Not taking advantage of the strengths of neurodiverse job candidates is a big mistake

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Cognitive psychologist Maureen Dunne warns that one in five people are being excluded from the opportunity to contribute to our workplaces and society because they are neurodiverse. “In terms of human capital potential, this is a devastating failure. Morally, it’s a plague of injustice,” she writes in The Neurodiversity Edge.
Neurodiversity covers a variety of cognitive differences, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia and synesthesia, which involves experiencing one sense through another. Such people are often viewed as abnormal, but in fact she says they are part of the natural spectrum of human cognitive diversity, with special challenges but also unique strengths employers can take advantage of.
Autistic people can bring to the table attention to detail, pattern thinking, authenticity and original solutions to problems. She says they display more consistently objective and rational decision making and are less susceptible to cognitive bias, social pressure and visual allusions. People with ADHD offer high energy and out-of-the-box thinking that leads to creative ideas. Dyslexic individuals recognize connections between seemingly disparate concepts, objects or perspectives. Synesthetes may have advantages with the creative arts.
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“The most important asset all neurodivergent people bring to the equation is a divergent perspective: A way of seeing the world and approaching tasks and problems that will almost certainly be uncorrelated to the dominant vibe permeating any organization; a whole personal life history of travelling an unconventional path with new and rare insights to contribute. That alone is inherently valuable,” she writes.
The canary metaphor is popular in autistic culture, suggesting just like canaries in coal mines warned when the atmosphere was becoming poisonous if neurodiverse individuals fall off their perch in our workplace that could signal it is inhospitable to others. “Organizational problems like the lack of fairness, bullying and toxic cultures impact people with more intense senses and nervous systems before affecting others,” Ludmila Praslova, a professor of psychology and business at Vanguard University in Southern California, writes in The Canary Code.
In The Autists: Women on The Spectrum, journalist Clara Toernvall says if autists were in the majority, society would look very different. In school there would be fewer group projects, lower noise levels, smaller classes, greater predictability and reduced demand for flexibility. Workplaces wouldn’t have open plan offices and conferences wouldn’t include so many team-building exercises. “Hypersensitivity to sensory input is likely the biggest obstacle for autists in the workplace. In many professions, sound and stress levels are high and show no signs of abating,” she writes.
She notes that people with autism receive and process information differently. They find it easier to see and focus on details than totalities, the opposite of many people without autism who take in the big picture but might miss details. Autists struggle with goal-oriented behaviour. Starting and finishing things can be difficult.
The estimated unemployment and underemployment figures for neurodiverse people are all over the map. Ms. Dunne’s one in five figure for being excluded from the opportunity to contribute is on the low end. Workplaces need to change and that will include hiring practices.
Ms. Praslova notes that research demonstrates carelessly developed job descriptions are detrimental to hiring autistic talent. The requirements included tend to be neuronormative social expectations and personality characteristics, such as being outgoing, which discourage many neurodiverse individuals from even applying. Organizations need to conduct thorough job analyses to ensure the job descriptions accurately reflect the position’s requirements – the key skills, rather than desirable qualifications – and are not unintentionally biased against the neurodiverse. “Does your technical writer really need to be ‘dynamic’ or ‘upbeat’?” she asks.
She cautions against seeking people who fit culturally. Job interviews can be particularly stressful with their uncertainty, vague questions like “tell me about yourself,” and odd probes, such as asking what animal or fruit the candidate most resembles. “They often assess the mastery of small talk, charisma and the similarity with the interviewer. Not great for expanding diversity and often exclusionary for autistic employees,” she says.
Ms. Dunne urges those in hiring to focus on actual skills needed and to be alert to the strengths neurodiverse workers can bring to the position rather than weaknesses or apparent weaknesses. Consider providing the questions in advance to lower anxiety. Try task-based interviews to assess for skills and expertise rather than social skills. Give candidates a chance to talk about and showcase their talents, passions and interests. One study of autistic job seekers found game-based assessments to be effective, evaluating candidates’ skills in a quick and engaging game experience.
She recommends sensory-friendly policies – a designated quiet room can benefit all employees – and educating everyone about neurodiversity so there will be greater understanding of the nature (and advantages) of neurodiversity. Senior managers who must lead such initiatives are often the same people who stress these days the importance of innovative, out-of-the box thinking and avoiding the perils of groupthink. She argues that following a policy of neuroinclusion may be the only reliable solution to the risk of groupthink.
Cannonballs
Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn’t Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.