Amadeus Digital Accessibility Forum returns to advance inclusive travel technology

December 5, 2022

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Habib Ragelhassi

Digital Accessibility Project Manager, Amadeus

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Amadeus is happy to announce the successful return of the Digital Accessibility Forum. A flagship event in the Amadeus inclusion agenda, it is designed to raise awareness around digital equality. The annual showcase is organized by the Digital Accessibility Services team in partnership with the Amadeus Disability Program, taking place each year to coincide with European Disability Week. The hybrid event is open to all Amadeus employees worldwide.

Now in its sixth year, the 2022 event welcomed more than 200 attendees. Amadeus is fully committed to making itself more open to colleagues and customers with different accessibility needs and will continue to invest to make this happen. The Digital Accessibility Forum is an opportunity to emphasize the work already done, either in the workplace or in Amadeus’ products, but also to examine the role we can all play to make the world more open and inclusive to everyone - regardless of any disabilities.

Digital Accessibility is the discipline of building digital content that is easily useable by people with disabilities. It is not just a technical challenge but also about inclusiveness, empathy, and a customer-focused culture. It is a journey that requires a mindset shift from our industry and one that Amadeus is in a position to lead. Through inclusivity, we can drive digital access across all of our platforms, generating fresh and new ideas.

Topics on the Digital Accessibility Forum agenda this year included an examination of how the industry is able to serve customers with disabilities. Discussions were led by Camilo Navarro Bustos, co-founder of Wheel the World, an accessible travel start-up based in California, who gave an inspiring talk to the audience. Eamon McErlean, vice president, accessibility, ServiceNow, also explored what It means to be a mature company in terms of digital accessibility.

Amadeus itself is focused on both its internal journey and the help we can offer the wider industry to be more inclusive. Internally, we are working to build a truly inclusive digital workplace. To achieve this, we have established a premium support service addressing the needs of our disabled colleagues while we also providing assistive technology, including specific software or accessories. Our internal tools are evaluated against global digital accessibility standards.

Externally, Amadeus’ business units remain focused on digital accessibility when it comes to creating customer facing products . The latest Cytric Travel & Expense release, for example, has improved usability for visually impaired users, including the option to magnify the portal, improved color contrasts and mouse-free navigation. This is in line with other products like eRetail, which began its own accessibility journey few years ago.

Amadeus views digital accessibility as a cultural challenge. Raising awareness and sharing knowledge is critical in increasing empathy and boosting our engagement. Indeed, 15 percent of the global population experiences some kind of disability and a company like Amadeus must have this top of mind when designing products and services. Digital inclusion is a human right - but also a business imperative.

Technology should not be a hurdle – but a way to empower every one of us.

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