Neurodiversity Works

Last call! How to Ask for Adjustments at Work is free inside the Neurodiversity Works community until 10pm BST tonight Even if you do not have time to watch the workshop, you can download and keep the worksheet forever, so you can come back when ready to make an ask at work

In other words: Neurodiversity works For creativity, for innovation, for purpose - and for everyone Read the full article here: open.substack.com/pub/neurod…

By creating accessible routes for exceptional minds, we don’t just help disabled and neurodivergent people into work We build organisations that are more creative, more empathetic, and better able to solve complex problems

Another Rory Sutherland line I love: “Complementary talent is worth more than conformist talent.” That matters because neurodivergent people may not always be “well rounded” in the way workplaces expect But teams do not need everyone to be the same shape

As Rory Sutherland puts it: “innovation happens at the extremes You are more likely to come up with a great idea by focusing on one outlier than ten average users

By modelling inclusion of those edge cases, we can develop the psychological safety to be different Not just for neurodivergent people - but for everyone

The effect was greater than three interns As soon as the programme began, other people came forward to disclose their neurodivergent conditions They had been hiding it — and not getting the adjustments they needed to be their most productive

The Employ Autism programme was pitched as an exchange of knowledge Autistic people experienced office work and see whether the roles suited their skills and what adjustments would enable them Employers got to understand what accessibility really means inside their own orgs

All three of us had struggled to fit into the usual recruitment process But all three of us were recognised for our talent and productivity once we were actually in the roles

When I joined a media agency through an autism internship programme, three autistic interns came in for three months All three of us were paid All three had access to training All three were offered full-time roles at the end

Supported internships and job trials are one answer By trialling someone’s ability at work, managers learn how to adapt to difference And candidates get the chance to demonstrate their actual talent

What if we hacked recruitment systems in the same way? What if we stopped using hiring processes to test who can perform “normal” best — and started designing ways for people to show what they can actually do?

This is the same problem-solving ability you see in disabled people who find workarounds in a world that simply wasn’t designed for them It isn't a deficit It is a skill of necessity when system fail to adapt

Creativity involves hacking Finding new routes through a problem Bringing together different strategies Trying lots of things until something sticks Because of our systemic thinking, hyperfocus and alternative perspectives, neurodivergent people can be natural hackers

Because autistic people are often too “different” for systems designed around neurotypical people In interviews, social and communication style matter more to a hiring manager’s impression than the actual ability to do the job

Autistic people can have unique analytical cognitive styles: systems thinking, attention to detail, hyperfocus and ability to spot inefficiencies These are exactly the kinds of skills orgs need So why are autistic people still disproportionately underemployed?

Recruitment software promises to take pain out of hiring - but what if it's also removing a pool of talent? If your process rewards the “standard” interview, “standard” career path and “standard” communication style, it will filter out people whose strengths show up differently

The creative and tech industries have spent decades building a brave new world online But this new world has not created the utopian vision of accessibility hoped for Bureaucracy continues to reward conformity, and new systems further solidify old obstacles

There is a huge pool of untapped talent Disabled and neurodivergent people are often natural problem-solvers, because everyday life is full of obstacles to overcome And yet too many are excluded from inflexible workplaces