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Project Manager

As the Project Manager, you hold unique responsibilities in ensuring that our products are successful. While you may not be directly responsible for development or testing, there are things you can do to ensure that our products meet accessibility requirements and goals.

Your responsibilities

  • Understand that accessibility (like security and performance) is infrastructure that customers expect to have in place. If it’s missing, the product is not complete.
  • Ensure that your teams understand accessibility isn’t something you bolt on later. (You can and probably have to in some cases, but like any bug you fix late, it costs a lot more. Nobody wants that.)
  • Ensure that your products are being designed, developed, and tested for all your users.

How you can make us more successful

  • Familiarize yourself with high-level accessibility roles for each member of your team, and ensure your team knows where to find them.
  • Read Can you reach anything that’s interactive using the tab key? by 18F to learn how to navigate a website with only your keyboard.
  • Read Can you use a screen reader to access the page content? by 18F to learn how people with screen readers use the web
    • Download a screen reader and practice using it so you can spot check new features when necessary. A list of screen readers is on Testing Tools.
  • Read Consider how everyone will use the product by 18F and work with UX Researchers to ensure that accessibility needs are reflected in your personas.
  • Build accessibility into your project workflows. Read Build accessibility into your project workflow by 18F for tips.
  • Set a regular cadence for re-evaluating your products’ accessibility.
  • Understand that everything we produce and share needs to be accessible.
    • Per Section 508, accessibility requirements apply to documents, PDFs, presentations, software, websites, spreadsheets, video, audio, and social media content. 
  • When sharing good work done by your team, praise efforts to increase accessibility.
  • Choose tools and products that make accessibility easier to achieve.
  • Be an advocate.
  • Seek out and hire a diverse team including people who have disabilities.

Additional Resources