Accessible service delivery is good for your clients and your business
Walk into any store or call any client service helpline, and you’ll likely be greeted by mottos like, “We put clients first” and “Your satisfaction is our priority.” However, if accessibility is not embedded in service delivery, the actual client experience can be far from satisfactory.
You may think you’re offering service, but you’re also asking a lot of your clients. To receive your services, clients must be able to think, feel, sense, and act in ways that may or may not work with their current capacity. This is true for everyone you serve, especially people with disabilities. Organizations can better deliver on their client-first promise if they provide the right accessibility training to their teams. This provides staff with the knowledge and skills to adjust their services to work for people with disabilities.
The bottom line is that accessible service delivery is the right thing to do, and it also creates a significant return on investment.
Twenty-seven per cent of Canadians, or 8 million people, aged 15 years and older have one or more disabilities (2022 Canadian Survey on Disability). Many of those disabilities are invisible, and legally, disabled people don’t have to disclose their condition to have equal access to services. When businesses prioritize accessible services, not only do they open their doors to more clients, but they also enable all clients to enjoy a better experience.
Shifting responsibility from clients to businesses
The movement toward accessible service delivery is a shift away from inequitable systems. Historically, the medical model of disability viewed disabilities as “problems” that individuals needed to deal with on their own. Public-facing services were accordingly designed without accessibility in mind.
Norms are now changing with legislation like the Accessible BC Act and the Accessible Canada Act. More inclusive social beliefs recognize that disability is a normal part of the human experience. Disabled people have equal rights and responsibilities to participate in society. Society can, and should, change to support disabled people.
Currently, Crown corporations, local governments, public schools, libraries, and health care authorities are mandated under the Accessible BC Act to remove accessibility barriers for people with disabilities. As Untapped unpacked in a recent webinar, accessible service delivery standards are coming for BC organizations who serve the public. For federally regulated industries like transportation, telecom and banking, similar standards have been drafted. Is your business ready?
Overcome organizational barriers with the right support
Improving accessibility can involve adjustments like offering a range of communication options, adjusting policies, reconfiguring spaces, and training staff. There are so many ways to increase accessibility, that it can feel hard to know where to start.
You might ask:
- What would accessible service delivery look like in our context?
- Where can we have the biggest impact?
- How do we empower staff to adopt new practices?
These are all excellent questions and accessibility experts can offer guidance.
At Untapped Accessibility, we’re leaders in accessibility consulting and we’ve developed a practical framework for accessible service delivery. By training staff on this adaptable framework, your team will be empowered to take charge of accessibility improvements.
Empower front-line staff to deliver accessible services
In addition to having a strong commitment to accessibility, it’s also important to equip your team with the right tools to put your values into action. On-the-job training is an effective way to support your team in serving people with disabilities.
In our accessible service delivery training, we teach front-line staff and supervisors:
- How to anticipate the demands your clients will experience when they use your services
- How to improve accessibility by introducing options
- How to name what you know about the accessibility of your service
Our training is customized to each business so learners will gain practical strategies that can be applied immediately in their roles. Engaging and customized exercises ensure the learning supports real-life applications. For teams that desire greater support, Untapped is also able to audit an existing service or help co-design a new service.
Research shows that employees experience higher job satisfaction when provided with training and opportunities to grow (Future Skills Centre). Investing in staff training improves the client experience and boosts team morale!
If you’re ready to improve the accessibility of your services, contact us to book a training session for your team.