Enhancing Accessibility and Compliance of a Digital Whistleblowing Platform

The client aims to improve the accessibility of their digital whistleblowing platform to ensure compliance with legal standards, enhance user experience for diverse users including those with disabilities, and broaden the platform's reach to promote transparency and social responsibility.

A large legal services firm with a focus on corporate compliance, social responsibility, and digital transformation initiatives.

• Conduct a comprehensive accessibility audit to identify violations of WCAG standards.
• Develop a detailed prioritization roadmap for addressing accessibility issues.
• Implement enhancements to achieve AA-level compliance with WCAG guidelines.
• Improve user navigation, clarity, and overall usability for all user groups.
• Reduce potential legal and regulatory risks associated with non-compliance.
• Expand platform usability to a broader audience, including users with disabilities.
• Enhance effectiveness of assistive technologies and keyboard navigation.
• Support the client's corporate social responsibility and diversity initiatives.

• Automated accessibility testing tools integrated into the development process to identify violations in real-time.
• Manual accessibility audits conducted by cross-disciplinary specialists, including UX designers and QA testers knowledgeable in accessibility.
• Detailed audit reports with visual evidence (screenshots), clear descriptions, and prioritization of issues based on severity and impact.
• Implementation of ARIA labels and roles to enhance screen reader compatibility, especially for dynamic components like carousels and sliders.
• Clear, logical heading structures supported by tools like HeadingMap to ensure screen reader users can navigate content effectively.
• Contrast and font size checks to ensure visual clarity for users with visual impairments, including support for larger fonts and high-contrast color schemes.
• Enhanced keyboard navigation flows, including focus management and intuitive operation of all UI elements without a mouse.
• UI/UX design modifications to improve overall usability and clarity, including button sizes, color schemes, and user flow consistency.

• External accessibility testing tools and APIs
• Assistive technologies for manual testing (screen readers, keyboard navigation tools)
• Project management and issue tracking systems to document and prioritize fixes

• Compliance with WCAG 2.1 AA standards
• Platform performance optimized for swift load times and responsiveness
• Security protocols ensuring confidentiality and anonymity of reports
• Scalable architecture to handle increasing user load and varying report volume
• Maintainability with clear documentation for ongoing accessibility updates

The initiative will ensure legal compliance, reducing regulatory risk, and foster an inclusive environment that broadens platform reach to over 15% of the population with disabilities. Expected outcomes include improved user experience, increased trust and loyalty, enhanced reputation for social responsibility, and reduced long-term development and maintenance costs through proactive accessibility measures.