Exygy Accessibility Landing Page

Defining accessibility

Accessibility means different things to different people. We can start by describing what our shared understanding of accessibility means, beginning with ground-setting information.

At least 1 in 5 people in the world are living with a disability. Committing to web accessibility means ensuring that people with a range of disabilities can use your digital product. The disabilities that relate to digital accessibility include four types of users:

• Visual Disabilities include blindness, low vision, and color blindness, which affect 28% of the world's population.
• Hearing Disabilities include auditory disabilities from mild to complete hearing loss in one or both ears, which affect 5% of the world's population.
• Mobility Disabilities include any disability that affects a person's physical functions, dexterity or stamina, which affect 16% of adults in the US.
• Cognitive Disabilities include people who face more challenges when trying to complete mental tasks, which affects 8 million people in the US.

At Exygy, we work in the public sector —  creating websites and supporting digital delivery of social services. It's our mission to ensure that these products and services are truly human-centered and reach as many people as possible, especially those who have been traditionally marginalized or underserved by technology. One way to ensure our digital products meet the needs of all users is by designing for accessibility and inclusiveness.

Raising accessibility standards makes products better for everyone

By design, accessible websites and products work better for everyone, not just for those with disabilities. The accessible design principles, when implemented, make sites load faster and are more intuitive. Accessibility accommodations also support those with:

• Slow internet connections. People who have limited internet connections benefit from content that is well structured.
• Situational challenges. People in environments that challenge their senses including noisy spaces or bright lighting benefit from accommodations made for people with hearing and visual disabilities.
• Temporary disabilities. People who are recovering from a broken limb or who may have just lost their reading glasses also benefit from accessible design elements.
• Alternative devices. People using newer smartwatches and connected TVs benefit from the keyboard access technology used by assistive devices.

Embedded accessibility best practices in each delivery function

Everyone on the team can play a role in developing accessible solutions. It’s a process that starts with research and can continue to gain resolution through iterative design and development. Below are steps that outline the process we go through when designing accessible digital products.

• Research. During early discovery, we meet with accessibility experts and gain insights on how existing solutions serve the disabled community.
• Design. As we develop the visual language, our designers can ensure elements such as color contrast are sufficient for people with visual disabilities.
• User Testing. We work with organizations that recruit people with disabilities to test our products using screen readers and assistive technology that they use every day.