3 Key Takeaways:
- Jennison's non-traditional path into accessibility, starting with political science and educational technology, highlights the diverse backgrounds of accessibility professionals
- Early discouragement from STEM fields due to blindness shaped Jennison's educational choices, emphasizing the impact of messaging to young people with disabilities
- Jennison's approach to influencing organizations involves partnering with product teams, understanding competing priorities, and meeting people where they are
I'm here with my good friend, Jenison Asuncion, to spread the word about National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Jenison is a leader in the digital accessibility industry. He’s the head of accessibility engineering and evangelism at LinkedIn. He's a chair on the board at the San Francisco Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the co-founder of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, among many other accolades.
I want to start with a question I hadn’t heard asked of you before. You studied political science when you were in undergrad. How did you pick that major?
Originally, I planned to pursue computer science, but as a blind teenager, I was told by professionals that math and science weren’t suitable fields for me. This led to a fear of math that affected me deeply. Although I worked hard to get into computer science at Concordia University, it wasn’t the right fit, and my math struggles resurfaced.
I had always been interested in politics, having been involved in student politics, so I shifted to political science for my undergrad. It was a subject I was passionate about, and it allowed me to learn about the world while enjoying my studies. Politics remains important to me, and I’m still considering getting involved at the municipal level in the future.
You’ve told me previously that you were told when you were young that a career in math or engineering or technology was going to be possibly unreachable for you, as a blind person. It underscores how powerful, and potentially damaging, those conversations can be for the long-term potential of people.
Absolutely. We've made a lot of progress, though some outdated views still persist, and some kids with disabilities still hear limiting messages. Thankfully, there's now more encouragement for people with disabilities to pursue STEM fields, and we need more representation in science, technology, engineering, and math, as well as in business.
We need people with disabilities at decision-making tables, not as tokens but as fully qualified professionals. By getting more people with disabilities into engineering and business, and helping them rise to leadership roles, we can create real change. Growing up, I didn’t know other blind people and wasn’t aware of the possibilities, but now opportunities are opening up. However, we still need to address issues to make job access more equitable.
So you studied political science and then went on to get a graduate degree in educational technology. How did you decide to do that?
I’ve always been passionate about politics, but I realized a political science degree alone wouldn’t land me a job, so I explored other career paths, like intelligence services or law school. Meanwhile, I had been training people with disabilities to use assistive technology, which I enjoyed. A friend suggested I look into educational technology, and after learning about it, I decided to pursue a master's in the field.
This degree opened doors for me in corporate training, instructional design, and e-learning. I worked at IBM and later as an e-learning project manager at the Bank of Montreal’s corporate university, where I developed essential skills like stakeholder management and communication. These experiences shaped my path into digital accessibility, even though I didn’t originally plan on it. Like many in the field, I found my way into accessibility from another direction, and I have no regrets about the journey.
I noticed you were recently named Concordia University’s 50 great Concordians. Can you tell me a little bit more about what that is?
The year prior I was named as one of the Alumni of the Year at Concordia University, where I did my undergraduate and graduate degrees back in Montreal. I really thrived between school, doing what I loved, studying political science and getting a masters in educational technology, I felt I was coming into my own as a person with a disability and what that meant to me.
The univeristy just celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, and I just found out this year about this naming and the acknowledgement of some of the work I've done over the years to further accessibility. I am deeply honored by the university thinking of me in that way. And there are 49 other amazing leaders among 50 great Concordions. It’s another opportunity to bring visibility to this area of digital accessibility for people who might not have ever heard of it before.
Given your non-traditional path to where you are today, what advice would you have for someone who is just starting out in the field of accessibilty?
My journey in accessibility didn’t happen overnight; it took years of commitment. My advice for those starting out is to find your calling and be ready to go all in. When I switched to accessibility full-time in 2006, I gave myself the space and time to focus on it.
It's important to get involved in areas you're passionate about. For example, I helped set up accessibility camps in Toronto and Boston and created spaces where people could ask questions and learn without judgment. My passions have guided my involvement, like joining the CVS Health National Equity Advisory Board and Southwest Airlines' Customer Accessibility Council, which align with my interests in healthcare and travel.
Ultimately, find what you're passionate about, and let that guide your career and involvements, whether it's boards, events, or your daily work.
What tips or techniques can you offer to stay motivated and passionate about what you’re doing day-in and day-out?
To stay motivated, I focus on having fun and making an impact in everything I do. If I'm enjoying my work and it's making a difference, that keeps me going. Building strong relationships is also key, both personally and professionally.
Additionally, I stay curious, present, and approachable. I make time to chat with people interested in digital accessibility, hoping to inspire others to join the field. I didn’t have that guidance early on, so I try to provide it for others now. These philosophies keep me passionate about my work day-to-day.
You’re currently head of accessibility engineering evangelism at LinkedIn. How do you interact with the product teams?
I work with product teams all the time, whether it's engineers or designers. The mandate of my team is to provide accessibility subject matter expertise to product engineers, product designers, and product managers too.
In the accessibility space, I think we have come a long, long, long way. We understand the role of engineers and designers. The last few years I’ve focused on the third pillar, which is the product managers and getting them involved in the conversation. Some product managers get involved and some don’t. Some think accessibility is the domain of design and engineering, and managers don’t necessarily have a role to play, but I don’t agree with that. We just need to spend more time to figure it out.
How do you advocate the product you want to get something done?
At LinkedIn it’s easy because our mission and vision is creating economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce. When we remind ourselves of our mission, then my job is easy, and it’s typically easier than my peers at other companies who might not have a similar vision. Especially in the context of unemployment and underemployment rate of people with disabilities. So we have a lot of executive-level support here, and I realize that not every company has that. We’re still on a journey here - we’re not finished - and I was fortunate enough to help formalize the accessibility journey back in 2013, but we’re still learning and growing.
How have you learned to exert influence in the organizations that you work with?
In accessibility, I understand the importance of making everything accessible, especially as someone who is blind. However, I also recognize that product teams have many competing priorities like security and localization, with accessibility being just one part. My approach is to partner with teams, acknowledging that accessibility may impact timelines, and work together to minimize that impact. We might not do everything at once, but create a plan to achieve our goals over time.
I aim for collaboration, helping teams see that accessibility not only does the right thing but also improves their product. I don't push aggressively; instead, I take a practical, understanding approach. While I’ve had tough conversations when necessary, it’s rare. Most of the time, it’s about meeting people where they are, especially if they're new to accessibility, and patiently explaining the fundamentals. Though it can be frustrating, it's crucial for changing hearts and minds.
Well put. We are still at a stage where so much in accessibility is education, education, education - there's a lot of repetition. It's a lot of meeting people where they're at. It's a lot of understanding the priorities and issues that we're facing.
Yes, it's not just about educating people on accessibility; for some, it's their first interaction with a person with a disability. I try to make people comfortable quickly, especially when working with new project teams, because if I don't, I might lose their attention.
Building trust is key, as some fear that accessibility will be a burden. But it's rarely the case. My goal is to help them understand what accessibility is, starting from wherever they are, without assuming prior knowledge.
These skills, like reading the room and understanding how people operate, come from my early career outside accessibility. While difficult conversations sometimes happen, it's all part of the process.
You've worked in accessibility for a while now. What's something that’s come along in the last few years that has surprised you?
What’s surprised me most in recent years is the growing number of engineers and designers genuinely excited about accessibility. It’s great to see this new wave of people eager to contribute to our field, and I feel it’s part of my duty to make them feel welcome.
While not all will become full-time accessibility experts, many want to incorporate it into their work, which is fantastic. Accessibility benefits everyone, not just those with permanent disabilities. Whether it’s for productivity or preference, tools designed for accessibility often improve the experience for all users.
Some people have said to me that accessibility slows down innovation. What do you say to those people?
Accessibility only slows down innovation if it's an afterthought. If you wait until a project is nearly finished to address it, yes, it will cause delays because you'll need to revisit and fix things. But if you treat accessibility as a core requirement from the start—just like security or other fundamentals—you can plan for it and avoid being caught off guard.
With today's automation and advances in accessibility, there's really no excuse for it to significantly slow things down. It's all about integrating it early, making it part of your process, and ensuring it has proper ownership throughout the project.
How do you think AI will impact accessibility?
AI has the potential to improve accessibility by enhancing test automation, increasing the percentage of issues that can be detected beyond the current 30-40%. On the user side, AI is already making an impact with tools like meeting summaries for those with cognitive disabilities, AI-powered Rayband glasses for the blind, and auto-captioning, though it still needs improvement.
AI is also being used for image and video descriptions, offering promising developments in accessibility. While there's exciting progress on both ends—both for accessibility practitioners and users—I’m still waiting to see more concrete advancements in test automation.
What are some innovations that have benefited you recently?
I'm a big user of Be My Eyes where you can just take a picture and it will describe what's happening. For example, I'm staying at a hotel right now and the Wi-Fi password is on my keycard pack. I was having trouble logging into the Wi-Fi and I called the front desk and the front desk person said, “Oh, the Wi-Fi passwords on the key card pack.”
Now, before I would have had to say, “Oh, well, I'm actually blind. Can you read me back what that password is, please?” Instead I picked up the Be My Eyes app on my phone and I was able to instantly get the Wi-Fi password and go ahead and log in.
I've been able to use it for all kinds of stuff. It will tell me things like whether my shirts are creased, so I know if I need to iron it. Just some fundamental things where having a pair of eyes would be useful.
That app has helpful with reading menus at restaurants, and a whole bunch of things that it's opened up for me. I also like that I don't have to deal with a person. It could be two in the morning and I can just take a picture and it will describe what I need. I can also ask
it more questions if I need more detail of what that image is and go from there.
What are you most excited about for the future?
Well, if I could reframe that question and say, what am I most excited about for the future at the Global Accessibility Awareness Day Foundation? We are about to conduct the first of its kind global digital accessibility salary survey. One of the areas in our industry that we have little data on is how much people who spend their time making technology and digital products accessible and usable should be making.
There are salary surveys in many other industries and it's easy to kind of know how much one should be making but there's nothing in the digital accessibility space at a global level. So the foundation is going to be doing that and I'm really excited about that and we will be presenting our first results at South by Southwest next year, which is in keeping with one of the tenets of that foundation which is we want to to make that information available and present it in mainstream venues and what more mainstream venues from a technology perspective than a place like South by Southwest.
So I am really, really excited about that. We are partnering with our friends at WebAIM on doing that salary survey. For those who might be interested in that, and if you want to contribute your data to that effort, just head over to our website, GAAD.Foundation.