If You Don’t Test with Real Users, You Don’t Know What You’ve Built

Mary Roemmele, Senior Director for Product Accessibility at Workday, discusses leading accessibility across a global software organization. Drawing on a background in banking technology and mergers and acquisitions, along with a lifetime of personal connections to disability through her family, she explains how she found her way into accessibility leadership. Mary describes integrating accessibility throughout the product lifecycle, including acquisition due diligence, and closes by exploring how organizations can scale accessibility by understanding technical debt, educating partners, and making accessibility part of long-term business strategy.

Samantha Karell, who leads Digital Accessibility Services at Allyant, discusses helping organizations build sustainable accessibility programs through audits, VPATs, consulting, and strategic guidance. She traces her path from student services into the University of Washington’s Disability Resources Office, where working with accommodations, Braille materials, and digital access sparked her passion for accessibility. Samantha also shares her optimism about AI, explaining how it can improve internal operations, scale expertise across teams, and deliver faster, more meaningful guidance to customers without replacing human judgment.

Ben Ogilvie, Director of Accessibility Strategy at ArcTouch and First Vice Chair of the GAAD Foundation, shares how a life-changing family events led him into full-time accessibility work. He discusses building accessibility-first digital products, advocating for inclusion with clients, and supporting the accessibility community through GAAD and Accessibility NYC. Ben also explores two future-focused initiatives: AI-powered accessible prototyping that enables rapid usability testing with blind users, and GAAD’s AI accessibility benchmarks designed to push major AI models toward generating more accessible code by default.

Joe Welinske reports from the Microsoft Ability Summit, highlighting emerging accessibility technologies, AI-driven accessibility initiatives, and new approaches to inclusive design. He reflects on presentations covering voice preservation, accessible packaging, neurodiverse hiring, AI training tools, and the expanding role of accessibility across Microsoft’s ecosystem. The episode explores how accessibility innovation is increasingly connected to AI, collaboration, and scalable inclusion.

Lisa Riemers shares her journey from marketing and communications into accessibility-focused content design. As an independent consultant, she works across organizations to improve how messages are structured, understood, and delivered. She discusses the importance of user testing, plain language, and bridging technical and communication teams. Lisa also explores how accessible communication builds trust, why it’s a business advantage, and how AI is reshaping the future of content and accessibility work.

Stacy Scott shares her journey from discovering screen readers at university to leading accessibility strategy in digital publishing. Drawing on lived experience as a blind professional, she explores how accessible content enables independence, why accessibility must be embedded into everyday systems, and where progress still falls short. Stacy also discusses global initiatives like Bookshare and the transformative potential of AI to expand access and inclusion.

Fabiana Lassandro shares her journey from web design student to accessibility engineer and educator. She discusses how accessibility transformed her perspective on development, the importance of embedding accessibility into design systems, and how teaching helps reinforce that accessibility is foundational—not optional. Fabiana also highlights the value of mentoring, explaining the “why” behind accessibility, and ensuring teams build inclusive experiences from the start.

Mali Fernando shares how accessibility becomes most effective when embedded into product development from the start. Drawing on a background in design and technology, Mali discusses working across teams to integrate inclusive design practices, shift accessibility from compliance to user experience, and help organizations build accessibility into everyday workflows. The conversation highlights the importance of education, collaboration, and making accessibility practical and scalable.

Aileen Hackett, Director of Product Management for Accessibility at ServiceNow, shares how her team scales accessibility across a global enterprise. From mandating training for 20,000 employees to embedding accessibility into design systems and product workflows, she explains how organizations move from compliance to usability. Aileen also discusses the importance of listening to people with disabilities, aligning accessibility with business priorities, and preparing for the opportunities—and risks—of AI.

Kate Gonzalez, Accessibility Director at Elevance Health, shares her “wavy” career path from occupational therapy to enterprise accessibility leadership. Drawing on experiences across architecture consulting, city government, video games, and healthcare, she discusses how accessibility strategy becomes meaningful when organizations move from planning to action. Kate also highlights the importance of stakeholder engagement, accessibility councils, and embedding inclusive practices across teams to create sustainable accessibility programs.