Disclaimer: It is not the intention of the author or ORS to cause harm to or speak on behalf of neurodiverse individuals regarding their lived experiences. The author has attempted to use neuroaffirming language where possible and continues to seek input and perspectives from the neurodiverse community to ensure their lived experiences and views are considered and captured as accurately as possible and is equally mindful of not contributing to any burden placed on the neurodiverse community to educate neurotypical people on neurodiversity. The author welcomes any feedback and input from neurodiverse individuals who feel comfortable and willing to contribute.
Further, in alignment with Bednall and Orr’s (2024) piece on ‘Managing a neurodiverse workforce’ for the Australian Psychological Society (APS), the author’s use of the term ‘neurodiverse’ refers to the ‘wide-ranging variation in human cognition and includes people with autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, dyspraxia and other conditions, including mental health conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and individuals with a large variation in cognitive abilities – such as verbal skills, working memory, and processing speed’.
In alignment with 2024’s World Mental Health Day theme, “Mental Health and Work”, it has been pleasing to see a rise in global research on neurodiversity support in the workplace throughout the past year (See: Agha et al., 2024; Bruyère & Colella, 2024; Erbil et al., 2024; Iqbal et al., 2024; Szulc, 2024; Tariq, 2024). With increased rates of diagnosis and awareness of neurodiversity, a more neurodivergent, educated talent pool is emerging, influencing the way employers approach and manage diversity in the workplace (Loison, 2024). Even so, the emerging research underscores that the implementation of neuroaffirming employer practices is limited and inefficient, highlighting the need for more awareness, and available information and support, on neuroaffirming workplace practices to adequately inform employers.
Neurodiversity in the Workplace
Occupational burnout is defined by WHO in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11; WHO, 2022) as a “syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed” and is characterised by energy depletion, mental distance from one’s job and reduced professional efficacy. It is well highlighted that both neurodiverse individuals and their neurotypical colleagues have personal characteristics that may perceived as equally vital for the implementation of work tasks, and which can also promote the occurrence of the phenomenon of occupational burnout, such as in relation to social abilities (Tomczak & Kulikowski, 2023). Such characteristics may be perceived as personal resources for neurotypical employees and simultaneously personal demands for their neurodiverse colleagues, and vice versa, which indicates the need for personalised workplace adjustments to accommodate individual needs, enhance work satisfaction and performance, and ultimately reduce the risk of occupational burnout for all staff (Tomczak & Kulikowski, 2023).
On average, neurodiverse employees are more likely to experience workplace discrimination, unfavourable workplace and policy designs and lacking recognition of individual talents and contribution (Erbil et al., 2024), disadvantage within hiring and recruitment processes (Ellestad et al., 2023; Loison, 2024), non-neuroinclusive leadership support (Szulc, 2024), and inadequate accommodations to enhance job performance and satisfaction (Tariq, 2024). The research of Ellestad et al., (2023) further highlights the heightened distress and disadvantage autistic people experience during the interview process due to the pressures of interview structure, perceived competency, social camouflaging, and forced neurotypicality.
Neurodiverse employees are also likely, however, to possess favourable attributes and talents that extend beyond their neurotypical colleagues and which valuably contribute to organisational success (Krzeminska et al., 2019; LeFevre-Levy et al., 2023), highlighting them as desirable employees. These include specialised individual skills (e.g., reading, writing, computation), high attention to detail and pattern recognition, enhanced memory and detail processing, increased analytical and innovative thinking, improved systemising skills, and they are often able to sustain attention for long and intensive durations on tasks of interest, and are tolerant of monotonous and repetitive actions (Doyle, 2020; Tomczak & Kulikowski, 2023). Similarly, neurodiverse people are often honest, transparent, and dedicated (Tomczak & Kulikowski, 2023), ideal traits for efficient workplace practice. Yet, while such traits are highly correlated with successful, long-term job candidates, these talents are often undermined and overlooked in the workplace due to insufficient employer practices and neurodiverse-inclusive policies.
Supporting Neurodiverse Employees
- Adjust hiring and recruitment processes: Neurodiverse individuals are more likely to experience distress and disadvantage during recruitment processes and benefit from having flexibility during the interview and onboarding stage of recruitment to allow them to effectively portray their potential and succeed in their probationary period. Including neuroaffirmative language and statements on flexible recruitment and workplace practices in job advertisements, and incorporating questions on job applications that proactively request any need for accommodations during these stages, can help to minimise distress, enhance performance and highlight an inclusive workplace to potential candidates.
- Adopt neuroaffirming performance management processes: Redesign performance evaluations to be more inclusive, focusing on individual progress, strengths, and contributions rather than rigid, neurotypical standards. Remain curious, recognise power differentials, re-evaluate unfair expectations, and workshop solutions collaboratively. Reflect on how your own internal experiences and neurotypical biases may influence your perception and understanding of the neurodiverse employee’s support needs to mitigate any transference that may result in communication breakdowns and implicit (and explicit) discrimination.
- Allow autonomy with workload and calendar management: Neurodiverse employees will have individual preferences for when they complete specific tasks that accommodate their executive functioning differences, such as completing tasks requiring sustained mental effort at preferred times. Giving employees control over how they structure their tasks and manage their time fosters independence, reduces stress, and accommodates individual work styles.
- Assist with transitions: Provide guidance, reminders, and support when neurodiverse employees transition into new roles, teams, or projects, offering clear expectations and structured onboarding processes that are in a digestible format and provided to the employee to refer to. Allow time to transition from one task to another, such as encouraging breaks in between meetings to regulate, process, and prepare before proceeding.
- Diversify workloads: Identifying and assigning employee tasks that are Novel, Interesting, Challenging, and Urgent (NICU), and align with their strengths, can prevent burnout and maintain their engagement. Similarly, delegating tasks that do not align with the NICU rules to other employees is encouraged.
- Enhance effective communication practices: Ensure clarity in communication by using direct, unambiguous, and adequately paced language that is straight to the point and clear on expectations. Offer multiple formats (written, verbal, visual) for conveying information to accommodate different processing styles. Include accessible fonts and the use of visuals. Provide information in advance of meetings to allow adequate processing time and consider accommodations for neurodiverse employees with preferences for alternative meeting arrangements (e.g., video off, ‘Walk & Talk’ meetings, flexible in-person seating, access to a chosen support person).
- Environmental adjustments: Create sensory-friendly workspaces by providing noise-cancelling headphones, standing desks, dual monitors, sound absorption materials, adjustable lighting, quiet zones, or remote work options to accommodate sensory sensitivities. Consider floor layout and seating arrangements for open-plan office spaces, and respect fluctuations in sensory processing by being flexible in response to changes in the employees’ sensory needs as required.
- Flexible work arrangements: Allow employees to choose when and where they work, which can help accommodate executive function, sensory regulation, and energy maintenance needs and enable them to work during their most productive times for optimal output. Early or later start times, part-time and contract arrangements, intermittent daily movement breaks, and flexibility in workspaces (e.g., ‘Walk & Talk’ meetings) are some suggestions.
- Identify opportunities for neurodiverse leadership: Neurodiverse employees are more likely to be successfully supported if led by a neurodiverse manager who can understand and support their differences in social interactions and verbal and non-verbal communication, reducing the burden placed on neurodiverse employees to adjust to neurotypical social practices. Where employees are led by neurotypical leaders, foster neurodiversity-inclusive leadership by being informed, empathetic, supportive, flexible, and proactive.
- Inclusion of focus tools: Providing focus tools that address sensory and emotional needs, promote stimulation, and support resetting and transitioning, can help with emotion and impulse control, focused attention, and sensory regulation for neurodiverse employees. Ensuring focus tools are available and encouraged in the workplace is key and should be considered in employee support discussions. Australian suppliers of focus tools run by neurodiverse people and their families include Kaiko Fidgets, Sensory Oasis, and My Autism Store. Further suggestions on focus tools can be found in Sharman’s (2022) resource on Workplace Adjustments for Executive Dysfunction.
- Incorporate assistive technology and AI: Implement assistive tools and software, such as speech-to-text, project management platforms, or AI-based tools to help neurodiverse employees manage tasks more effectively. Examples include using Google Chrome, Microsoft and Adobe Reader’s “Read Out Loud” and subtitle/transcript functions, using AI software or recording meetings to automatically capture minutes, and approving for digital devices as opposed to pen and paper methods.
- Provide administrative support: Offering help with routine tasks, such as scheduling or document management, can reduce the burden on neurodiverse employees, especially those who may struggle with executive dysfunction. Reviewing internal processes to offset or automate administrative tasks can instead allow neurodiverse employees to channel their energy and focus on tasks aligned with their strengths and job performance indicators, enhancing organisational success.
- Provide regular strengths-based feedback: Seek regular occasions to provide clear, constructive feedback that highlights the employee’s successes to promote motivation and which also allows an opportunity to address and collaboratively problem-solve any perceived barriers and relative adjustments needed to promote future job success for the employee.
- Recognise individual strengths: Embrace and utilise the unique talents and abilities of neurodiverse employees already highlighted, rather than focusing on perceived deficits, to enhance job satisfaction and performance, and overall organisational success. Using unique assessment tools, such as the Neurodiversity Workplace Profiler, to identify the strengths and skills of neurodiverse employees is recommended.
- Respect the choice to self-disclose: Encourage an open and supportive culture where employees feel comfortable disclosing their neurodivergence without fear of discrimination. Simultaneously protect their privacy and never force self-disclosure under any circumstances. Encourage neurodiverse employees to determine their comfortability with self-disclosure by making self-disclosure tools inherently available (See: Neurodivergent Self-Disclosure Thermometer).
- Seek training for employers and leaders run by neurodiverse experts: Offer education led by neurodiverse individuals to raise awareness and promote understanding and inclusivity of neurodivergence, ensuring leadership practices are inclusive and informed. Pleasingly, there are available service providers focused on enhancing neurodiverse workplaces, like JobAccess and Xceptional, who offer coaching and training to employers.
- Support emotion regulation practice: Support emotion regulation practice: Recognise fluctuating emotional states and be aware of the increased risk of neurodiverse employees experiencing rejection sensitivity dysphoria (RSD) during workplace performance discussions and interactions. Provide time, space, and tools for neurodiverse employees to regulate emotions, particularly when providing feedback, and ensure to promote overt positive reinforcement, encouragement, and appreciation for all employees.
- Support executive dysfunction: Neurodiverse employees are more likely to experience burnout and overwhelm in the workplace due to executive dysfunction, which impacts working memory, emotional and impulse control, flexible thinking, planning/organising and prioritisation, time management, self-monitoring, task initiation, and completion. Consider available resources on workplace adjustments for executive dysfunction (See: Sharman, 2022) to support neurodiverse employees, and prioritise discussing these strategies during performance reviews to inform individual and organisational adjustments.
Of course, no singular resource will be sufficient to address all individual support needs and accommodations for neurodiverse employees. It is crucial that employers are actively seeking input, guidance, and education on neurodiversity and using this knowledge to re-evaluate and shape organisational policies, processes, and environments. As acknowledged earlier in this piece, both neurodiverse and neurotypical employees alike present with diverse personal resources and demands that may either overlap or differ and so change is needed on both an individual and organisational level to ensure an inclusive workplace. As a last standing point, it is the recommendation that employers foster a workplace environment that innately incorporates adjustments like those outlined in this piece for all employees, which will, in turn, reduce potential stigmatisation and marginalisation of neurodiverse employees, and mitigate the pressures to self-disclose neurodiversity to receive adequate support.
If you or someone you know are seeking guidance in neuroaffirming workplace adjustments, or therapeutic support to manage operational burnout, ORS is available to help. We encourage you to contact our customer specialist support team on 1800 000 677 for further information or Click here to submit a referral.
References
- Agha, Z., Banerjee, N., Hebl, M., Khan, M., Nittrouer, C., Vincent, N., & Zhou, C. (2024). Motivations to hire Neurodiverse workers. Palgrave Studies in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization in Business, 131-155. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-55072-0_7
- Bruyère, S. M., & Colella, A. (2024). Workplace accommodations and Neurodiversity. Palgrave Studies in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization in Business, 181-205. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-55072-0_9
- Doyle, N. (2020). Neurodiversity at work: A biopsychosocial model and the impact on working adults. British Medical Bulletin, 135(1), 108-125. https://doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldaa021
- Ellestad, A. I., Beymer, L. L., & Villegas, S. (2023). The lived experiences of individuals with high‐functioning autism during the job interview process: A phenomenological study. Journal of Employment Counseling, 60(4), 192-209. https://doi.org/10.1002/joec.12212
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- LeFevre-Levy, R., Melson-Silimon, A., Harmata, R., Hulett, A. L., & Carter, N. T. (2023). Neurodiversity in the workplace: Considering neuroatypicality as a form of diversity. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 16(1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1017/iop.2022.86
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- Sharman, E. (2022). Workplace adjustments for executive dysfunction. www.neurodivergentemabler.com. https://neurodivergentemabler.com/files/Workplace%20Adjustments%20for%20Executive%20Dysfunction.pdf
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