessibility Into Your Procurement Process

Presented at 3:00pm in Virtual B on Thursday, January 1, 2020.

Speaker(s)

• Kara Zirkle, Manager of Training and Compliance, eSSENTIAL Accessibility

Session Details

• Length of Session: 1-hr
• Format: Lecture
• Expertise Level: Beginner
• Type of session: General Conference

Summary

What is accessible procurement and why is it necessary? In this session, we explore exactly what accessible procurement means for your organization, the common challenges involved and how to overcome them, as well as best practices to build accessibility into your own procurement process.

Abstract

Too much of the digital world is still inaccessible to too many, and the sudden shift to online living brought on by COVID-19 has amplified the disconnect. This is why it is more critical than ever for organizations to incorporate accessibility into their procurement process when evaluating third party technologies.

Whether the focus is to make your online learning courses, websites, mobile applications, or digital products more accessible, this can only be achieved if the technology partner(s) you choose has also made accessibility a priority.

For example, imagine you worked to make a webinar accessible, only to learn the webinar platform used to host the presentation was not fully accessible? Now what? Don’t waste time evaluating ineffective, inaccessible technologies.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• What accessible procurement is
• Common challenges involved and how to overcome them
• Best practices to build accessibility into your own procurement process

Keypoints

1. Too much of the digital world is still inaccessible to too many.
2. It is critical for all organizations to incorporate accessibility into the procurement process.
3. True accessibility can only be achieved if your technology partners also make accessibility a priority.

Disability Areas

All Areas

Topic Areas

Procurement, Uncategorized

Speaker Bio(s)

Kara Zirkle

Kara has over 18 years’ experience working with individuals with disabilities and education/outreach. She is an advocate and educator with regard to providing technical support, awareness and guidance on assistive technologies as well as the laws around overall accessibility and those that protect individuals with disabilities. Kara holds a Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts from West Virginia University.