IT Accessibility Officer

The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) seeks to protect, preserve, and enhance Massachusetts’ environmental resources and create a clean energy future for all residents. Through the stewardship of open spaces, the protection of environmental resources, and the advancement of clean energy, EEA works tirelessly to make Massachusetts a wonderful place to live, work, and raise a family. Our commitment to environmental justice ensures that every resident, regardless of background or location, can live in a safe, clean environment and shares equally in the benefits of the clean energy transition.

At EEA, we create meaningful, inclusive opportunities that empower our employees to make a real difference in shaping the environmental future of Massachusetts. We foster a workplace culture where diversity is valued, innovation is encouraged, and collaboration thrives. Our employees play a vital role in advancing sustainability, environmental justice, and clean energy solutions, ensuring a positive and lasting impact on Massachusetts and its residents.

Description:

EEA is actively seeking a highly motivated and experienced Secretariat IT Accessibility Officer to develop and implement a plan and adoption program to ensure the accessibility, equity, and usability of digital programs and services for all agencies under EEA.

EEA and our agencies are committed to ensuring that our digital services and information are accessible to everyone we serve. Massachusetts is a diverse state, and people that access our services have diverse needs. Approximately 26.5% of adults in the state have a disability, which can make it difficult to use state websites, digital content, and other information technologies. Factors such as cultural and linguistic diversity and technology access and literacy also affect people’s ability to meaningfully access state services.

Today, millions of people interact with EEA services online. However, the accessibility of our web properties and digital tools varies, as does the capacity of our agencies to make them more accessible.

As EEA’s first Secretariat IT Accessibility Officer, you are charged with addressing these challenges and working to make our digital services more equitable and accessible through strategy and tactical implementation. You will lead the development and execution of a new Secretariat-wide digital accessibility and equity adoption program. This program will align with a statewide strategic plan being developed by the Commonwealth’s Chief IT Accessibility Officer and the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security (EOTSS) as part of Executive Order No. 614.

You will report to the Secretariat Deputy CIO and work closely with the Executive and IT teams, as well as the Commonwealth’s Chief IT Accessibility Officer, to align, develop and implement organizational accessibility strategies and agency roadmaps. You will collaborate with a complex network of stakeholders, including agency directors and chiefs of staff, IT application managers, legal and procurement experts, and external state contractors and vendors. You will streamline feedback loops and communication channels with the public. You will continuously evaluate our progress towards our goals and adapt.

This role is well-suited for someone dedicated to helping large organizations develop accessible digital products that effectively serve their constituents.

The primary work location for this role will be 100 Cambridge Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02114. The work schedule for this position is Monday through Friday, 9AM to 5PM EST. This position would be expected to follow a hybrid model of reporting to work that combines in-office workdays and work from home days as needed.

Responsibilities:

Develop and execute a Secretariat-wide digital accessibility and equity adoption program.
Partner with key internal stakeholders to provide leadership and guidance toward implementing accessibility strategies in collaboration with the Chief IT Accessibility Officer and IT Accessibility Officers in other secretariats.
Advise and partner with senior leadership on accessibility strategic efforts and enhancements.
Track progress and milestones for internal and external digital assets to contribute to a statewide accessibility and equity dashboard and reporting requirements.
Collaborate with IT management to drive accessibility opportunities, resolve roadblocks and track accessibility metrics.
Embed accessibility and equity requirements and tooling into software development processes including reviews, testing and definitions of ready and done
Collaborate with EOTSS and IT Accessibility Officers for each of the secretariats to identify training needs and adoption of a role-based training program.
Embed accessibility requirements into all stages of the procurement process.
Collaborate and work with accessibility stakeholders across other agencies to understand IT accessibility strategies, build strong relationships with accessibility stakeholders involved in overall strategy as well as stakeholders that have a direct influence on the development and implementation of digital services including development teams, content creators, procurement teams and legal teams to help advance accessibility plans.
Advise organizational management on opportunities to enhance areas of digital accessibility and equity.
Ensure that digital accessibility requirements are included in governance decisions and processes.
Work in partnership with EEA ADA Coordinators and EEA Environmental Justice Coordinators.
Preferred Qualifications:

4-5 years of experience implementing technology accessibility.
Commitment to resolve accessibility and equity issues with digital programs and services.
Personal experience with the challenges we are working to address and the services and systems we are working to improve.
Experience identifying and/or applying applicable accessibility best practices based on research or other approaches.
Knowledge and understanding of state and national accessibility laws and standards for digital resources including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) requirements, WAI-ARIA and Section 508 standards.
Exposure to and understanding of design and development processes involving design prototype reviews, testing and incorporation of user research.
In-depth understanding and familiarity of automated, manual, and functional accessibility testing processes and tools.
Experience influencing leadership and stakeholders about the importance of digital accessibility and equity.
Ability to lead teams, develop excellent stakeholder relationships and help parties reach consensus.
Ability to gather, assemble, correlate, and analyze facts; to devise solutions to complex problems; and to prepare concise reports.
Excellent communication skills and ability to create executive level presentations for small or large audiences.