UX, Accessibility and Brave Leadership | Emma Kirk of User Vision

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Emma Kirk of User Vision, a UX and accessibility consultancy that has been helping organisations create better digital experiences for 26 years. User Vision uses research-led insight to help clients understand real user needs and design services that work for everyone, including people with disabilities. Over the years, the team has worked with more than 350 clients globally, from major brands to public sector organisations, always with a focus on bringing humanity to design and making digital services both inclusive and commercially effective.

Emma explains why inclusive design is still being missed by so many organisations. Too often, businesses race to launch digital products based on internal assumptions, tight budgets or legacy systems, without asking how real people will actually use them. She shares why that is such a costly mistake, and why accessibility is not a niche issue but a commercial, practical and human one. Whether it is a website, an app, a kiosk or another digital touchpoint, Emma argues that businesses are leaving both people and revenue behind when they do not design with real users in mind from the start.

We also dive into the practical side of user research. Emma’s advice is simple and powerful: test early, speak to people and do not build until you know what your audience actually needs. She talks about lightweight ways small businesses can do this, from interviews and focus groups to low-cost sketches and simple concept testing, rather than wasting time and money “racing to the finish” with the wrong solution.

Emma’s own business story is fascinating too. User Vision was founded by Chris Rorke, but Emma joined just a year later after seeing the gap between what digital teams thought people wanted and what users actually needed. A major government project became the sliding-doors moment that pushed them from “helping out” into growing a real business together. Over time, they built a specialist team around usability, accessibility and insight, growing through long-term relationships, repeat work and word of mouth rather than a large sales machine. Today the business remains intentionally small, under 15 people, with a strong reputation and clients that have stayed with them for many years.

We also talk honestly about leadership, time management, stress and the loneliness that can come with running a business for more than two decades. Emma reflects on learning to manage people, navigate HR, stay calm under pressure and ask for help when needed. She shares what changed when she became a mother, the reality of trying to build a business and raise a child at the same time, and why support from both inside and outside the business has been fundamental to her sanity and success.

This is a thoughtful, practical and deeply honest conversation about accessibility, digital design, growth, resilience and the confidence it takes to stand in front of the room and say, “I know this will help.”

In this episode, we cover:

1. What User Vision does as a UX and accessibility consultancy and why that matters more than ever
2. Why inclusive digital design is a commercial issue, not just a compliance exercise
3. The cost of assuming your customers think like you do
4. Why businesses should test early, ask users and avoid building before they understand real needs
5. How neurodiversity, situational disability and human variability affect digital experiences
6. Emma’s journey into User Vision and the big government project that became the turning point for growth
7. Building a specialist team through thought leadership, research and long-term client relationships
8. Why User Vision has stayed intentionally small, under 15 people, and what Emma values about that size
9. The realities of time management, stress and staying calm as a business owner
10. The challenge of combining entrepreneurship and motherhood, and the “maternity leave” reality when it is your own business
11. How Emma has handled imposter syndrome, male-dominated rooms and confidence under pressure
12. Why every founder needs support, boundaries and an external voice they trust
13. Emma’s advice to women in business: be brave, be confident and believe in yourself