Siteimprove CSR Report 2017
Siteimprove takes global action to move digital accessibility up the agenda
Preview of Siteimprove's new global tracking initiative: Accessibility State of the Globe.
Copenhagen, Denmark – 11 June, 2018: Today Siteimprove released its eighth corporate social responsibility (CSR) report, demonstrating its strong commitment to provide people of all abilities around the world easy access to websites. The report accounts for the global action that Siteimprove has taken during 2017 to improve digital accessibility and is published in accordance with the UN Global Compact – the world’s largest CSR initiative. Siteimprove has been a member of this since 2010, and in 2017 the company’s CSR commitment was taken a step further by committing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are part of the UN’s 2030 Agenda.
“We believe Siteimprove is uniquely positioned to contribute to the SDGs within digital human rights. We have chosen to focus on goal 4, 10, and 17, where we can be a catalyst for change and make an impact with our technology, culture of innovation, and expertise in web accessibility,” says Morten Ebbesen, CEO of Siteimprove.
As part of the 2017 CSR report, Siteimprove conducted a first-ever global survey named “Accessibility State of the Globe” that provides a status on the accessibility level of both the public and private sector in the countries where Siteimprove operates. The survey provides an average private sector accessibility score by looking at the 100 most visited pages of the 100 biggest companies in each country and a similar score is calculated for the public sector by analyzing the websites of selected local councils, governments, and agencies.
According to the survey results, the private sector is currently doing slightly better than the public sector in all markets except in the United Kingdom and Italy. The public sector in general, however, exhibits a poor level of accessibility, which leaves room for improvement. Only one public organization was found to have a world class level of accessibility. In the private sector, the majority of countries experience a medium level of accessibility. Only one private organization was found to have a world class level of accessibility.
“The average accessibility score for the public sector across all countries is 65 which corresponds to what we have defined as a poor performance. The private sector average score is 71 corresponding to medium, which is slightly better, but still far away from good, very good or even world class performance. These results represent a burning platform for change and we hope to witness increasing accessibility levels going forward,” says Morten Ebbesen.
Digital accessibility for all, especially those with different kinds of disabilities and impairments, is widely recognized as key to digital inclusion and has been a longstanding item on the agenda since the early 1990’s. Despite a range of policies, guidelines and initiatives, launched by countries, regions and global alliances - the overall score card on web accessibility, however, remains mixed, at best; and highly insufficient, at worst. This calls for action since people with disabilities are currently estimated to exceed one billion in the world, according to the WHO.
During 2017, Siteimprove hosted and took part in numerous seminars, conferences, and webinars around the world to move digital accessibility up the agenda. Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2017 marked a particularly important event that was hosted by Siteimprove in Copenhagen. The event was attended by all employees and also visited by influential guests and web experts including the main speaker Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the original inventor of the World Wide Web.
Going forward, Siteimprove will continue to be an influential advocate for an inclusive web and work to develop strong partnerships with others who share the same mission. Organizing and participating in events related to digital accessibility along with ensuring the well-being of employee will also be focus areas in the year to come.
Read more about Siteimprove's CSR efforts here: siteimprove.com/en-us/company/csr/
About Siteimprove
Siteimprove transforms the way organizations manage and deliver their digital presence. With the Siteimprove Intelligence Platform, you gain complete visibility and deep insights into what matters, empowering you and your team to outperform the status quo with certainty every day. With more than 7,000 customers worldwide, Siteimprove serves dozens of markets from offices in Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, London, Minneapolis, Oslo, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto and Vienna. For more information, visit siteimprove.com.
