CWI improves accessibility of the GPA website

Grupo Pão de Açúcar presented us with a challenge: raising the accessibility of the brand’s website to unprecedented levels. Armed with innovation and determination, we dive into the work using a Federal Government tool as support.

The results were high percentages of accessibility, but this is just the beginning. This success story reveals the team’s technical expertise and social commitment to inclusion. Read on to discover how this journey unfolded, reinforcing CWI’s culture of excellence.

More than adapting, going beyond

The CWI team, present at Grupo Pão de Açúcar, faced the challenge of improving the accessibility of the brand’s website.
To identify which areas of the site needed adjustments and monitor the increase in the percentage of accessibility as the modifications were implemented, the team used the Site Accessibility Evaluator and Simulator (ASES), a tool made available by the Brazilian Federal Government.
During the process, we need to adapt to the tool which, despite being very useful, is not very intuitive. Its evaluation is of a technical nature and does not consider the quality of the accessible content added. Therefore, the team sought to go beyond what the tool proposes.

Screen from the ASES system, which evaluates website accessibility.

“We needed to adapt the website to make it more accessible. An improved plan was designed and aims to achieve the highest ASES assessment index (used by the Federal Government) which is based on WCAG 2.0.”

Daniela Harumi Yamasaki
Product Manager – Grupo Pão de Açúcar

“We here at GPA, thinking about being more inclusive, have been adopting good accessibility practices for a few months now. We first started with our Pão de Açúcar and Clube Extra websites. We improved our accessibility rating on the asesweb.governoeletronico.gov.br website, correcting codes and missing labels. Now our work is to build a purchasing journey with less friction for the visually and hearing impaired. We will have achieved our objectives when these good practices become everyday tasks within our teams and this care is permanent.”

Fernanda Tamaio
Product Owner – Grupo Pão de Açúcar

Advances in accessibility

Based on the work developed in partnership with the Grupo Pão de Açúcar business team, led by Daniela Harumi Yamasaki, Product Manager, and Fernanda Tamaio, Product Owner, the website received the implementation of the Libras translator and also the navigation bar with menu for direct access to content. In addition, the site now has an Accessibility Page.

The main navigation elements (buttons, element naming, visible focus function) have had their characteristics corrected, as they are necessary for identification of accessibility readers. “Navigation jumps” elements were also implemented on the website, to direct the user to key points (buttons, content, navigation links) more quickly.

Accessibility and social commitment

After the adaptations made, the pages achieved highly positive rates in ASES, with the home page reaching a notable 99.99% accessibility percentage. At this moment, our team is focused on acculturating other professionals, so that the percentages are maintained and that good Accessibility practices become part of the routine.

In addition to the technical approach, cwisers who worked on the project were also able to look at the needs of people with disabilities, demonstrating a social commitment.

This result was only possible with an intense exchange of knowledge between cwisers. The team dedicated to Grupo Pão de Açúcar counted on the collaboration of professionals from other teams to strengthen their knowledge about accessibility, ensuring the delivery of excellence. A great example of how CWI culture works in practice.

Illustrative photo of wooden pieces of different colors and sizes.

Photos of the facade of the CWI building in São Leopoldo and a Pão de Açúcar supermarket.

Experience beyond software

A parceria entre a CWI e o Grupo Pão de Açúcar já dura mais de 5 anos e tem sido marcada por várias conquistas conjuntas. Atuamos em todo o processo de construção dos e-commerces da marca, tanto nas versões web quanto nos aplicativos.

Atualmente, aproximadamente 100 cwisers que trabalham em equipes multidisciplinares trazem consigo a expertise da Engenharia de Software da CWI, dedicados a impulsionar o Grupo Pão de Açúcar para além do software.