Beyond Buy-In: How to Build an Inclusive and Accessible Culture That Scales

Senior Accessibility Strategy Partner

T-Mobile

Claudia L. Gordon is an internationally recognized disability inclusion and accessibility strategist, attorney, and public leader whose work has advanced equitable policies, accessible workplaces, and systemic change across government, nonprofit, and corporate sectors. With more than 30 years of leadership experience, she advises organizations on embedding disability inclusion and accessibility into culture, operations, talent, technology, and public engagement. Widely recognized as the first Black Deaf female attorney in the United States, Gordon has dedicated her career to expanding opportunity and advancing equity for people with disabilities. Claudia currently serves as Senior Accessibility Consultant at T-Mobile US, Inc., where she leads enterprise-wide initiatives that strengthen disability inclusion and accessibility across the employee experience. Her work focuses on advancing accessibility strategy, cultivating an inclusive workplace culture, expanding organizational capability through education and awareness, and fostering cross-functional partnerships that embed accessibility into everyday business practices. Throughout her distinguished career, Gordon has held senior leadership positions with Sprint Corporation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the National Council on Disability, and the National Association of the Deaf Law and Advocacy Center. During the Obama-Biden Administration, she served as Chief of Staff for the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and as Associate Director of Public Engagement in the White House Office of Public Engagement. She later returned to public service as a Biden Administration appointee to the National Council on Disability, where she served as Chair. Beyond her professional roles, Gordon serves on numerous nonprofit boards and advisory groups dedicated to civil rights, disability inclusion, and public policy. She is a member of the American Civil Liberties Union of the District of Columbia (ACLU-DC) Affiliate Board and serves as the affiliate's representative to the National ACLU Board. As a Black Deaf immigrant woman from Jamaica, Gordon brings an intersectional perspective to her leadership and advocacy. She is especially committed to advancing opportunities for disabled people with multiple marginalized identities and ensuring that disability inclusion efforts reflect the diversity of the communities they serve. Gordon's leadership has been recognized by organizations including the National Council on Independent Living, American Association of People with Disabilities, Google, AT&T, the National Disability Mentoring Coalition, the National Association of the Deaf, National Black Deaf Advocates, and The Root 100. A native of Jamaica, she is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and a graduate of Howard University and American University's Washington College of Law. Through her leadership, she continues to help organizations transform disability inclusion and accessibility from compliance obligations into drivers of innovation, belonging, and business excellence.