communicATor

In today’s marketplace, consumer tech and disability tech have become indistinguishable. Accessibility and usability are no longer compliance checkboxes and prioritizing inclusion is essential to achieving market differentiation, improved brand perception, and market growth.

At the Center for Innovative Design and Engineering (CIDE), we help companies thrive in today's ecosystem of personalization and customization. CIDE provides the expertise to ensure your organization’s products and services work for everyone. We are available to partner from concept through commercialization to maximize accessibility, usability, and regulatory compliance, without sacrificing exceptional user experiences.

A Holistic Approach:

CIDE takes a collaborative approach where accessibility is not an afterthought. Our interdisciplinary team of clinicians, engineers, and researchers directly engages people with disabilities and older adults to provide technical, clinical and human-centered insights that traditional vendors miss. We understand user interaction at a fundamental level, allowing us to identify barriers early, optimize product experiences, and reduce costly redesigns later in development.

The result: Smarter decisions, faster development timelines, and a product that is designed to perform in a competitive market.

Focused on the Lived Experience

CIDE occupies a unique space as an academic research institution that includes an engineering program, a full-service assistive technology clinic, and a community arm that engages directly with the disability community. We understand accessibility as a lived experience and can offer:

• Real-World Validation: Direct access to people with disabilities who provide authentic user insight.
• Evidence-Based Strategy: Recommendations backed by clinical rigor and the latest in accessibility and usability research.

Services Designed to Improve Product Experiences

From early design through launch, CIDE faculty embed into your workflow, saving time, educating your team and accelerating your go-to-market strategy.

Unique Expertise: High-Stakes Exams and Testing Platforms

CIDE has deep experience in accessibility and usability services for high-stakes exams and testing ecosystems. We partner with exam creators, delivery companies, and preparation providers to address accessibility early, without compromising construct validity or psychometric integrity resulting in better candidate experiences, reduced legal risk, and stronger, more defensible assessments.

Beyond Compliance: Accessibility as a Strategic Advantage

Providing answers is only part of our service. CIDE believes in building capability, not just deliverables. That means sharing knowledge, not just reports. We work side-by-side with your teams to strengthen internal expertise in accessibility and usability, enabling long-term success and sustainable product improvement.

Accessibility That Drives Results

Organizations that invest in accessibility gain access to broader markets, improve customer satisfaction, and minimize compliance risk. CIDE provides clinical insight, technical rigor, and real-user engagement needed to turn accessibility into a strategic advantage.