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VPATs: For Business or Measure?

VPATs: For Business or Measure?. Jay Nemchik. Ted Gies twitter:@tedgies1. PEAT (Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology) 21 September 2017. Logistics. Audio is also available over a phone line Dial in number: 1-866-365-3921 Conference Code: 7247886139

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VPATs: For Business or Measure?

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  1. VPATs: For Business or Measure? Jay Nemchik Ted Gies twitter:@tedgies1 PEAT (Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology) 21 September 2017

  2. Logistics Audio is also available over a phone line • Dial in number: 1-866-365-3921 • Conference Code: 7247886139 Submit questions at any time during the presentation: • Type directly into the Chat window on your screen • Email info@PEATworks.orgTworks.org • Tweet @PEATworks using #PEATTalks Captioning is available: • www.captionedtext.com/client/event.aspx?CustomerID=1314&EventID=3345243 • Short link: http://tinyurl.com/ya6ony4b

  3. Today’s Main Topics • VPAT Defined • Why are VPATs important to Elsevier and other businesses • Our VPAT Service Package • Best practices • Trends

  4. Elsevier: World Leader in Digital Information Solutions • Publisher transitioned into information analytics • Majority of Nobel Laureates have published with Elsevier over the last 50 years • 3800 journal titles • Over 40K DRM Free eBooks • Employs over 7,000 people in 24 countries. • Highly collaborative –SVG charts with HighSoft • Accessibility Policy

  5. invented the VPAT • Voluntary Product Accessibility Template • VPAT defined as: A tool used to document a product’s conformance with the 508 accessibility standards and guidelines. • The purpose of the VPAT is to help inform accessibility assessments when purchasing Information and Communication Technology. • 508 is comprised of guidelines and best practices to promote product accessibility. • US Access Board manages the 508 standard, but not VPATs.

  6. Facts and Figures on Elsevier VPAT Requests Typical Length – 12 Pages of Word document, turnaround 1 day to 1.5 weeks. Volume of requests growing – doubling in some years • >40 VPATs in 2016 • 70% of inquiries come in via sales department • 20% through legal contracts department • 10% through our accessibility inbox Customer roles asking for “VPATs” • Procurement specialists • Librarians • Accessibility services • Deans • Instructors

  7. Challenges With Managing VPAT Requests • Large Volume • Time Pressure: Sales Folks under hard deadlines • Lack of familiarity – See quote below • “Many of our large research intensive schools will now not sign our contracts unless we submit a web accessibility document to them.” (Sales Director at Elsevier) “I have never heard of a VPAT, presume it is technical based on the links for other products. I’m sorry to send you on a wild good chase, but I’m copying a couple folks to see what might exist.” Anonymous Account Manager

  8. Customer wants to know: Is Your Website 508 Compliant? Of course my boy, we have Supports for all checkpoints Do You Really Believe Honest Jon’s VPAT?

  9. Do You Really Believe Honest Jon’s VPAT? All Supported with No Remarks

  10. Our VPAT is intended to answer: Is your website 508 compliant?

  11. The Complete Elsevier VPAT Service Package RemediationForm Intended for Customer C C Intended for Development Team C

  12. Optimizing our VPAT Process • Customer, Sales, Product, or Marketing contact our team • Prioritize queue of requests by revenue risk/revenue size • Track inquiry data in annual a11y spreadsheet • Establish appropriate service package • Establish deadline and communicate back • Scale level of effort according to site’s longevity • Deliver service package • Post VPAT on public product page and on intranet repository

  13. Best Practices in Creating VPATs Acronym: DUTCH Detailed - Fill out Remarks Section Unbiased - Use 3rd party or standard testing criteria Templatebased - Reusablesaves time Contemporary - Updateevery year or with big releases Honest - Show where you DO and DO NOT pass a requirement with specific examples

  14. VPAT Template

  15. Supports with Exceptions WCAG 2.0 1.3.1 Info and Relationships Information, structure, and can be programmatically determined.Level A W3C Guideline New Template Coming Soon in PPT

  16. Increase Customer Satisfaction with Quality VPATs "I would like you and those who created this VPAT to know, that I appreciate how well done it is. I truly appreciate all of the details in the areas which are supported with exceptions or not supported. It is rare to see a VPAT with such specific detail about the functionality and exceptions. I wish more vendors would do as good a job as Elsevier has done." Director, Disability Resources ADA Coordinator University XYZ

  17. Example ScienceDirect Accessibility Statement

  18. Central Accessibility Team is a Cost Effective Way to Manage VPATs • External consultancies (VPAT) expensive compared to FTE • VPAT by intern was 1/3 cost of VPAT by cheapest consultant • Cost savings data helped hire Jay as FTE accessibility specialist • Continuous queue of customers and internals illustrated capacity gap

  19. What’s New in the VPAT Universe? • Remediation Forms • 3 External Trends • VPAT 2.0

  20. Proliferation of the Accessibility Conformance and Remediation Form (~20% of VPATs in 2016)

  21. 3 External Trends in VPATs and US 508 • More follow up from customers • Phone calls, remediation plans, workarounds • Wider Domain Adoption of 508/VPATs: • US Government Agencies • State Universities • Community Colleges • Online Universities • Police Departments (NEW!) • Healthcare companies (NEW!) • Switch from 1998 508 web standards to WCAG 2.0 (AA)

  22. VPAT 2.0 (Beta) Available on ITI Website (32 Pages!) VPAT 2.0 (Beta) • Big change is to broaden standards • V2 Tacks on EN 301 549 and WCAG A, AA, AAA • 32 Pages Vs 18 Page Version 1 • Good Best Practices and FAQ • Send feedback to ITI through online survey

  23. VPAT 2.0 (Beta) • Big change is to broaden standards • VPAT 2.0 tacks on EN 301 549 and WCAG A, AA, AAA • 32 Pages Vs 18 Page Version 1 • Good Section on Best Practices and FAQ

  24. Conclusion • In business, VPATs are the industry standard for responding to US 508 accessibility inquiries. • For measure, we recommend a VPAT service package to tell the whole story. • By expanding a VPAT into more than just a list of violations, the team can be trusted, have more impact, and develop into a larger team. • By formally tracking VPAT requests, you can help demonstrate the business case for accessibility to management.

  25. Resources ITI Website (Creator of the VPAT and VPAT 2.0 Beta) https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility ScienceDirect Accessibility Page (With Completed VPAT)https://www.elsevier.com/solutions/sciencedirect/support/web-accessibility Elsevier Accessibility Policyhttps://www.elsevier.com/about/company-information/policies/accessibility Elsevier Accessibility Checklist Toolhttp://romeo.elsevier.com/accessibility_checklist/ Guide to the Section 508 Standards for Electronic and Information Technology, Software Applications and Operating Systems (1194.21)http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/guide/1194.21.htm U of Arizona VPAT Template (with inline Guidance)http://drc.arizona.edu/about/vpat US VA 508 Standards Checklistshttp://www.section508.va.gov/Standards_Checklist.asp

  26. Discussion • How are other firms dealing with Remediation Forms? • Can we help educate Product Managers to help in completing remediation forms? • Have accessibility teams already transitioned from 508 checkpoints to WCAG 2? • Which team in your company completes VPATs?

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