1. Promise
What did we tell attendees, speakers, sponsors, or leadership we would provide?
From promise to proof
Accessibility Traceability™ for events
A way to follow an accessibility promise from “we've got it covered” to what actually happens when someone shows up.
A commitment is not complete because it appears in the plan.
Accessibility Traceability™ is how I help teams follow one accessibility promise all the way through an event. Not just where it appears in the plan, but who takes responsibility, who delivers it, and how we know it worked.
Because a promise can look perfectly fine in a planning meeting and still fall apart somewhere between the contract, the vendor, and the attendee.
The participant should not be the first person to discover that the promise did not survive the handoff.
From promise to proof
The framework follows a commitment through seven connected points:
Promise → Requirement → Ownership → Supplier → Verification → Delivery → Evidence
Each step answers a different question. Skip one, and it's easy for everyone to assume somebody else has it handled.
The first four traceability points
First, get clear about the promise itself, what it takes to deliver, and who's responsible for making it happen.
2. Requirement
What exactly needs to be in place—service, route, format, timing, capacity, or support—for that promise to mean something?
3. Ownership
Who's making the decisions, approving the cost, confirming the details, and stepping in when something goes wrong?
4. Supplier
Which hotel, venue, transportation provider, production team, or other supplier is actually responsible for delivering each piece?
The final three traceability points
Then check the work, pay attention to what happens onsite, and keep what you learn so the next event starts stronger.
5. Verification
What are we checking, who's checking it, and when? What proof do we have before somebody has to depend on it?
6. Delivery
What actually happened during the event? Could people participate? And when something changed or failed, how did the team respond?
7. Evidence
What did we document, what did attendees tell us, what needs supplier follow-up, and what are we changing next time?
Example: accessible transportation
Promise: Accessible transportation will be available between the host hotel and venue.
Requirement and ownership: The plan identifies an appropriate wheelchair- and scooter-accessible vehicle, usable loading points, capacity, timing, dispatch details, a named event-team owner, and authority to resolve failure.
Supplier and verification: The transportation company agrees to the requirements, and the team verifies the actual vehicle, lift or ramp, securement equipment, full route, participant instructions, contact method, and backup plan.
Delivery and evidence: The attendee can actually use the transportation as promised, with dignity and without being left to solve the problem. The team keeps its verification notes, dispatch records, feedback, and lessons for the next event.
“The vendor said yes” is not the same as verified delivery. I'd rather find the problem while there's still time to fix it than have an attendee discover it at the curb.
What the framework is—and is not
It's a way to find the missing owner, the vague requirement, the unchecked vendor promise, or the lesson everybody forgot after the event ended.
It's not a certification or a guarantee that every person will have the same experience. And it certainly isn't paperwork just to create more paperwork.
See how governance assigns authority and responsibility around each traceability point.
Questions leaders ask
What is Accessibility Traceability™?
Accessibility Traceability™ is Rolling With Keke’s framework for following a specific accessibility commitment through promise, requirement, ownership, supplier responsibility, verification, delivery, and evidence.
Is Accessibility Traceability™ an accessibility certification?
No. It does not certify an event or organization as accessible. It helps leaders see whether a commitment has the ownership, documentation, verification, and delivery structure needed to hold.
When should an event use accessibility traceability?
Start before the contracts are signed. Keep checking as registration, transportation, and production take shape, then again before the event and during the debrief. It's especially useful when multiple teams or suppliers are involved.
The promise is only the beginning.
Rolling With Keke™ helps organizations strengthen what happens between an accessibility commitment and the participant’s actual experience.