With a set of accessibility statements agreed between the supplier and the purchasing organisation, customisation to the user requirement can proceed.
Customising the interface
As barriers are identified, imaginative workarounds and solutions can be proposed and tested, and novel techniques can be implemented. Input and ideas from accessibility experts can be useful during this process. Maintaining a constructive and positive dialogue between supplier and procurer is absolutely vital.
During this stage it is often helpful to bear in mind that changes to an interface to benefit people with disabilities are almost certain to benefit other users as well. Good design for accessibility results in good design for all.
Meanwhile, a great deal will be going on in relation to 'standard' functionality and meeting the business requirements. A good project manager will ensure that change control is robust, and the impact on accessibility is assessed for any material changes to the technology within the project. This includes the operating platform and hardware as well as the software itself.
Access technology configuration
Sophisticated access technology products may still require additional configuration, even with a fully inclusive interface. This may be to take full advantage of accessibility features provided by the interface. It may also be in order to improve speed and efficiency for access technology users, to allow more effective navigation, or quicker access to information.
Products like Jaws and Supernova screen readers and Dragon speech recognition are supplied with this capability. It is in the form of scripting for Jaws, mapping for Supernova and macros for Dragon. Scripting, mapping and macro creation are specialist jobs, carried out by experts. They must fully understand the tasks that users need to do, and the functionality of the software, including any user preferences and accessibility features.
User Acceptance Testing
The project plan will certainly include one or more phases of User Acceptance Testing.
It is vital that accessibility experts test against the agreed set of inclusive design statements. This should take place at the same time as the user representatives with responsibility for business outcomes carry out functional testing. This is not yet the point at which 'ordinary' access technology users should be exposed to the interface.
Once experts are happy with accessibility, it is important to test the interface with 'real' access technology users. Any accessibility adjustments must be clearly indicated and instruction provided. This is to ensure that users have a positive experience and can feed back accurately and effectively on usability issues.
It is recommended that an explicit accessibility sign off is required by the project plan. If the decision has to be made that a product or service cannot be made accessible, or if there is going to be a time lag before accessibility can be achieved, there must be a plan for how to provide an alternative means of accessing the service. This is to ensure that disabled users are not disadvantaged.
Rolling out to users
For a system designed for use by employees, careful consideration should be given to the rollout.
Seminars or workshops may be planned to introduce users to the new processes and systems. Some users may need adjustments to the seminar or workshop environment which must be considered in advance.
The plan for user training should always take account of individual requirements and ensure that user preferences are applied and trainers are aware of accessibility features. Users who had not previously indicated any special requirements may benefit from features that were designed for disability groups.
If the system is for public use, there is little opportunity for user training. It is important to indicate clearly, and in accessible ways, how the interface might be adjusted to suit individual preferences.