Converge Accessibility Legal IT, Web Accessibility Experts Part of OBS Advisory Council
Two of the nation’s leading legal IT and web accessibility experts and advocates for people with disabilities have joined the Outlook Business Solutions Accessibility Advisory Council to help the startup address a significant gap in digital accessibility.
Ken Nakata and Jeff Singleton, principals with Converge Accessibility, bring decades of digital accessibility experience in the changing legal and technical accessibility landscape, according to a statement from Outlook.
As a social enterprise and business growth agency, Outlook Business Solutions specializes in providing employment opportunities to professionals with vision loss. The organization’s Accessibility Advisory Council is a team of partners with a passion for improving the user experience for people who rely on assistive technology to access digital content.
Errors on websites, applications and software often make them incompatible with the adaptive technologies used by people with a range of disabilities. The council supports the expansion of Ally Support, the organization’s subscription-based service that assists application and web developers, as well as content creators, in expanding their market share by ensuring their digital properties are accessible to people of all abilities.
Natalie Hadley, vice president of Outlook Business Solutions, said having the expertise of Nakata and Singleton is invaluable for a startup with a strong social mission. She said she looks forward to collaborating to address accessibility issues with the potential to prevent or fracture relationships between businesses and their customers.
“Converge Accessibility is committed to narrowing the digital divide, and Outlook Business Solutions is grateful to have leading accessibility thought leaders on our Accessibility Advisory Council,” Hadley said in a news release. “The depth and breadth of Ken and Jeff’s expertise will help guide and grow our Ally Support service. Their insights will help our customers navigate change and compliance challenges, while gaining loyalty from consumers with disabilities in the process.”
Converge Accessibility, founded in 2020, provides litigation services and expert accessibility evaluations. The company’s WebAlign product provides an accessibility requirements framework, as well as training resources and compliance tools to help organizations align with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. The goal of WCAG is to provide an internationally shared standard for web content accessibility that meets the needs of individuals, organizations and governments.
Nakata is a former senior trial attorney with the U.S. Justice Department’s Disability Rights Section. He was awarded the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Information Technology by Attorney General Janet Reno. He also served as lead counsel for the interagency group making the federal government’s information technology accessible to people with disabilities (pursuant to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act).
“The legal landscape around IT accessibility is changing, highlighted by courts throughout the country sorting through a flood of web accessibility cases and organizations realizing the potential impact of their rulings on their business,” Nakata said. “I’m honored to partner with Outlook Business Solutions to bring more clarity around pending web accessibility legislation and help organizations seeking to provide a more inclusive experience for customers of all abilities find collaborative solutions.”
Singleton is one of the nation’s leading authorities on web accessibility and testing. A former member of Microsoft’s Accessible Technology Group, he has a keen understanding of accessibility standards, such as WCAG and Section 508. He helped government agencies like the Veteran’s Health Administration make technology accessible. For the last several years, he has performed accessibility reviews of the technologies used by NASA’s grantees.
“I have a passion for educating others about accessibility and the practical impact it has on the user experience of people with disabilities,” Singleton said. “Organizations that take the time to create user interfaces that work for all users not only win new customers, they also save on development costs. I’m proud to work with Outlook Business Solutions to help increase understanding in the business world of the significant opportunity to grow revenue by designing more accessible software and doing it the right way.”
Businesses interested in outsourcing accessibility testing and marketing projects to Outlook Business Solutions can call 531-365-5055.
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