Thanks to disruptive demographic change, labor and consumer markets are changing at a dizzying pace. As a result, in the coming years, businesses can anticipate that traditional labor pools will shrink, and they will need to rely on “non-traditional workers.” They can also expect that consumer wants and needs will shift. 

Unfortuntely, the current regulatory standards, like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), that governs space design for people with disabilities is inadequate. They fails to consider many disabilities acquired over a lifetime, like changes in mobility, vision, hearing, neurodiversity and cognition, and strength and agility.

Businesses must reconsider how to design workspaces, retail, and hospitality environments to compete in this new era. Inclusive design is one way to consider the needs of more people in the process and improve the work or consumer experience for upwards of 61 million people in the United States and over 1 billion people worldwide. And, when we design with inclusion in mind, everyone benefits.