Skillsoft Announces New ‘Access for All’ Accessibility Program

by Shrutee K/DNS

Mumbai, December 6, 2017 — Skillsoft, the global leader in corporate learning, today announced that its content and technology will be accessible to a new standard of industry excellence as part of the company’s commitment to Skillsoft’s ‘Access for All’ program. In the last eighteen months, Skillsoft has invested over $3 million retrofitting existing content and technology to meet this new standard for all users. Going forward, accessibility will be incorporated into the development and design stage of its’ platforms and content like any other major component of design architecture. An additional annual investment of $2 million will be made in the ‘Access for All’ program.

“Equity of access for all goes beyond being compliant, to striving and setting new standards of excellence. At Skillsoft, we believe that everyone has an equal right to use our content and learning platforms. Accessibility is a core component of our corporate DNA,” said Bill Donoghue, chairman and CEO of the Skillsoft Group. “Our Federal customers have expected us to meet accessibility standards for many years. Increasingly, our corporate customers also recognize the importance of equity of access to their learning solutions. We make sure that all employees are supported and empowered to learn so our corporate customers can confidently deploy a best-in-class learning solution.”

Everyone within a workforce must have equal access to learn and gain new skills. To that end, Skillsoft has established an Accessibility Program Office to ensure that all learners with physical disabilities, regardless of their company size or industry, can effectively utilize Skillsoft’s learning content and technology. The Accessibility Program Office will stay abreast of the latest global accessibility standards, including the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, to ensure that Skillsoft meets – and exceeds – those laws.

As part of the company’s commitment to ensuring equal access to its content and technology, Skillsoft established a strategic partnership with one of the world’s leading accessibility consultants, The Paciello Group (TPG), which supports accessible design, auditing and user testing. “Skillsoft’s significant investment to establish its Accessibility Program Office demonstrates the company’s commitment to making accessibility a core value. We continue to be involved in every step of the development of their new content and the Percipio platform,” commented Michael Paciello, founder of The Paciello Group. “Ensuring Skillsoft’s award-winning, world-class content and technology are accessible to all users will impact learning across all organizations.”

About Skillsoft

Skillsoft is the global leader in corporate learning, providing the most engaging learner experience and high-quality content. We are trusted by the world's leading organizations, including 65 percent of the Fortune 500. Our mission is to build beautiful technology and engaging content that drives business impact for today’s modern enterprise. Our 500,000+ multi-modal courses, videos, authoritative content chapters and micro-learning modules are accessed more than 130 million times every month, in 160 countries and 29 languages. With 100 percent secure cloud access, from any device, whenever, wherever. www.skillsoft.com