Disability inclusion must remain a serious issue for global business, says Business Disability Forum
Addressing Business Disability Forum’s Global Conference today (20 November), Diane Lightfoot, CEO, will speak about the challenges facing global business, whilst calling on leaders to continue to see disability inclusion as a serious business issue that adds value.
Global narrative and challenges
Speaking at ‘Disability inclusion in a complex world’ Diane Lightfoot, CEO of Business Disability Forum, will say:
“We know that disability inclusion is serious for global business. It’s serious in attracting and retaining talent – we know that the younger workforce, in particular, has higher expectations of the support they want from their employer and that includes diversity. And it’s serious in meeting the needs of a diverse customer base – after all, it’s about making it easy for as many people as possible to spend their money with you!
“But disability champions are swimming against a tide of global variations in regulation, compliance and culture, and a corrosive narrative that says disability inclusion is not important. How do you keep going when times are tough, budgets are being cut, and the mood music is against you? I’d suggest by focusing on what you can do – on how you can still make a difference and add value. By identifying priorities for focus where you can see progress rather than trying to do everything. It’s also about showing how disability inclusion relates to and impacts on different areas of the business – and where getting it right is also a legal requirement.”
Diane will be joined at the conference by a wide range of leading voices working in the global disability inclusion and accessibility space. They will discuss how businesses can be consistently disability-smart across their global operations and make a robust business case for disability inclusion whilst also meeting the rigorous standards for compliance expected in many parts of the world.
Today’s conference is sponsored by HSBC. Speaking about the conference, Carolanne Minashi, Global Head of Inclusion at HSBC said: “At HSBC, our purpose is to open up a world of opportunities. We want to make sure that disabled people are not left behind by creating services, products and ways of working that are accessible and inclusive at both a global and local level. We are pleased to be sponsoring Business Disability Forum’s global conference. It is a chance for practitioners to come together as a community to discuss how we achieve meaningful progress and the opportunities that change can present.”
Accessibility in the AI era
The impact of AI on accessibility will be a dominant topic for discussion throughout the day. Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Chief Accessibility Officer at Microsoft, will deliver a keynote highlighting the importance of building AI for everyone and ensuring accessibility remains an investment priority for business.
Speaking about the conference, Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Chief Accessibility Officer, Vice President at Microsoft said:
“Every company needs to be thoughtful to make sure they are building for everyone, especially in the era of AI. Grateful for Business Disability Forum for the partnership, and work to accelerate accessibility and inclusion of disabled people to power this new technological era. We all benefit and move faster if we work together.”
Diane Lightfoot will speak about the impact of AI on the processing of data and in making workplace adjustments. She will signal the need for disabled people to be fully included in AI development.
Diane Lightfoot will say:
“The pace at which AI is developing is staggering – and if AI products are not inclusive by design, people with disabilities risk being excluded or left behind. There is a real risk that people who don’t fit a “standard” profile – for our context, people with disabilities – will be overlooked. So, we must understand the limitations of the data we do have and actively and intentionally work to fill in the gaps by involving people.”
“More positively, there is potential to use AI to make workplace adjustments that could make a radical difference to disabled people in the workplace. We’ve also seen huge leaps in AI captioning for example. As we enter this brave new world, our focus must be on making sure we are getting it right for everyone.”
Inclusion in a complex world
Speaking on topics including inclusion in a complex world, how businesses are responding to the European Accessibility Act and how to maintain high accessibility standards globally, other conference speakers will include:
- Wolfgang Kowatsch, Managing Director, myAbility Social Enterprise GmbH (Austria)
- Jürgen Menze, Disability Inclusion Specialist, International Labour Organization (Switzerland)
- Amy Whalley, CEO, Australian Disability Network (Australia)
- Abi James, Senior Digital Accessibility Consultant, Barclays plc (UK)
- Neil Milliken, Global Head of Accessibility & Digital Inclusion, Atos (UK)
- Christopher Patnoe, Lead for EMEA Accessibility & Disability Innovation, Google (UK)
- Donna Bungard, Director of Accessibility, Indeed (USA)
- Marc Powell, Global Accessibility Centre of Excellence Lead, Unilever (UK)
- Surali Siriwardene, Private Bank Head of Change Execution & WPS COO, HSBC (Hong Kong)
- Christina Jones, VP Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Shell plc (USA)
- Paula Aitkenhead, Disability Inclusion and Accessibility Global Lead, Schneider Electric (France)
ENDS
For further information please email media@businessdisabilityforum.org.uk or call 020 7403 3020.
Notes to editors
Business Disability Forum is the leading business membership organisation in disability inclusion. We work with business, Government and disabled people, to improve the life experiences of disabled employees and consumers, by removing barriers to inclusion.
- We work with over 600 members employing over 20% of the UK workforce and a further 16 million people worldwide.
- We advise, support and encourage businesses (many of them global) to become more disability-smart.
- We influence policymakers, informed by the experiences of business and disabled people – as employees and consumers.
- We provide evidence-based thought leadership on how business affects the lives of disabled people.
- We help effect changes in business practices, products, services and policies that positively impact the life experiences of disabled people and also benefit business.
Find out more on our website www.businessdisabilityforum.org.uk.
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