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15:15
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🇬🇧 English
Design Stage
Inclusive Research Practices as Engine for Implementing Accessibility in your organization.
About
In this presentation, I will share our journey at Roche, where we have been committed to making digital accessibility a core part of our everyday practices. As a member of the team responsible for implementing Digital Accessibility Program, I will discuss how our efforts go beyond just meeting technical requirements.
During presentation, I'll refer to scientific literature and research on accessibility models and programs. I'll introduce theoretical frameworks for inclusive research and design, which are often neglected in accessibility discussions. These frameworks have guided us in developing a comprehensive and thoughtful accessibility strategy.
A key part of our journey has been a participatory design project with Roche employees. Participatory group built, drafted, and tested our first Digital Accessibility Policy. They work showed us that understanding your situation first is a key factor to implement meaningful change. During presentation i would refer to our case-study and findings we've done, as they may be also a learnings for whole DE&I and Accessibility community, especially during the ""not-so-welcoming"" US administration.
The main message of this presentation is that simply following accessibility technical requirements, off-shelf models may be just not enough to create meaningful change in an *especially: big or world-wide) organization. True transformation requires guiding principles grounded in inclusive research. These principles ensure that accessibility is not just a checklist but a lived practice that benefits everyone.
Join me as I share our experiences, the challenges we faced, and the successes we achieved by prioritizing participation and inclusive research. Learn how you can apply these insights to drive accessibility and inclusion in your own organization.
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From the recording
Talk in brief
In this WaysConf 2025 presentation, Robert Statkiewicz, UX & Accessibility Expert at Roche, shares how the global biotechnology company moved beyond standard compliance checklists to implement digital accessibility through inclusive research. Statkiewicz argues that traditional accessibility maturity models often lack empirical foundations and fail to account for unique organizational cultures. By contrasting Universal Design—which often defaults to a "one size fits all" standard—with Inclusive Design, he highlights how inclusive research shifts the focus to the design process itself. Roche applied these principles by actively involving a diverse, global cohort of employees, including those from underserved regions and people with disabilities, to co-create and test its internal digital accessibility policy. This collaborative approach ensures that accessibility is treated not as a reactive, checkbox-ticking exercise, but as a proactive commitment to equity, empathy, and user agency.
Key takeaways
- 01
Limitations of Maturity Models
Scientific analysis of 25 accessibility maturity models reveals they often lack empirical foundations and assume a single evolutionary path, ignoring unique organizational cultures.
Watch from 8:01 - 02
Universal vs. Inclusive Design
While Universal Design historically relies on standardized criteria to evaluate final products, Inclusive Design focuses on the creation process itself to ensure diverse users feel genuinely welcomed.
Watch from 13:42 - 03
Leveraging Intersectionality
Using tools like the intersectionality wheel helps researchers make conscious, context-specific decisions about which diverse user groups to include or exclude in their studies.
Watch from 18:08 - 04
Co-Creating Internal Policy
Roche developed its digital accessibility policy by directly collaborating with a diverse group of 23 employees, including accessibility experts, allies, and individuals with disabilities from the Global South.
Watch from 23:48 - 05
Shifting to Process-Based Compliance
Future standards like WCAG 3.0 are expected to evaluate the design process itself rather than relying solely on rigid, post-production criteria.
Watch from 30:05
Read edited transcript highlights
These concise notes were edited from automatic captions and checked against the talk structure. They are not a verbatim transcript.
The Pitfalls of Universal Maturity Models
When organizations seek guidance on implementing accessibility, they often turn to maturity models, such as the universal framework proposed by the W3C. However, scientific research analyzing 25 different accessibility models revealed that most lack empirical foundations. Instead of offering flexible guidance, they frequently take the form of rigid checklists or matrices. Furthermore, these models rarely explain how they were evaluated, making it difficult to know if they accurately reflect corporate reality or if a model designed for a small startup can successfully apply to a massive global corporation.
Watch from 7:48Distinguishing Universal Design from Inclusive Design
Universal Design and Inclusive Design are often used interchangeably in business, but they represent distinct philosophies. Universal Design, pioneered by Ronald Mace in the 1980s, aimed to create products and environments usable by everyone without adaptation. However, this approach can inadvertently promote a "one size fits all" mentality evaluated through strict post-production criteria. In contrast, Inclusive Design emerged from neurodivergent individuals and those with invisible disabilities who still felt excluded. It focuses on the design process itself, ensuring users feel welcomed rather than just meeting technical requirements.
Watch from 10:28Applying the Intersectionality Wheel in Research
Because the tech industry is largely composed of people with similar ages, abilities, and socioeconomic backgrounds, designers often suffer from unconscious biases. Inclusive research addresses this by using tools like the intersectionality wheel. This framework maps various human dimensions, showing which groups hold power in knowledge creation and which voices are typically marginalized. Rather than demanding the impossible task of including everyone in every study, the wheel helps researchers make conscious, context-specific decisions about who to include or exclude.
Watch from 16:19Co-Designing Roche's Accessibility Policy
Guided by the principle of "nothing about us without us," Roche rejected top-down policy creation and instead invited a diverse internal cohort to shape its digital accessibility guidelines. The collaborative group of 23 employees spanned the corporate hierarchy, combining accessibility experts, allies, and individuals with disabilities. Crucially, the company actively recruited participants from outside the Global North, including colleagues from Africa and South America, allowing them to share their unique regional challenges and cultural contexts for the first time.
Watch from 22:55Testing and Validating the Policy Beta
To ensure the newly drafted accessibility policy resonated with employees, Roche conducted beta testing with a diverse group of 13 testers, including managers, technical experts, and members of underserved groups. The feedback was highly positive, particularly regarding the policy's explicit recognition of intersectionality. One deaf employee noted that by specifying diverse cultural and physical backgrounds rather than using the vague term "all users," the policy validated the shared struggles of different marginalized groups and relieved her of the sole burden of advocacy.
Watch from 26:37The Industry Shift Toward Process and Care
Evolving industry standards reflect a broader shift from reactive compliance to proactive care. For instance, Microsoft's recent accessibility maturity model explicitly states it is tailored only to their organization rather than claiming universal applicability. Similarly, the upcoming WCAG 3.0 is expected to focus heavily on the design process rather than static post-production criteria. This movement aligns with recent academic literature defining accessibility not as a simple checkbox, but as a deep commitment to empathy, equity, and user agency.
Watch from 29:36
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