Accessibility Governance, Design Systems

WCAG 2.2: accessibility as a governed
discipline, not a checklist.

Stood up accessibility as a governed discipline: audits, standards, and enablement built directly into the design system and delivery process, not a one-time compliance sweep.

RoleDesign System Lead
StandardWCAG 2.2
Scope86 criteria audited
2-minute read
Problem
Accessibility was fixed screen by screen, with no shared standard or way to verify coverage.
Approach
Treated accessibility as a governed program: audit every criterion, build standards into the system itself.
Execution
Full WCAG 2.2 audit across all three conformance levels, plus an accessibility plugin teams could use directly.
Result
87% overall compliance across 86 criteria, with Level AA, the practical bar, at 95%.

Compliant somewhere isn't the same as compliant everywhere

WCAG 2.2 spans 86 success criteria across three conformance levels. Without a system behind it, "accessible" becomes a claim nobody can actually verify.

01

Fixes were made screen by screen, with no shared standard to check against

02

Teams could tell if a component looked fine, not whether it was actually compliant

03

86 criteria across three conformance levels is too much to track without a system

04

Accessibility was a QA pass at the end, not a decision made upfront

Key principles of accessibility

Every audit and every component decision was checked against the same four principles WCAG is built on.

Perceivable

Content must be presentable in ways users can perceive.

Key actions
  • Alt text on all images and icons
  • 4.5:1 minimum color contrast
  • Captions for multimedia

Operable

All UI components must be fully navigable by any input.

Key actions
  • Complete keyboard navigation
  • No seizure-triggering animation
  • Clear, visible focus states

Understandable

Information and UI behavior must be clear and predictable.

Key actions
  • Plain, jargon-free language
  • Descriptive error messages
  • Consistent navigation patterns

Robust

Content must work reliably across tools and technologies.

Key actions
  • Semantic HTML with ARIA roles
  • Screen reader compatibility
  • WCAG 2.2 conformance throughout

Where the system actually stands

Every one of WCAG 2.2's 86 success criteria assessed against the system, not spot-checked, not sampled.

Accessibility Compliance by Level

WCAG 2.2 audit results across conformance levels

86 criteria audited
LevelPassPartialYet to DoN/ATotalScore
Level A235033182%
Level AA201032495%
Level AAA1712113185%
Total / Overall6072178687%
86
Criteria audited
87%
Overall compliance
95%
Level AA, the practical bar

Audit it, build it in, then keep it honest

Audit

Assessed every criterion, not a sample

All 86 WCAG 2.2 success criteria across Level A, AA, and AAA were scored, pass, partial, yet to do, or not applicable, so the actual state of the system was known, not assumed.

Standardize

Built compliance into the components themselves

Contrast, semantics, and keyboard navigation were fixed at the component level in Floret, so teams inherited compliance by default instead of re-solving it screen by screen.

Enable

Gave teams a way to see it, not just read about it

An accessibility plugin let people preview and adjust for real conditions, contrast, motion, cursor, reading aids, across profiles like low vision, cognitive, and motor-impaired use.

Govern

Treated Level AA as the bar, not the finish line

Level AA is the practical standard behind most legal and product requirements. Keeping the audit current, rather than running it once, made compliance a visible, ongoing state.

Key insight

The real unlock wasn't fixing more screens. It was making the default state accessible, so teams no longer had to remember to check.

Significant accessibility profiles

Six curated profiles combine the settings that matter most for each kind of need, so the experience adapts without asking anyone to configure it themselves.

Low Vision

  • High Contrast
  • High Saturate
  • Invert

Cognitive

  • Readable Font
  • Reading Guide
  • Line Space

Motor Impaired

  • White Cursor
  • Black Cursor
  • Reading Mask

Dyslexia Friendly

  • Dyslexia Font
  • Word Space
  • Line Space

Color Blind

  • Mono
  • High Contrast
  • Low Saturate

ADHD

  • Reading Mask
  • Reading Guide
  • Low Contrast