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Persona development : Ilya

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Kevin White edited this page Aug 30, 2021 · 19 revisions

Quote ideas

My mobile phone is great - I can do so much because the accessibility and screen reader are all built in. Shame I can't access our corporate systems with it!

Short description

Ilya is blind. She is the chief accountant at an insurance company that uses web-based documents and forms over a corporate intranet. Like many other blind computer users, Ilya does not read Braille.

Ilya's work computer has a screen reader which provides her with information on the state and content of applications on her computer in a speech output form. Because of her job, Ilya spends a lot of time working with spreadsheets, presentations and documents. Her company moved from using desktop applications to everything being stored online. Ilya was concerned that the change would make things worse for her. Complex web applications often don't work well with her screen reader particularly when there are a lot of short-cut keys in the app as they can sometimes be the same as quick keys for her screen reader software. So far everything seems to work well though, and it is the usual problems of colleagues not creating their documents with accessibility in mind. This is particularly bad for presentations as they are often filed with images that colleagues don't include alternative text for. Talk about keyboard traps?

Part of Ilya's role is to provide training to employees. Most of this is conducted online as staff are spread out geographically. Ilya and her staff evaluated a number of training tools, such as video conferencing apps, before finding an effective application with accessibility features that meet the needs of a diverse staff with diverse abilities. One of the biggest challenges Ilya faced with these tools was the chat function. Many of the tools wouldn't work with Ilya's screen reader and she would miss messages during meetings.

Outside of work Ilya enjoys cooking, knitting and travel. She uses the web to find recipes and patterns that she can use. She has also found online communities that she can find out new ideas from. Generally these are great although some of them do have a CAPTCHA as part of the login in process. This can make it impossible for her to access these forums without someone to assist her through the login process.

Outside of work Ilya tends to use her mobile phone or tablet much more than a laptop or desktop computer. Both devices have built in screen readers and other tools, like zoom, that can really help her. Using her mobile while travelling is fantastic as she can check location details and find directions.

Technologies or adaptations used

Barrier examples

Good use of headings : Problem: I can't easily scan a page to find things that might be of interest to me. : Works well: When sites are laid out using properly marked up headings and paragraphs, I can use hot keys in my screen reader to quickly jump from one heading or paragraph to another, stopping at anything that sounds interesting.

Keyboard navigation : Problem: Sometimes I can't control things on websites such as buttons and links. I can hear they are there but I can't press them. : Works well: When I can use the keyboard to navigate to things and press return to select them without having to get someone to help me.

Consistent layout : Problem: I need to create a mental image of how a website is laid out. If that changes from page to page then it really slows me down. : Works well: When website pages are consistent. The links are all in the same place and things that sound the same in my screen reader behave the same on different pages.

Clear error messages : Problem: Sometimes when I fill in a form on a website it won't let me submit it and it isn't clear why not. : Works well: Sites which have clear error messages and instructions on how to correct my mistake.

Changes elsewhere on a page : Problem: There are times when content on a website changes but I don't always know about it. : Works well: It's great when my screen reader alerts me to changes on the page that I'm visiting.

Related resources

Related principles

Working materials

Secondary resources

Personal details

  • Senior accountant
  • Staff training
  • Presentations
  • Enjoys travel and holidays
  • Hobby with online community - knitting, cooking, ?

Online scenarios

  • Workplace software - accountancy package/time tracking/holiday booking
  • Video conference chat interface
  • Flight bookings
  • Uses transcripts to listen to content more quickly with screen reader
  • CAPTCHA

What myth or stereotype does this persona address?

  • Blind people can't use digital technology
  • People who are blind can't see anything
  • Transcripts are only useful for people who are deaf or hard of hearing
  • People who are blind can't appreciate/don't care about pictures and images

Needs or barriers to be included

  • Alternative text
  • Audio and video transcripts (currently not included)
  • Audio description
  • Consistent layout and navigation (currently not included)
  • Good semantic mark up
  • Heading structure (currently not included)
  • Keyboard navigation (currently not included)
  • New content appearing on-screen (currently not included)
  • No image based CAPTCHA (currently not included)
  • No keyboard traps
  • Meaningful sequence
  • Instructions don't rely on size, shape, or visual location
  • Don't use color alone
  • Don't use images of text
  • Skip links
  • Link purpose
  • Language identified
  • Form labels

Impact of barriers

  • Missing things in meetings
  • Takes longer to use work systems - frustration, irritation
  • Tries hard to avoid being a burden to colleagues
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