Neurodiversity at work

As part of the Autism Acceptance Week (2nd April 7th April) I wanted to share information as to why recruiting neurodiverse people could benefit your organisation.

Statistics show a large percentage of adults with brain differences are being left out of the world of work. In this article, we explore the reasons why organisations should be doing more to hire more neurodiverse candidates into their organisation.

• In February 2024 the Buckland Review of Autism Employment found that a very high number of adults with autism do not hold paid employment, calculating this number to be 3 in 10 people of a working age with Autism are in paid employment. This has unfortunately not increased since a report in 2020 (McKinsey Study) found that 32% of autistic adults had a paid job, of which 16% worked full time. The Buckland review also found that university graduates with Autism were twice as likely to unemployed 15 months after graduation than graduates who do not have Autism with a total of 36 autistic graduates finding work in this period, of which a higher percentage had zero hour contracts and roles that they were overqualified for.
• The non-profit Autism Europe stresses that neurodiverse people have an alternative skillset to offer in the workplace. This includes technical skill, concentration and high knowledge recall. A number of organisations in the US and UK are now looking at this potential, hiring large numbers of neurodiverse employees.
• To get the best out of neurodiverse hires, it is crucial that organisations are willing to make reasonable adjustments. Many autistic adults are not aware of their legal rights around reasonable adjustments. The Buckland Review found that only around 35% of autistic employees are fully open about being autistic, 10 of those employees have never disclosed their autism and of those who have the vast majority waited until they started their roles before doing so. This process ideally has to start at the interview stage?however many employers lack knowledge around this and many people who are neurodiverse are not comfortable in making potential employers aware of requirements/adjustments so early in the process, but does not always need to be an onerous process.
• Aspiritech, a company composed of 100% autistic employees, has advice for any company aiming to embrace neurodiversity. They suggest “just jumping in.” Being kind and open to two-way communication about need and best-practice.?

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Neurodivergence in the workplace: Background

Diversity and inclusion has been a major area of focus for many organisations in recent years. Did you know that organisations in the top quartile for gender diversity outperform their competitors by 25%, & those in the top quartile for ethnic diversity outperform their competitors by 36% - diversity leads to results! (source 2020 McKinley Study)

The new Buckland Review is working with Autistica , they have been collecting data for the past 7 years, currently it is on limited release but if you contact them they may be able to support you with useful data. A full release is due later this year which will be accessible to all organisations - keep an eye out for the Autistica Neurodiversity Employers Index

The UK government have put in place a 5 year plan to ensure businesses are taking steps to improve on D&I representation of workers from traditionally marginalised groups specifically for adults with neurological differences such as autism, Asperger’s syndrome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dyslexia are being excluded from the workforce in swathes.?

In examining autism in the workplace as an example, the problem is clear. In the US, 85% of college graduates with autism are unemployed. In Australia , just 40% of people with autism are employed, compared to 83% of people without a disability. Here in the UK, only 32% of autistic adults have paid employment of any kind – with only 16% holding full-time roles.

With so many employable neurodiverse adults side-lined, we need to wonder what businesses are missing out on? Could improving the workplace representation of neurodiversity actually bolster a company’s skill set??

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Why organisations should prioritise the benefits of neurodiversity

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Tackle talent shortages and find alternative strengths

Autism Europe suggests that though people with Autism can struggle with social interaction, they often display high levels of concentration and technical skill, high levels of reliability, low levels of absences, detailed factual knowledge, strong record keeping and organisation, problem solving skills, high retention rates, and resourcefulness. Autism Europe published a thorough 64 page report entitled "Autism and Work" which I recommend as a resource for anyone looking to imporve their knowledge and awareness of D&I.

Carlene Jackson, CEO of tech company Cloud9 Insight – who is herself dyslexic – estimates around 30% of her employees are neurodiverse. Describing the benefits these employees can bring. According to Jackson “firms just need to understand the value of having people that don’t think in a traditional way. We find the ability to focus and be loyal are strong autistic traits. Why wouldn’t we want this in our business?”

Some of the abilities common to these demographics are particularly useful for STEM industries. Microsoft’s Autism Hiring Programme and IBM’s Ignite Autism Spectrum Disorder programme are just two of the schemes set up by big-name tech firms to actively hire more neurodiverse employees.

US software and quality assurance (QA) non-profit Aspiritech has gone further still. The company’s entire workforce is made up of people on the Autism spectrum. Founders Brenda and Moshe Weitzberg set up the business in 2008 after their autistic son Oran was turned away from many jobs.

“Our clients benefit from an affordable, US-based, highly-skilled solution for their QA testing needs,” says Brad Cohen, Chief Marketing Officer. “The staff gain a well-paying job in a suitable environment that supports their long-term employment. Everyone gains when people are given the opportunity to use their skills for meaningful, well-paying work that leads to a fully independent life.”

The benefits are long-term as well. Aspiritech has a retention rate of 95 per cent and team leaders and managers are hired from within the organisation.

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It’s important to tailor support to neurodiverse colleagues

Though there are many benefits to neurodiverse representation in the workplace, the reality is that many organisations are simply not set up to help these neurodivergent employees succeed. One of the biggest challenges is around improving understanding and awareness.

Mike Blake, the Wellness Lead at Willis Towers Watson explains that “Research we conducted found 32% of UK workers said their employer fails to offer additional help or support for neurodiverse employees.” However, as Blake points out – that’s often because leaders are unaware of the need.?

“The first thing employers must do is accept they’re likely to have neurodiverse staff already in place. These are employees who might be suffering because they are trying to do a job that their neurodiversity makes very difficult.”

Organisations also need to ensure that colleagues are aware and accepting of their peers’ different needs. “This is the tougher task,” says Dr Nancy Doyle, CEO of Genius Within. “The paradigm shift is for everyone to ask ‘what are the benefits that neurodiverse people can bring to the table?’ Current thinking around neurodiversity is still closer to disability and discrimination legislation – about making reasonable adjustments – rather than seeing the actual benefits in the whole.”

The Buckland report backed this up finding the five biggest perceived barriers of employers to be cost of adjustments (69%), practicality of adjustments for overall workspace (67%), accessibility (44%), concern on ability to do the job (29%) and concern other employee would mistreat the candidate (11%)

Adjustments start at the interview stage

When it comes to making adjustments to recruitment practices, there are a number of barriers to overcome. Aspiritech’s Brad Cohen points out that weak social skills, a lack of eye contact, and difficulty with interviewing skills can hide the candidates’ true abilities. The Buckland report found that from 500 young autistic people surveyed 73% admitted to being anxious about the application and interview process not being accessible to then. Awareness of these issues can open up opportunities for both the job seeker and the employer.

Awareness around questioning is another factor, for example some candidates who is neurodivergent may be overly honest about weaknesses, struggle with eye contact, or lack confidence due to the anxiety of the process. The Bucland Report suggests that asking hypothetical or abstract questions can also impair interview performance.

Of those surveyed, autistic applicants suggested that tools such as practical tests & assignments to be completed before interview would allow them to demonstrate their skills, as one of the respondents said “If someone is applying for a job as a violinist in an orchestra, they are not asked to tell the interviewer something about their achievements playing the violin: they are asked to play the violin.”

Brad says the secret to Aspiritech’s success in hiring neurodivergent employees is in offering them the support they need. “We employ 116 QA testers who are autistic, plus a handful of support staff to help our autistic employees with both hard and soft skills. Aspiritech also offers daily and weekend social activities, coding clubs, women’s groups and many other planned free activities to build an environment where our staff can shine.”

Other points highlighted as potential barriers for people with autism via the Buckley Report include over complicated job spec forms and descriptions as they can often be generic documents including a lot of data that may not be relevant to the role, often with confusing language, overlapping statements and generic sections. This can cause people to rule themselves out for roles that they may be qualified for.

AI and use of Bots by Recruitment Companies Creating a Barrier

The Buckley report stated that Many organisations are now outsourcing their recruitment filtering to companies using automated filtering or are themselves using artificial intelligence packages to screen candidates. This can prove to be equally challenging and limiting for autistic candidates. Autistic and neurodivergent candidates can be penalised by artificial intelligence packages that analyse eye contact and mannerisms to measure social interaction ability. Software can also rule out candidates with significant gaps in their employment history, which will include many autistic people.

"Many large and medium-sized companies have outsourced the first stage of recruitment via agencies, and the agencies have outsourced it to bots. So what’s happening is that the consideration of CVs and completed forms is a tick-box exercise, and I think autistic people are often disadvantaged in that process"

– David, diagnosed as autistic after retiring from a career in IT-enabled business strategy and transformation

"No HR bot in the world looking at my CV would ever give me an interview. My CV is eight pages long and has gaps all the way through it, because that was how I coped."

– Chris, autistic IT consultant

So is it something to consider when appointing an agency as part of your wider D&I processes for employing staff. Does the agency you use rely on tech to find them candidates, do they meet those candidates or is the entire process automated. All questions to consider when appointing third parties for recruitment whilst looking to implement an diverse and inclusive recruitment process for your own hires.

To get started, open conversations

Cohen encourages businesses looking to learn to contact Aspiritech , as the organisation is ready and willing to share its experience. For those looking to make their workplace more suitable for neurodivergent colleagues, he suggests starting by simply taking the plunge.

“Just do it! Start by being really nice but think about the social challenges that the candidate is facing. Once a person becomes an employee, find them a mentor or co-worker who they can meet with. Ask the neurodiverse employee what simple adjustments could help make them more productive. Many of these accommodations are really easy; a quieter area to sit, noise-cancelling headphones, a place to decompress or eat lunch in private.

Cohen stresses that communication is key, but it takes acceptance on both sides. “By all means invite a neurodiverse colleague to lunch or coffee, but don’t be offended if their response is frank. Be clear about communication protocols and listen to their ideas. You may be surprised at the value a neurodiverse hire can bring.”

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