‘I’m making my mark by knocking down accessibility barriers so everyone can find their way.’
That moment stayed with me. So when I returned from maternity leave and was given the chance to lead a Digital Accessibility initiative at GFT, I knew exactly what I wanted to do: help build a world where no one is left behind, online or off.
I’m an avid reader outside of work, and love films, TV series and music. I play keyboards and guitar, and have a ukulele, cajón and melodica. In my spare time, I also work as a clinical psychologist. Yet, my priority is my family, and especially my young son, in our countryside home in Boituva, near São Paulo.
While preparing to return to work after maternity leave in 2022, the opportunity arose to build and expand a Digital Accessibility offering at GFT.
As well as creating a client solution, my role is to ensure accessibility internally too. So, we began by mapping key actions to make GFT a better workplace, starting with our mandatory training materials, which didn’t meet international standards.
Working globally, we reviewed those materials and improved them to create content that was genuinely accessible to everyone. We also launched a series of talks, workshops and training sessions to promote a culture of accessibility.’
By late 2023, we had reduced the gaps in the company's internal practices. Yet, to address those that remained, we created a Digital Accessibility Best Practices Guide. This shares strategies and resources that have helped other departments drive improvements. We ran research, analysed documents and held interviews across all the key teams that interact with employees and the outside world.
The guide makes recommendations about those departments’ materials and tools, including social media posts, emails, multimedia content and Microsoft Office 365. It promotes accessibility in everything from meetings and documents to communications and publications. We then ran a live launch event for the guide, which reached over 180 employees.
We’d also started promoting these digital accessibility practices as an offering to clients. That’s now led to various new opportunities, including a major project with one of Brazil’s biggest banks. We have a six-person team on that, expect it to grow, and are actively engaging with other prospective clients.
GFT is full of opportunities to grow and make a difference. Championing digital accessibility has shown me that real inclusion isn’t just a value—it’s a daily practice, shared by everyone. Here, we’re empowered to shape meaningful change, not just for clients, but for each other. That’s how we make our mark: by opening doors, breaking barriers, and building a workplace—and a world—that works for all.
