You're tasked with a tight project deadline. How do you decide which accessibility features to prioritize?

Start by identifying the core user journeys most impacted by accessibility issues. Focus on what will make the biggest difference to users ability to interact with the product. In a time crunch, prioritize basic usability features like readable text sizes, keyboard navigation, and clear visual hierarchy. These foundational features often benefit the widest range of users with minimal effort.

This is an important discussion on a topic often misunderstood. While the approach to prioritizing accessibility may differ based on the industry & target users, the real solution lies in inclusivity. I know of WCAG standards & its requirements for accessible design, although my real learning began when a team member with special needs joined us. It’s easy to follow rules, but in the rush of designing, we often overlook the human aspect—empathy. The key is not just in understanding user needs & creating scalable solutions but in fostering inclusivity within our teams. When our teams represent diverse experiences, we are naturally more prepared and confident to design with accessibility in mind, regardless of the deadlines we face.

The first step in deciding which accessibility features to prioritize is assessing the specific needs of your target users. I begin by understanding the user demographics and any known accessibility challenges they face. For example, if the project is for a government website, it's crucial to prioritize features like screen reader compatibility and keyboard navigation. In a recent project, we conducted quick user interviews and reviewed analytics to identify the most common accessibility issues, allowing us to focus on what would make the biggest impact for our users.

When working under tight deadlines, prioritize accessibility by focusing on user needs and ensuring legal compliance. Gather feedback from users with disabilities, allocate resources based on your team's strengths, and choose scalable solutions. This approach helps create an inclusive product while staying on track.

Start by evaluating the core functions of your product to identify essential features for users. Map out the user journey and determine where accessibility improvements can have the greatest impact. For example, in an app, ensuring screen reader compatibility for visually impaired users might be crucial. For a physical product, adding tactile markers for those with limited sight could be a priority. By concentrating on key interaction points, you can prioritize accessibility features that will significantly enhance the user experience, making your product more inclusive and effective.

Next, familiarize yourself with the legal accessibility requirements in your market, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the United States. These laws set standards that provide a helpful framework for prioritizing features. While compliance might seem challenging, it ensures you meet the minimum legal expectations and avoid potential penalties. Use these guidelines as a baseline to build upon, integrating additional accessibility enhancements to further improve your product. This approach not only helps you meet legal obligations but also demonstrates your commitment to inclusivity.

Legal compliance is often viewed as a checklist to avoid penalties, but I see it as a creative constraint that fosters innovation. In one project, I turned compliance into a catalyst for new design ideas. For example, the legal requirement to make text accessible led us to experiment with new font types and color contrast that improved the product for all users, not just those with disabilities. Rather than feeling limited, I’ve found legal requirements a useful framework for improving overall user experience.

Si une fonctionnalité critique (ou plusieurs) est liée à un risque de conformité, j'identifie et liste les exigences de la norme dont dépend la fonctionnalité, puis je met en place un plan de mise en conformité et veille à sa réussite par le biais d'audit par exemple avant d'aller plus loin dans le projet.

Une chose que j'ai trouvez utile est qu'il faut tenir compte des exigences legal. Cela vous permettra d'éviter d'éventuelles problèmes envers la hiérarchie.

It is imperative and not negotiable to ensure that the standards for legal accessibility are met. I personally like to implement the minimum items needed to comply within my project in the beginning of the project lifecycle to address and avoid clashing with the future project timelines. As someone who has personally experienced this, I would say the worst scenario is a missed timeline with little risk, and potentially a legal change. For someone who values accessibility, it is generally less risk to plan inclusion to keep everyone involved from the start, while planning it out has a much better shot for it to be better for anyone using the product.

Gathering input from users with disabilities is crucial for identifying essential accessibility features. Engage directly with communities and individuals who will be impacted by your design choices. Their firsthand experiences offer valuable insights into the challenges they encounter and the features that could address these issues effectively. This user-driven approach ensures your prioritization aligns with the real needs of your audience, making your product more inclusive and better suited to serve its users. By incorporating their feedback, you enhance both the functionality and accessibility of your design.

Leverage user feedback to pinpoint accessibility issues that are causing the most friction. When deadlines are tight, focusing on real user pain points ensures that efforts directly improve the user experience. For example, if users are struggling with navigation, making the interface more keyboard-accessible can have an immediate, positive impact.

A user-driven approach can make all the difference when timelines are tight and you need to make tough calls. One way to maximize your time is to focus on users with disabilities who can provide direct insight into the challenges they face and even ideas for how to solve them. In other words, you’re soliciting data directly from these communities to identify which features will have the greatest impact. Taking this approach prioritizes practical design choices while being genuinely helpful to those who need them most. Prioritizing based on real user needs aligns your efforts with what truly matters.

User feedback is invaluable in determining which accessibility features will have the most impact. I like to gather feedback from real users, especially those with disabilities, to identify pain points and areas for improvement. During a previous project, we received feedback that our color choices made it difficult for colorblind users to navigate. Prioritizing a color scheme redesign based on this feedback significantly improved the user experience. Tools like UserTesting or accessibility-focused communities can provide quick, actionable insights to guide your decisions.

Instead of only gathering feedback from users with disabilities after launching, I’ve found great value in involving them during the ideation phase. In one case, I invited visually impaired users to co-create a feature from scratch. This early involvement changed my understanding of accessibility altogether, making it a shared journey rather than something to be ‘added on’ later. I now see this approach as a form of collaboration rather than just feedback collection.

Evaluate your available resources, such as time, budget, and technical expertise, when prioritizing accessibility features. Some features might demand more complex development or design changes than others. Balance the benefits of each feature with the resources needed for implementation. Focus on quick wins that are easy to implement and offer significant value to users with disabilities. These high-impact, low-effort improvements should be prioritized to make the most immediate difference, while also planning for more complex enhancements as resources allow.

When resources are tight, I’ve learned to repurpose existing design components in creative ways. For instance, in a project where we couldn’t afford a full overhaul for color contrast, we adjusted our primary button design with minimal changes to meet accessibility standards. By focusing on components we could quickly tweak, I found that small but targeted adjustments can yield significant results without requiring major resource investment.

Cela dépend du contexte, les gains rapides ne sont pas toujours la priorités. Il arrive que certains clients priorisent une fonctionnalités clé qui justement va nécessiter l'attribution d'une grande partie des ressources, car la valeur apportée par cette fonctionnalité aura été démontrée en amont du projet notamment pendant la phase de benchmark de solution et de l'analyse de la structure de co?ts opérationnels

When faced with limited resources, I make every effort to strike a balance between short-term wins and long-term effects. I dig in and identify high-impact features that require the least amount of effort, such as adding alt text or ensuring proper color-contest ratios, and I work through those in the moments I can. Features that will be more difficult to implement, like voice navigation, will usually be included in later phases. This way, I can feel good about making a dent in successful progress regarding accessibility while keeping the team within reason, while being able to feel good about what we accomplish, without feeling stretched.

When time is limited, focus on scalable accessibility solutions that can be expanded in future updates. Implementing foundational features that establish a solid base for accessibility allows for gradual enhancements later. For example, ensuring your website’s structure is compatible with assistive technologies sets the stage for more detailed improvements after launch. By prioritizing these core elements, you ensure that your product starts with a strong accessibility framework, enabling easier and more effective updates as time and resources permit.

Scalability holds significant weight in my decision-making mechanism. I always ask myself, "Is this feature something I may reuse later when I do another project?" If the answer is yes, it receives top priority. For example, when creating a responsive layout, we decided to make the layout modular and reusable if we needed a similar responsive layout in the future. This would save time down the road and show accessibility was a part of the design and not an afterthought.

Chaque solution doit disposer d'une roadmap précise et s'inscrire dans une stratégie long termes pour amortir les co?ts liés au développement et à l'intégration.

I’ve learned that scalability in accessibility often means thinking modularly. In one project, instead of creating a monolithic accessibility solution, I developed small, reusable components—like an adaptable form input system that worked for both keyboard and voice navigation. These components could be deployed across different parts of the product without needing to rewrite code. This approach allowed us to incrementally improve accessibility without needing a massive overhaul.

Accessibility is an ongoing commitment, not a one-time task. I make it a point to stay updated with the latest accessibility guidelines and best practices, which helps in making informed decisions even under tight deadlines. I also encourage the team to adopt a mindset of continuous learning, so that we’re always improving our approach to accessibility. For instance, after completing a project, we conduct a retrospective to identify what worked and where we can improve, setting us up for success in future projects.

Accessibility is not a fixed target; it is an evolving field that requires ongoing learning and adaptation. Just as the needs of users change, so do the tools and technologies available to meet those needs. Documenting decisions and their rationale builds a knowledge base that grows with each project, allowing for more informed choices in the future. This continuous learning approach goes beyond compliance—it drives innovation and fosters a deeper understanding of inclusivity. By embracing this mindset, we contribute not only to better products but to a more accessible world for all users.

One of the most eye-opening experiences for me was when I started to immerse myself in accessibility communities beyond my immediate work environment. I began following key accessibility advocates on social media and attending accessibility hackathons. This shifted my perspective from seeing accessibility as a ‘task’ to recognizing it as a culture of inclusion. Continuous learning for me isn’t just about updating skills but about deepening empathy and keeping in touch with evolving real-world challenges faced by diverse users.