Windows 11 Accessibility
Windows 11 Accessibility Settings home
Role
Design Project Lead, UX Designer, Accessibility Subject Matter Expert partnering with other Designers, PM, Engineering, User Research, Content, Settings Framework
Summary
Windows accessibility settings were due for an upgrade and the larger settings rejuvenation effort for Windows 11 presented the perfect opportunity. Some of the powerful assistive tools that make computing possible for someone with a disability were difficult to discover, learn, and use. We rejuvenated our accessibility pages to hold them to the same standard of design excellence as other experiences and simplify complexity that was resulting in confusion and poor usability.
Process and Solution
Rebrand ease of access name and icon to accessibility for improved discoverability
Overhaul settings page information architecture
Leverage user data and feedback to improve functionality and inform organization
Coordinate reviews across the settings framework team, software engineers, writers, researchers, and leadership to land a cohesive experience
Ensure utmost accessibility and compliance
Accessibility settings was a project with a lot of moving parts and constant collaboration. To start, I worked with PM, Data Science, and Research partners to identify which accessibility pages were most in need of improvement. From here I took a first pass at all pages to adopt the new Windows 11 settings framework. This helped us get a better idea of the scope of the project and served as a starting point to delegate individual pages to design area experts.
As individual page designs firmed up, I coordinated reviews to secure sign-off with the feature team and leadership and organized a cognitive walkthrough with the research team to identify potential UX cliffs. Moving into the implementation phase, I worked closely with developers to review the changes they were making for accuracy and to reach compromises where designs weren’t possible.
Accessibility keyboard settings before and after
Aside from accessibility in the settings app, there was also the accessibility quick settings flyout. This surface allows users turn assistive tools on and off quickly and easily discover individual settings. Deciding which settings show up here was a careful exercise in weighing usage data, compliance requirements, business need, and audience size.
Accessibility quick settings, organized by usage data and audience size