Training Staff to Use PDF Accessibility Software Effectively

Why Training Matters

Many organizations invest in powerful accessibility tools—but still struggle because staff aren’t confident or consistent in using them. Effective PDF accessibility training reduces errors, speeds remediation, and helps embed accessibility into your organizational culture. When team members understand why accessibility matters (not just how), they’re more likely to do the work carefully and persistently.

Because poor accessibility isn’t just a technical failure—it excludes real people from vital content like healthcare instructions, education resources, or government forms—staff training is central to both compliance and inclusion.

 

Training Needs: Assessing Skill Gaps & Roles

Before launching training, your accessibility coordinator or team needs to map out who needs which skills:

• Document creators/content authors: Should know how to structure content (headings, lists, tables) in their source tools (Word, InDesign, etc.), so PDFs require fewer fixes later.

• Remediation team members: Must master the remediation tool to handle editing, AI tagging, reading order, alt text, form fields, etc.

• Reviewers/quality assurance: Evaluate remediated PDFs for compliance, usability, and assistive technology checks.

• Accessibility coordinator or lead: Oversees training, monitors performance, and ensures quality standards. This blog recommends that role for sustaining accessibility efforts. (Why You Need an Accessibility Coordinator)

Identify existing strengths and gaps. Also consider the types of documents your organization handles (complex tables, forms, multi-language content) and ensure that training covers those common challenges.

 

Ongoing Support & Reinforcement

Training shouldn’t be a one-and-done event. To sustain competency:

• Refresher sessions scheduled quarterly or after major tool updates

• Office hours/drop-in clinics for one-on-one help

• Peer reviews where experienced users review others’ remediated PDFs

• Feedback loops: highlight recurring errors and address them in group training.

• Internal checklists & standards that align with your organization’s compliance goals (such as a customized version of the Equidox PDF Accessibility Checklist).

• Tracking & accountability: record remediation metrics, errors found in QA, and time taken to remediate.

Your accessibility coordinator can monitor these and ensure continuous improvement.

Best Practices for Effective Training

Here are practices that help make your PDF accessibility training more effective:

• Start with foundational principles — explain why accessibility matters, referencing standards like WCAG, Section 508, and PDF/UA.

• Use live demos + hands-on exercises — learners retain more when they practice.

• Train by document type — use actual documents your staff will work on (reports, contracts, scanned docs).

• Gradually increase complexity — start with simple remediations, then layer in tables, forms, multi-language, and scanned content.

• Pair automation with manual checks — teach staff to trust AI suggestions but always validate reading order, alt text, and compliance manually.

• Encourage collaboration — have users co-remediate or review each other’s work to catch mistakes early.

• Promote internal standards — define consistent guidelines (like alt text style, tag hierarchy) that everyone follows.

• Celebrate successes — show “before and after” examples to motivate staff and reinforce good behavior.

Sample Training Plan Outline

Module	Topics	Duration	Practice Exercise
Introduction & Standards	Why PDF accessibility matters, WCAG basics	1 hour	Review two sample inaccessible PDFs and list barriers
Tool walkthrough	Equidox interface, import, Smart Detectors	1 hour	Remediate a simple one-page PDF
Advanced features	Tables, forms, zone transfer	1–2 hours	Remediate a multi-table, multi-form document
QA & compliance checks	Export, warnings, screen reader testing	1 hour	Validate and fix a remediated PDF
Ongoing learning	Troubleshooting, feedback, review	Ongoing	Peer reviews of remediated PDFs, clinic sessions

 

 

Equidox Resources for Training & Support

Equidox makes training easier by offering resources that fit every stage of learning and support your training process:

1. Live, instructor-led training with every license purchase. Trainers demonstrate features, answer questions, and guide your team through remediation workflows. (Equidox Support & Training)

2. Step-by-step training videos and tutorials covering features like headings, tables, forms, zone transfer, and workflow.

3. User Guide & documentation with screenshots, how-to articles, and release notes for self-paced reference. (Equidox User Guide)

4. Support from real people (onsite from your organization’s accessibility experts or in-app) for how-to help or break-fix issues. (Equidox FAQ)

Equidox also offers advanced training options like webinars (e.g. Advanced Table Training) to help staff tackle complex scenarios with confidence.

 Why Staff Training Elevates ROI

Even the most advanced tools underperform if staff lack confidence or consistency. Effective, continual training reduces rework, speeds remediation, and minimizes legal and reputational risks. And because Equidox training is included with licenses—and backed by ongoing resources—you can roll out skills rapidly across your team without extra procurement overhead.

Well-trained users will not only remediate faster—they’ll catch subtle accessibility issues, maintain consistency across documents, and help your organization scale accessibility efforts sustainably.

Tammy Albee

Tammy Albee | Director of Marketing | Equidox Tammy joined Equidox after four years of experience working at the National Federation of the Blind. She firmly maintains that accessibility is about reaching everyone, regardless of ability, and boosting your market share in the process. "Nobody should be barred from accessing information. It's what drives our modern society."