In the wake of a nationwide labor shortage and the restructuring of the workplace, employers have an opportunity to expand their
Being inclusive of neurodiversity — which commonly refers to those with ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism — can open up an untapped population of employee talent. At least 20% of the adult population is neurodiverse, yet 80% of those who are neurodiverse are unemployed, according to the Harvard Business Review. And with 10 million job openings looking to be filled, these employees are equipped to bring skills and creativity into a workforce that has largely ignored them.
“People who are different aren’t deficient,” says Denise Brodey, a senior contributor at Forbes and founder of Rebel Talent, an organization that works to facilitate conversations between neurodiverse people and their company. “If everybody was average, your company would be doing really poorly.”
Brodey, who has ADHD and dyslexia, believes where companies fail neurodiverse talent is through communication. If a company views conversations surrounding neurodiversity as a legal risk or human resources issue, they may express discomfort toward these candidates even before they’re hired. Neurodiverse candidates can then feel isolated and unwelcomed, she says.
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“We need to listen to people without this compliance fear,” Brodey says. “But because it’s an invisible disability, it's harder [for employees] to communicate issues.”
Hiren Shukla, founder of Neuro-Diverse Centers of Excellence at Ernst and Young Global, says this communication needs to start with the job posting. For example, job postings often carry a long list of qualifications that employers may not require. Shukla advises companies to create a job description that is more representative of what is initially needed, versus what will be developed in training, and be specific and literal with their expectations.
As for the interview, employers should consider a performance-based process, taking into account that not everyone will effectively present their skills and experience, Shukla says. His philosophy also carries into the onboarding process, where he suggests providing explicit company guidelines and resources that note unwritten company rules.
“One of the most important things employers need to consider is a performance-based interview process,” says Shukla. “This helps you find the type of individuals that have the skills and competency for the roles that you're looking to fill.”
And once employees do get hired, it’s imperative they feel supported and not ostracized, Brodey says. At Rebel talent, Brodey works with employers to identify gaps in communication and understanding, tapping into her own workplace experiences to guide employers to be more empathetic and open. When she was a marketing director, Brodey says she was questioned by the CFO over her work habits, like keeping her door closed and covering her cabinets with post-its. While her boss insinuated that this made her seem disorganized, these were all ways to help her stay focused and on-task.
“I'm a very visual person, and that was my organization system,” Brodey says. “I said to my boss, ‘These are timelines for each project that I have, and I know what color each person is.’ I ran my CFO through the whole thing, and she said, ‘Oh my gosh, but I get it.’”
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While Brodey’s boss accommodated her habits, many other neurodiverse employees face interrogations over these simple differentiations in work style. Companies need to learn to create a space where diverse ways of thinking and interacting are communicated by leaders and among colleagues.
“Here you have a resource pool that thinks differently, with an extremely high level of creativity and complex problem-solving skills,” Shukla says. “We need to disrupt ourselves, such that we can reimagine the future to be more resilient.”
Shukla, alongside the Neuro-Diverse Centers of Excellence, aids in that disruption, working with businesses, academic institutions, and even ecosystems of government to understand neurodiverse needs. This not only benefits these employees but the organization as a whole.
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“We've often heard this term ‘bring your whole self to work,’” Shukla says. “We are going to acknowledge the differences that people have and not create an environment where individuals have to hide their behavior, communication or working style.”
This means team managers and leaders walk into work understanding that one in five of their employees or potential hires may be neurodivergent. It means initiating a conversation where it’s clear employees are encouraged to talk about their differences and suggest adjustments in their work environment.
“The more you get used to talking about things with your staff before there's some sort of issue, the better,” Brodey says. “The more these issues get communicated and talked about, the less they seem strange.”
While employers are dedicated to advancing DEI, supporting this overlooked talent pool should have little to do with corporate social responsibility or diversity initiatives, insists Shukla. Instead, it is an opportunity for employers to strengthen their business by giving employees the tools and visibility to succeed.
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“We know that the more diverse your team is, the better results you're going to produce,” Shukla says. “Differences in race, gender, sexual orientation and socioeconomic differences are all inside of the neurodivergent community.”
And neurodivergent employees can and do succeed. For instance, JP Morgan Chase’s Autism at Work program employed 150 participants in eight countries. Employees in this program managed to perform their duties 48% faster than their neurotypical peers. At EY, Shukla recalls how his diverse team developed an automated device assessment technology, which the company sold for millions of dollars. Brodey herself is an award-winning writer, who has been able to connect various communities to the reality of what it means to be neurodivergent.
Neurodiversity, like any other type of diversity, empowers communities to be more adaptive and resilient. Different ways of perceiving and connecting to the world are needed now more than ever, as industries hope to endure the swift changes in their market’s needs.
“The world is diverse for a reason and embracing it from the very beginning, no matter what shape or form it takes, makes it much more enjoyable and workable for everybody,” says Brodey. “So let’s discover talent, not hide it.”
