Shilpi Kapoor is a sociology graduate who started her career exporting silk furnishings. But she failed miserably at it. Later, she turned to technology, starting all over again as a remote-hacker for a US-based company. Shilpi recalls the day that transformed her life: I managed to trace the hacker before my mentor (who used to work from the US) and I was pleasantly shocked. When I asked him the reason for the unusual delay, I discovered he was disabled neck down and relied on a ‘sip and puff’ device to work. That incident changed the way I perceived disability.
It was her mentor’s idea that inspired Shilpi to innovate technology for the benefit of the disabled, and she started the first-ever training center for the visually impaired, but later shut it down as the idea of a non-profit wasn’t going down too well, financially. Using her past experiences and rich expertise, she finally founded the game-changer, BarrierBreak. A for-profit venture, the company is a pioneer in providing accessibility and assistive technology solutions that are successfully opening doors for people with disabilities by making organisations inclusive.
Since 2004, the company has worked with close to 200 companies across various verticals such as IT, healthcare, publishing as well as the government in 12 countries. Multi-national companies like Microsoft and Accenture have made significant inroads in making their offices disabled-friendly, thanks to Barrier Break.
What are BarrierBreak’s offerings?
BarrierBreak has a holistic model that addresses all possible needs a company may have:
- Assistive technology products – From ensuring children with disabilities engage in fun activities to providing mouse alternatives for people with varying motor abilities, the company has over 50 products that cater to disabilities of all kinds. Assistive listening devices, Braille displayers, inclusive libraries, format tools and desktop magnifiers are some of the examples.
- Accessibility testing – By performing website and mobile accessibility testing, BarrierBreak ensures that every important company document and product adheres to international standards of being disabled-friendly.
- Accessible documents and media – This segment ensures that information is provided to a wide range of users by having accessible PDFs, providing captions, audio descriptions and sign language interpretation to news, educational and entertainment videos.
Shilpi well realizes that accessibility isn’t merely providing solutions. It’s allowing every space to be disabled-friendly. And that’s where a critical segment – workshops – comes into the picture. BarrierBreak offers customized sessions for organizations and non-profits and builds awareness on making an inclusive society possible.
Shilpi Kapoor