Software program groups have spent years treating accessibility like technical debt—one thing to deal with within the backlog when there’s time, finances and organizational will.
That method has failed.
Regardless of rising regulatory stress from laws just like the European Accessibility Act and a gentle drumbeat of ADA lawsuits, solely 54 p.c of organizations self-report assembly WCAG 2.2 requirements; nevertheless, even worse, 95 p.c of house pages have WCAG 2.2 errors. The disconnect between good intentions and significant outcomes reveals a structural drawback: accessibility wants devoted product possession, not simply engineering checklists.
Enter the Accessibility Product Supervisor.
This isn’t a rebranding of your accessibility specialist or a elaborate title for the one that runs automated scans earlier than launch. An Accessibility Product Supervisor operates on the intersection of enterprise technique, consumer expertise, and technical implementation. They sit in planning conferences. They form roadmaps. They make sure that actual suggestions from folks with disabilities influences product choices from idea by means of deployment. Most significantly, they deal with accessibility as a function—not a compliance train. Accessibility is an innovation creator to construct wonderful merchandise that enhance the expertise for everybody.
The Enterprise Case Past Compliance
The enterprise case for this position extends past mere danger mitigation. Firms main on incapacity inclusion standards understand 1.6 instances extra income, 2.6 instances extra web revenue, and twice the financial revenue in comparison with their friends, in line with Accenture. The worldwide inhabitants of individuals with disabilities and their help networks instructions an estimated $13 trillion in annual disposable revenue, in line with the Return on Incapacity Group. These aren’t area of interest customers. They’re clients who reward firms that spend money on their expertise with fierce loyalty.
But, organizations proceed to stumble as a result of they’ve distributed accessibility duty throughout groups with out giving anybody actual authority over outcomes. More often than not, builders write code with accessibility in thoughts. Designers make use of inclusive ideas once they have time. QA groups run accessibility checks once they’re not below deadline stress. Applause’s analysis reveals that whereas 80 p.c of organizations now have an individual or group chargeable for accessibility—up from 52 p.c in 2022—68 p.c nonetheless lack the experience and sources to check independently on an ongoing foundation. Everybody owns it, which implies nobody owns it. An Accessibility Product Supervisor adjustments this dynamic by creating clear accountability and integrating accessibility into the product improvement lifecycle from day one.
Accessibility Options Grow to be Mainstream Expectations
The “curb-cut impact” demonstrates why this issues for everybody, not simply customers with disabilities. Within the Seventies, incapacity advocates fought for lowered curbs to accommodate wheelchair customers. What adopted shocked everybody: dad and mom with strollers, supply employees with hand vans, vacationers with rolling baggage, and joggers all benefited. The identical sample performs out in software program. Options designed for accessibility typically grow to be mainstream expectations.
Think about real-time captioning. Initially developed for people who find themselves deaf or exhausting of listening to, captions now seem all over the place. Seventy p.c of Gen Z activate captions when watching media content material, no matter listening to potential, in line with a Preply survey. Dialogue enhancement options that use AI to isolate and make clear speech above background noise—expertise constructed with accessibility in thoughts—now enchantment to anybody watching tv in a loud surroundings or struggling to listen to mumbled dialogue. These aren’t lodging anymore. They’re aggressive benefits that opened new markets.
An Accessibility Product Supervisor acknowledges these as strategic alternatives and champions them internally. They ask completely different questions in planning periods: How may a blind consumer navigate this workflow? What occurs when somebody with motor limitations tries to finish this process? Can a consumer with cognitive variations perceive these directions with out help? These questions don’t decelerate improvement—they stop pricey retrofits and increase the addressable market.
The position additionally addresses a elementary limitation of present approaches. Automated accessibility instruments can determine between 20 and 40 p.c of potential points. Many issues merely aren’t machine-detectable, and AI—whereas bettering—nonetheless can’t substitute for actual human views. An Accessibility Product Supervisor builds relationships with customers with disabilities and ensures testing includes actual assistive expertise customers in real-world situations.
The place This Position Belongs in Your Group
Organizations severe about this position should resist the temptation to bury it in high quality assurance or deal with it as a subset of compliance. The Accessibility Product Supervisor stories to product management as a result of accessibility choices have an effect on technique, positioning, and income. They take part in govt planning as a result of accessibility roadmaps require cross-functional alignment.
The shift already underway in forward-thinking organizations treats accessibility as a personalization function somewhat than a particular lodging. When accessibility planning appears to be like like another customized consumer expertise, the false dichotomy between accessible and mainstream dissolves.
Improvement groups implementing this method discover that accessibility experience turns into distributed somewhat than concentrated. The Accessibility Product Supervisor doesn’t do all of the accessibility work—they guarantee everybody understands their position in creating inclusive merchandise for all customers to get pleasure from. Engineers write accessible code as a result of necessities specify accessibility outcomes from the beginning. Designers embrace inclusive ideas as a result of consumer analysis contains folks with numerous skills.
The regulatory surroundings will proceed to press organizations towards accessibility. Enforcement of the European Accessibility Act started in June 2025, and incapacity advocacy teams have intensified campaigns highlighting non-compliant organizations. Authorized and compliance dangers assist justify funding.
However the actual alternative lies elsewhere. Organizations that deal with accessibility as a supply of innovation somewhat than a compliance burden will outcompete these caught in remediation mode. They’ll seize market share amongst customers underserved by inaccessible merchandise. They’ll develop options that profit all customers by fixing issues for customers with particular wants first.
The Accessibility Product Supervisor makes this transformation attainable by giving accessibility the strategic consideration it deserves. It’s the lacking piece that explains why so many firms spend money on accessibility with out seeing significant outcomes.
The businesses that create this position now will construct the inclusive merchandise that outline the subsequent decade of software program improvement. Everybody else will spend these years taking part in catch-up.
