How can you help individuals with autism succeed in the workplace?

Workplace counselling for individuals with ASD can help them succeed in the workplace by providing them with support, guidance and coping strategies to deal with the challenges they may encounter, such as sensory overload, social anxiety, communication difficulties or lack of feedback (Hill, 2014). Workplace counselling can also help individuals with ASD to identify and utilise their strengths, such as attention to detail, creativity, loyalty and honesty (Austin & Pisano, 2017).

Supporting individuals with autism in the workplace involves clear communication, creating sensory-friendly environments, adhering to structured routines, providing supportive supervision, breaking tasks into manageable steps, job matching, offering education and awareness through sensitivity training, reasonable accommodations, mentoring and peer support, recognizing and utilizing their strengths, and continuous adaptation. These strategies cultivate an inclusive work environment that embraces the unique abilities of individuals with autism, fostering diversity and innovation while enabling them to thrive in their careers, i believe Incorporating these strategies results in an inclusive workplace.

Since communication is a difficult area for most autistic people, it would be helpful when doing an exercise like this to have a checkbox sheet with options that the individual may choose from. This helps people to find words when they might be uncertain what needs will be viewed as acceptable by the employer, and it also helps when individuals just do not know what to say. It is also important to recognize that all employees have unique needs, and gathering this information would be beneficial for everyone.

To support individuals with autism in the workplace, provide clear and structured job expectations and routines. Offer training programs and accommodations tailored to their specific needs and strengths. Foster a supportive and inclusive work environment that promotes understanding and acceptance. Implement communication tools and strategies that facilitate effective interaction and minimize sensory overload. Provide mentoring and coaching to help individuals build confidence and social skills. Encourage teamwork and collaboration while respecting their need for individual space and time.

In my experience, it's best to assess the individual first. Have a conversation, ask open-ended questions when available. Try not to dive straight into reading the individuals psych evals or formalized assessments. Get to know the individual without the use of those forms first. This will help steer away from creating a bias based on what may be outdated data. Although assessments and evaluations serve as a tool for job development, it does not have to be the guide for servicing the individual.

It is true that autistic employees may struggle more with ambiguity, uncertainty, and change than neurotypical people; however, these are very challenging issues for the majority of all people. Make it a priority to use proven strategies for success, while providing additional support to any employees who need it, not just autistic employees. This will help your organization to thrive during these types of challenging times.

Guidance does not always need to come from a supervisor, a job coach, or a coworker. Technology may be utilized to provide all expectations, if that allows an individual to perform work duties with more certainty and less anxiety. If an app, like recipeasy.io, can help an individual complete all work duties and tasks without an individual standing over their shoulder, that may be best. Technology can provide text and videos of exact steps and processes, track successes and mishaps, provide cues to conversations or reminders of next steps. Success in the workplace is different for everyone. Let's focus on what individuals can do rather than what they can't do. Some people would rather take guidance and advice from a device.

I represent the non-verbal profoundly (aka low functioning, aka classic autism) demographic, and you may not like what I'm going to say. There are roughly 300,000 adults, young adults, and kids that fall into this group, and guidance I have to employers of these parents is to give them a ton of grace. These are all solutions for verbal people on the spectrum. For non-verbal you have to have a deep connection with the person to get any type of communication going with them, and be able to interpret what most people write off as babble.

In today's dynamic work landscape, especially with neurodiverse teams, regular feedback and adaptation are key. It's not just about annual reviews; it's about fostering a culture of continuous, actionable feedback. Weekly check-ins offer real-time insights, while an open-door policy encourages immediate dialogue. A 360-degree feedback system can be particularly effective, providing a comprehensive view of performance and areas for growth. But feedback is a two-way street. It's not just about what you convey to your team; it's also about how you adapt based on the feedback you receive. This cycle of feedback and adaptation is essential for any team focused on continual growth.

Clear multi-step policies and procedures for tasks. Int heir preferred format. Clear lines of support and accesibility to the support when needed.

Many employees, autistic or not, benefit from improving interpersonal behaviors. When it comes to eye contact, a large number of autistic individuals find it to be very uncomfortable. It is not a lack of skill. Not utilizing eye contact is a needed behavior of self-preservation for many autistic people. Differences in eye contact should be accepted as part of the neurodiversity paradigm.

It is important to find and utilize the ways that work for the individual when it comes to neurodivergent communication in the workplace. It may be more appropriate to offer a different form of communication (written, etc.) or an accommodation than to teach Autistic people certain social skills. It is not best practice to teach a colleague with Autism to maintain eye contact. Many people with Autism don’t lack skills, they just communicate in a different way than most, and can be part of a successful team when everyone works together to understand each other and respect neurodiversity.

Autistics are very social people, however it just manifests in different outcomes. You have to be able to interpret what they are asking for from *their* perspective. A lot of what people see as a negative behaviour is just a weird expression of regular Play, and they are most likely trying to include you. I call myself an Autism Whisperer but it only applies to my son, for the most part, as I am his main social interaction point *because* I understand what he is saying-not-saying. I leaned into using SMS and Google Calendar for communication, that is how I know what I will be doing with him on a daily basis but you have to accept they will need to drive the interaction. Please do not attempt to force social to be neurotypical only!

Having a go to support person means that in meetings subtle changes are highlights of not understanding. Such as an idiom is used to explain something. Autistic person masks however the support person see the minute facial change and sends a chat message to the person to check in or to explain the idiom etc.

Social skills training is a valuable tool for autistic individuals, helping them navigate social interactions with greater ease and confidence. By focusing on key areas such as understanding facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice, individuals can learn to interpret social cues more effectively and respond appropriately in various social situations. This improved ability to communicate and connect with others can significantly enhance their overall quality of life.

We’ve found it helpful to educate our students on HOW to receive accommodations in the first place. Did you know that there are 11 different accommodations offered for the FAA Part 107 Exam?

They need way more than just accommodations to succeed, they need an entirely new way of living and earning incomes. They should not be dependent on the largess of the commons.

If professional advice has been sought use it to support the individual. Using the supporting person to check in prior, during and after social events. Advocating for them.

This is the only point so far that does apply to the non-verbal group, and related to the social interaction side. You need to completely shift you perception of what an achievement is and lean into the odd ones, to be able to nudge them on the more mundane tasks. Non-verbals, more than anyone, are extremely cut off from positive interactions and feedback loops and you should celebrate legit wins with them.

As an Operations Manager and a mom to a child on the autism spectrum, I've seen firsthand the transformative power of structured onboarding. Inspired by Tony Attwood's emphasis on routine and structure, I implemented a multi-week onboarding plan for my virtual team of 14 individuals with autism. This wasn't just about handing over a welcome kit. It included detailed role expectations, team introductions, training schedules, and regular check-ins. The result? On-time project completion and a harmonious team dynamic. Structured onboarding isn't just a 'nice-to-have'; it's a 'must-have' for neurodiverse teams.

For me, a critical step underlying all of this is educating everyone else in the team. It opens up conversation and expands awareness of all needs. Many of the steps involve someone with ASD being able to function in a ‘normal’ work environment. Yet, whether or not we are diagnosed ‘neurospicy’, we all benefit from recognising we experience the world in different ways. Plus, once you know one person with autism…you know one person with autism.

I will say that being autistic myself, I have had a tough time: (i) finding & keeping a job of my choice; (ii) avoiding misunderstandings at work and at home with myself & others; (iii) not misusing words when I talk, esp. if what had come out of my mouth was offensive, when that definitely was not my intention; (iv) avoiding feelings of anxiety/panic, and when I'm under tight deadlines, curtailing feeling the pressure of time; and (v) not being oversensitive to reactions I sometimes encounter from other people around me.

As an neurospicy individual, I find it helpful to join a community of other neurospicy people. I use NDWorks.net to meet up and compare horror stories. They have a Facebook group and a discord channel. Yes, it’s a place where life coaches meet clients, but everyone is respectful of over-marketing and all the coaches give really useful freebies.