A Day in the Life of an Accessibility Specialist at Salesforce
A typical day for Haley, an Accessibility Specialist at Salesforce, begins with checking the case queue to address any immediate accessibility blockers for learners, ensuring "they can carry on with their day". The remainder of the day involves accessibility QAs, responding to Slack channel inquiries, developing resources, and conducting training sessions, showcasing the varied and impactful nature of the role.
Problem-Solving, Communication, Accessibility, Teamwork, Project Management
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Haley Shust
Accessibility Specialist
Salesforce
Elon University, 2015
Masters of Education in Curriculum & Instruction (focus: Digital learning); University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Biology & Related Sciences
Technology
Education
Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School, Greek Life Member
Video Highlights
1. Haley prioritizes addressing accessibility blockers reported by learners as her first task each day.
2. She conducts accessibility reviews and QA, the number of which varies depending on the project workload.
3. Haley proactively seeks out accessibility issues through Slack channels and creates resources or conducts training sessions to improve accessibility.
Transcript
What does a day in the life of a specialist look like?
I wake up and check the case queue. That's always the first thing I start my day with, just to be sure that I'm not waking up to any learners who have experienced accessibility blockers.
If so, I'll address them promptly, making sure that they can carry on with their day and get all their blockers addressed. I then move on to any accessibility QAs I have to conduct.
Depending on what's going on and how many learnings are assigned for a quarter, that may be several accessibility reviews or just a couple. Once I attend to all of those QAs, that is my opportunity to have a little more autonomy in my initiatives.
Typically, I assess our different Slack channels and see if anyone has reported blockers or mentioned accessibility in their posts. If so, I set up meetings to conduct discovery with them and learn more about the blockers they've been experiencing.
Some days, I have plenty of time to create new resources for teams or conduct training sessions through a Champions program. Days typically look a bit different, but all in all, that tends to be my cadence.
Advizer Personal Links
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haleyshust193/
Personal website: https://www.haleyshust.com
LLC website: https://www.thehelpfulfolks.com
