Accenture multi-year accessibility plan and policies

Message from Caroline Gayle, Canada Inclusion & Diversity Executive Sponsor

At Accenture, our purpose is to deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity. Our strategy is to deliver 360° value for all our stakeholders by helping them continuously reinvent. To drive reinvention, innovation must be at the forefront, which requires us to attract, develop and inspire top talent. Talent is one of our most important areas of competitive differentiation. As part of our talent strategy, we hire and develop people who have different backgrounds, different perspectives and different lived experiences. These differences ensure that we have and attract the cognitive diversity to deliver a variety of perspectives, observations and insights which are essential to drive the innovation needed to reinvent.

Ensuring an inclusive, barrier-free work environment for Persons with Disabilities across our company is an integral part of Accenture’s global Inclusion & Diversity strategy. We are committed to raising awareness and educating our Accenture people and relevant stakeholders about persons with disabilities, while simultaneously supporting our employees with disabilities and caregivers worldwide. This accessibility plan outlines the policies and actions that Accenture has in place to improve opportunities for people with disabilities.

Statement of commitment

Accenture is committed to treating all people in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence. We believe in integration and equal opportunity. We are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner and will do so by preventing and removing barriers to accessibility and meeting all accessibility requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) and the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (IASR).

To achieve this, Accenture will:

• Maintain and implement a written Accessibility Policy.
  
  
• Maintain and update a Multi-Year Accessibility Plan, reviewed at least once every five years, and posted publicly.
  
  
• Provide regular AODA training for all employees, contractors, and volunteers.
  
  
• File required Accessibility Compliance Reports with the Government of Ontario.
  
  
• Incorporate accessibility criteria and features when procuring or designing self-service kiosks, facilities, or technologies.

Accessible emergency information

Accenture provides employees with disabilities individualized emergency response information, as required. In addition, we maintain global Accessibility Centres that are open to all employees in Canada. Accenture’s global Accessibility Centres humanize technology by enabling and empowering persons with disabilities with state-of-the-art processes, equipment, and facilities through in-person and virtual assessments/tours. The spaces also serve as a hub for engaging, collaborating, and exchanging ideas to support our people with disabilities, our partners, clients, and the broader community.

Located in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto locations, each innovative space showcases a wide variety of assistive technology and devices Persons with Disabilities can interact with. New technology and tools will be added as they become available.

• For Hearing: Various devices engineered with features including headsets with noise cancellation, boom microphone, and HD voice portable speakerphone. Sound meters and noise guides to monitor levels and make people more aware of the impact noise in work surroundings.
  
  
• For Vision: Keyboards with features including low vision, large font, and braille stickers. Braille wall and number panels to help sighted individuals learn and teach read Braille. English talking calculator with clear audio entries & results displayed on the LCD screen.
  
  
• For Mobility: WeWalk Smart Cane that attaches to the traditional white cane, transforming it into an innovative smart cane. This technology increases visually impaired people’s independence and promotes full-participation in society via detecting obstacles, pairing with phone, and integration with Google Maps.
  
  
• For Prevention: All-in-one Desk Bike with easily adjustable laptop holder. Sit/stand desk and classic riser standing desk to provide easy transition from sitting to standing. Ergonomic seat, anti-fatigue feet mat, and ergonomic mouse and keyboard.

Our activities

The Persons with Disabilities ERG in Canada was launched in FY11 with a focus on increasing awareness about Persons with Disabilities and to emphasize inherent abilities rather than disabilities. In addition, the group was formed to adopt a more inclusive work environment that accommodates smooth integration of people with adjustment requirements.

The Persons with Disabilities ERG works closely with Accenture Workplace colleagues to create an inclusive environment that is physically, technologically, and attitudinally accessible, while building awareness of the many resources and support available at Accenture.

Today, there are more than 200 Persons with Disabilities ERG members across Canada. Services include:

• Event planning and networking opportunities. We organize and promote International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3 every year. It is an opportunity for us to celebrate the contributions of our people with disabilities, and their colleagues and champions.
  
  
• Support of local market initiatives or community activities through our Corporate Citizenship initiative, Skills to Succeed, and development of partnerships with internal groups and external organizations.

Customer service standard

Accenture will ensure that its business practices, processes, and procedures are consistent with the following principles:

• The goods or services must be provided in a manner that respects the dignity and independence of persons with disabilities.
  
  
• The provision of goods or services to persons with disabilities and others must be integrated unless an alternate measure is necessary, whether temporarily or on a permanent basis, to enable a person with a disability to obtain, use or benefit from the goods or services.
  
  
• Persons with disabilities must be given an opportunity equal to that given to others to obtain, use and benefit from the goods or services.

All employees are expected to communicate with people with disabilities in ways that consider their disability. Employees who interact with clients, vendors and contractors have access to training modules regarding disability in the workplace, and tools and assistive devices will be made available.

Training

Accenture provides training to employees, contractors and volunteers on the AODA Customer Service Standard and the requirements under this law which must be followed when providing customer service to people with disabilities.

Accenture provides training to employees, contractors and volunteers on Ontario’s accessibility laws under AODA and on the Human Rights Code as it relates to people with disabilities. Training is structured in a way that best suits the duties of employees, contractors and volunteers.

Accenture has provided employees with the training needed to meet AODA requirements and has recently refreshed the training. The latest training provides a comprehensive overview of the five AODA Standards. These five standards are targeted at removing barriers for persons with disabilities in key areas of daily living (Customer Service; Information and Communications; Employment; Design of Public Spaces; and the Transportation Standards).

Kiosks

Not applicable to Accenture as we do not own or operate kiosks for public use.

Information and communications

Accenture is committed to meeting the communication needs of people with disabilities. Accenture has taken the following steps as required by the Information and Communication Standards:

• Accenture has integrated public feedback channel into Accenture.com website.
  
  
• Accenture has included on Accenture.com how complaints related to the accessibility of the public website or the accessibility of goods and services provided by Accenture are handled.
  
  
• Accenture has established an employee feedback channel through HR Requests.
  
  
• Accenture ensures that alternative formats for publicly available information are made accessible upon request.
  
  
• Accenture has taken steps to make websites and content conform to WCAG 2.0, Level AA, including:
  
  
  • Conforming to WCAG 2.0 Level AA for all websites and content.
    
    
  • Conforming to WCAG 2.0 Level AA for intranet sites and SharePoint Sites.

Employment

Accenture is committed to fair and accessible employment practices.

Accenture has taken the following steps:

• Accenture ensures the recruitment process considers the needs of people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture ensures the job applicant assessment process considers the needs of people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture ensures the hiring process considers the needs of people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture creates awareness among recruiters and hiring managers on hiring people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture has developed a written process to document individual accommodation plans for employees with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture has developed a process that supports employees who have been absent due to a disability and require disability-related accommodations when they return to work.
  
  
• Accenture ensures the accessibility needs of employees with disabilities during the performance management process.
  
  
• Accenture reviews and updates accommodation plans as necessary when an employee with a disability is promoted or redeployed.
  
  
• Accenture provides workplace related “reasonable accommodations” for people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture ensures Emergency Preparedness and Responses procedures consider the needs of people with disabilities.
  
  
• Accenture provides accessible workplace design and facilities.

Design of public spaces

Public spaces include:

• Recreational trails/beach access routes (Not applicable to Accenture)
  
  
• Outdoor public eating areas like rest stops or picnic areas (Not applicable to Accenture)
  
  
• Outdoor play spaces, like playgrounds in provincial parks and local communities (Not applicable to Accenture)
  
  
• Outdoor paths of travel, like sidewalks, ramps, stairs, curb ramps, rest areas and accessible pedestrian signals (Not applicable to Accenture)
  
  
• Accessible off-street parking (Not applicable to Accenture)
  
  
• Service-related elements like service counters, fixed queuing lines and waiting areas
  
  
  • All new or reconstructed service counters, fixed queuing lines and waiting areas are built in accordance with applicable building codes and AODA regulations. Construction Sub-Contractors are required to comply with Accenture’s Supplier Code of Conduct which in turn requires them to comply with all applicable laws.
    
    
  • As part of the inspections by the local Joint Health and Safety Committee, monthly inspections of potential hazards are completed. If any hazards are identified, they are remedied.

For more information

For more information on this accessibility plan, please contact:

Petar Dzalto
Accenture
petar.dzalto@accenture.com

Lana van der Merwe
Accenture
lana.van.der.merwe@accenture.com

Last Updated: September 2025