Should You Hire Staff or Buy Accessibility Software?
Complete ROI analysis and TCO comparison for university accessibility compliance
Savings: $149K-$221K in Year 1 (1,240%-1,850% ROI)
The Quick Answer
For 95% of Universities: Buy Software
Why? The April 2026 deadline is 5 months away. You don't have time to:
- Post job openings (4-8 weeks)
- Interview and hire (6-12 weeks)
- Onboard and train (4-8 weeks)
- Wait for them to manually fix 2,000+ hours of content
Total: 14-28 weeks BEFORE work even starts. You'll miss the deadline.
Build (Hire Staff) if:
- You have 12+ months before deadline
- You need <5 courses remediated per year
- You have complex institutional requirements
- You have >$200K/year budget
Buy (Software) if:
- April 2026 deadline is approaching
- You have 10+ courses to remediate
- You have STEM content (LaTeX)
- You want predictable costs
Total Cost of Ownership (3-Year Analysis)
| Cost Category | Build (2 FTEs) | Buy (Aelira) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| YEAR 1 | |||
| Salaries (2 × $65K) | $130,000 | — | — |
| Benefits (30%) | $39,000 | — | — |
| Recruitment costs | $8,000 | — | — |
| Training & onboarding | $6,000 | — | — |
| Equipment & software | $6,000 | — | — |
| Management overhead (10%) | $18,900 | — | — |
| Software licensing | — | $11,988 | — |
| Year 1 Total | $207,900 | $11,988 | $195,912 |
| YEAR 2 | |||
| Salaries + benefits + overhead | $194,675 | — | — |
| Software licensing | — | $11,988 | — |
| Year 2 Total | $194,675 | $11,988 | $182,687 |
| YEAR 3 | |||
| Salaries + benefits + overhead (3% raise) | $200,515 | — | — |
| Software licensing | — | $11,988 | — |
| Year 3 Total | $200,515 | $11,988 | $188,527 |
| 3-YEAR TOTAL | $603,090 | $35,964 | $567,126 |
| ROI: Buying software saves $567K over 3 years (1,577% ROI) | |||
Hidden Costs of Building NOT Included Above
- Turnover risk: 20% annual turnover = recruiting/training every 5 years
- PTO coverage: Who does the work when staff are on vacation/sick leave?
- Skill gaps: LaTeX conversion requires specialized knowledge
- Tool maintenance: Adobe Acrobat Pro, screen readers, testing tools
- QA overhead: Who reviews their work for quality?
Time-to-Value Comparison
Build: 20-36 Weeks
Job Posting & Recruitment
Post job, screen resumes, conduct interviews, make offers
Notice Period
Wait for new hire to finish current job (2-4 weeks typical)
Onboarding & Training
Learn your systems, LMS, processes, tools, WCAG standards
First Results
Begin manual remediation (still 40-80 hrs/course)
⏰ Problem: April 2026 is 20 weeks away. You'll miss the deadline.
Buy: 1 Day
Sign Up
Create account, enter payment info
Upload Files
Drag-and-drop or bulk CLI upload
Processing
AI scans, generates fixes (runs automatically)
Review & Approve
Staff review AI-generated fixes (10-20% of time vs. manual)
Advantage: Process 50 courses in 1 week vs. 2,000+ hours manually
When Building (Hiring Staff) Makes Sense
There ARE scenarios where hiring staff is the right choice. Here's when:
1. Very Large Institution (R1 Research University)
- 50,000+ students, 5,000+ courses
- Ongoing accessibility work (not one-time remediation)
- Need dedicated accessibility center
- Budget for 5+ FTE accessibility team
Even here, buy software for bulk processing + hire staff for strategy/oversight
2. Unique Institutional Requirements
- Classified/sensitive content (can't upload to cloud)
- Extremely custom workflows (not supported by vendors)
- Legacy systems with no API access
Rare cases. Most universities don't fall into this category.
3. Long Timeline (No Urgent Deadline)
- 18+ months before compliance deadline
- Proactive accessibility program (not reactive)
- Low volume (<5 courses/year needing remediation)
This doesn't apply to April 2026 deadline (only 5 months away)
Final Recommendation
The Hybrid Approach (Best of Both Worlds)
Step 1: Buy Aelira for bulk automated remediation (90% of work)
Step 2: Hire 1 part-time accessibility coordinator (10-20 hrs/week)
Their role: Review AI fixes, handle edge cases, train faculty, report to leadership
Total Cost: ~$25K/year (software + part-time coordinator)
vs. $208K/year for 2 FTEs
Download the TCO Calculator Spreadsheet
Get a customizable Excel ROI calculator to run your own build vs. buy analysis.
Check your email for the downloadable spreadsheet