everything you ever learned… applies to accessibility

Everything you ever learned…APPLIES TO ACCESSIBILITY

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Exploring the range of accessibility positions

Skills needed for the position Which do I already have?

Which could I develop?

Which don’t I have or want!?

Who is hiring? What are they looking for?

WebAIM survey of accessibility professionals

900 responses to survey in 2014

90 % of respondents live/ work in US and Europe

78% do not have a disability themselves

Educated: 74% have a B.A. or above

Corporate – 40% Educational institution – 20%

Government – 20%

Job title: 40% have “Accessibility” in the title

(at least) 25% are in tech

50% work full time or near full time in accessibility

Jobs with word “Accessibility” in the title or description

Indeed.com

Title ~ Accessibility = 107

Description ~ Accessibility = 11,444

½ tech: developers and testers

¼ manager/ administration

¼ other

Oct, 25, 2015

LinkedIn.com

Title ~ Accessibility = 58

Description ~ Accessibility = 5303

Same breakdown as indeed.com

Same ratio 1 job using “Accessibility” in title: 100 jobs where “accessibility” is used in the job description

Oct 25, 2015

Job titlesthanks, tagcrowd.com!

Companies hiring Accessibility titles

Developer

Technical knowledge of HTML, CSS, good coding practices

Ability to learn programming languages

Linear bias

QA

Constantly testing

Constantly questioning

Measuring

Pit-bull personality

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Psychologist

Place person in context

Understand motivations

Appeal to their strengths

Lead people to discover truths for themselves

Anthropologist

Ethnographic (field) studies

Deep research into what makes people tick

Understanding of group dynamics

Pre-school teacher

Make complex subjects simple

Meet person where they are and gently lead them to the next stage

Patience personified

Overlook momentary stalls as you see the bigger picture

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Writer

Communication

Deliver message without preaching

Embody different personalities, styles; get into character

Technical Writer

Explain the complex simply

Write instructions to guide users

Not afraid of technology

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Standup Comedian

Thick skin to shed criticism

Can see many sides to a subject

Inject humor into the thorniest of subjects

Stripper

Keep audience attention

Peeling the onion

Appeal to basic instincts

Prison Guard

Keep everyone aware of the rules

Focus on safety and group thought

Track the unusual

Project Manager

Detailed planning with known/ expected outcome

Track multiple resources/ outcomes to deliver on time

Taskmaster when needed

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Accountant

Attention to detail

Guided by rules; stay within parameters

Risk adverse

Engineer

Work within constraints

Enjoy meeting technical specifications

Able to work diligently for long periods of time

Statistician

Data cruncher par excellence

Produce visualizations that convey data discoveries

Trusts the numbers

What’s in your skill toolbox?

Technical skills

Developer

QA

Social skills

Psychologist

Pre-school Teacher

Communication

Tech Writer

Stand-up Comedian

Persuasion skills

Sales

Substitute Teacher

Data skills

Accountant

Statistician

Physical Skills

Auto Mechanic

Warehouse Worker

Auto Mechanic

Comfortable with technological solutions

Able to manufacture and produce physical results

Ability to follow rules and produce same results repeatedly

Art Teacher

Creative and also able to elicit creativity in others

Can envision workarounds when the usual methods don’t work

Willing to try something new

Ghostbuster

Aware of non-physical dimensions

Not afraid to go where others fear to tread

Imaginative in creating solutions

Professor

Used to doing deep and critical analysis

Publish works for others to build on

Research is built into their style

Lawyer

Aware of how the law works: rules/ regulations/ guidelines/ standards

Aware of timeframes around legalities

Can defend against litigation

Hidden job market

Uses accessibility the way we use it as part of skills needed/ desired

Uses other terms as well (ADA, Section 508, WCAG) in their recruiting terminology

Jobs with more usual job title, Instructional Coordinator, Project Manager, Senior Developer, Quality Assurance Engineer

“Accessibility Skills” are wanted but not to the exclusion of other core skills

You

Define your skills

Line up your skills with accessibility career which play to your strengths

Realize that you will be:

Unique in the short run

In short supply in the medium run

Re-invent yourself again in the long run

Web Designer UI/ UX for ‘Go Nimbly’, San Francisco, CA, $45 hr.

We're looking for a designer to help our company redesign our website. The successful candidate must ensure all elements of the UI (interface design, navigation, information hierarchy, accessibility) meet business objectives and user needs.

Requirements:

- Solid knowledge of Adobe CC web design suite on a Mac is required

- Previous experience with web/mobile/responsive design, layout and typography is essential

- Familiar with Wordpress CMS (no coding experience required)

- Passion for delivering beautiful, effective, results-focused, creative work

- Proven ability to maintain professional usability and artistic standards

- Excellent artistic eye for visual storytelling.

Job Type: Contract

Required experience:

Web Design: 2 years

Thanks for attending!

Elianna James I Break Websites LLC, President

www.ibreakwebsites.com

720-425-1001

eliannaj@yahoo.com

Twitter: @eliannaj

LinkedIn: Open invite to join me there