How to provide accessible organizational charts
- Daniel LaGrow
- Jonathan Woolson
Instructions
An organizational chart or an org chart is a diagram that shows a company's structure. This is done by showing peoples names, jobs, and where they are in the chain of command. An org chart is no longer considered to be an accessible option for showing this type of information. This is because screen readers cannot go from one space in the hierarchy to another. The best way to provide this information is to create a bullet list.
While this example shows the info in a hierarchical format, it is hard to read, especially for screen readers. The screen reader will have a hard time keeping track of where they are reading. They may also struggle understanding the significance of each role within a hierarchy.
This photo shows readers and screen readers the exact same information as the org chart above it. However, it is much easier to read and clearly shows the significance of each role within a hierarchy.
