Different job roles within your company will require different training levels and skills. For example, staff who procure ICT for your workplace need training on requesting accessible products from vendors. Staff in HR and Public Relations need to understand how to make online job applications accessible.
It makes sense to assign training for your employees based on the goals they are expected to achieve. While you want to incorporate some accessibility topics into your overall internal staff development programming, keep in mind that not all training has to take place in-house. Some organizations let their accessibility teams or individuals find external training on their own, and professional consultants are also available for hire, or to conduct internal trainings.
In either case, here are some typical job roles and the accessibility training they should ideally receive:
Leadership
- Facilitates accessibility buy-in across your organization
- Sets the tone for your organization's accessibility mindset
- Makes it easier to establish goals and acquire accessibility-related resources
Recommended Resources:
Follow—and Join—the Accessibility Leader
Accessibility: Making the Business Case for Employers
Communicating Your Commitment to Accessibility
TechCheck: Accessibility Benchmarking for Your Workplace
Measuring and Evaluating Progress
Hiring Accessibility Consultants
Human Resources
- Utilizing accessible job applications and other HR infrastructure tools
- Coordinating accessibility needs for new hires with employees, colleagues, and supervisors
- Recruiting applicants with disabilities
Recommended Resources:
TalentWorks: Recruiting and Accessibility
Introduction to Inclusive Talent Acquisition
CIO and Procurement Officers
- Communicating with vendors about accessibility policies
- Building accessibility into procurement processes and the ICT lifecycle
- Requesting and evaluating Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) and other vendor information
- Requesting AT compatibility and other testing results
- Remediation planning
Recommended Resources:
Buy IT!—Your Guide to Purchasing Accessible Technology
TechCheck: Accessibility Benchmarking for Your Workplace
Information Technology, Web Development and Design
- Understanding accessibility standards
- Carrying out accessibility testing (automated and manual, including AT and user testing)
- Finding and using both general and platform-specific accessibility tools and methods
- Documenting accessibility issues
- Understanding the interoperability of assistive technologies with current workplace technologies in place
Recommended Resources:
Buy-IT: Your Guide to Purchasing Accessible Technology
Hiring Accessibility Consultants
Marketing and Public Relations
- Promoting the marketing value of accessibility and universal design
- Marketing successes related to accessibility practices
- Communicating about accessibility to internal and external audiences
- Professional development
Recommended Resources:
Communicating Your Commitment to Accessibility
Accessibility: Making the Business Case for Employers
Legal Counsel and Regulatory Staff
- Understanding laws, regulations, and cases that pertain to your organization’s accessibility responsibilities
- Staying aware of legal and regulatory developments
Recommended Resources:
Accessible Technology and the Law
How is the Department of Justice Addressing Website and ICT Accessibility?
Policy Matters: Public Policy and Accessible Workplace Technology