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Investing In Accessibility
Investing In Accessibility

From Deficit to Advantage: Angela Lean, Senior Accessibility Program Lead at Microsoft

02 December 2025 46:59 Kelvin Crosby & Chris Maher

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About this episode

In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with Angela Lean, Senior Accessibility Program Lead at Microsoft, for a powerful conversation about turning disability into a true competitive advantage. Angela shares her lived experience of having a stroke at age 12, how her perspective shifted from “succeeding despite disability” to “succeeding because of it,” and why she now sees disability as a core asset in her life and work.

Angela walks us through her unconventional career path—from answering phones in Senator Tom Harkin’s office just after the ADA passed, to shaping accessibility and AI initiatives inside one of the world’s largest tech companies. She explains how Microsoft is using AI to support employees with disabilities, improve tools like screen readers and captioning, and build services such as the Enterprise Disability Answer Desk. The conversation digs into why accessibility is not a cost center but a massive market opportunity touching 1.5 billion people, how entrepreneurs can plug into Microsoft’s ecosystem, and how AI can personalize work so that disabled and non-disabled people can use the same tools on an equal footing. If you care about inclusive innovation, the future of work, or investing in accessibility as good business—not just good intentions—this episode is for you.

Links & Resources:

Angela Lean: LinkedIn

Microsoft Accessibility Support for Customers: Website

Microsoft Marketplace: Website (trusted source for cloud solutions, AI app, and agents)

The Huddle for Families: Website

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American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.

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