“This is what makes the feared stigma a non-issue,” he said.
The firm, which started a pilot programme two years ago to hire autistic individuals, took a “phased approach” to the onboarding process, providing them a smooth transition into the job.
“They were given time to fit into their roles over several months. It allowed them to really express their strengths, as opposed to what they couldn’t do,” he shared.
“Unless the person is required to be in a customer service or customer-facing role and you expect them to pick up certain cues, like non-verbal, please don’t put them through that,” she said.
But they are still assessed on their performance “in the same way as any neurotypical individual”.
Here are 5 tips for neurodivergent employees to thrive in the workplace.
As not everyone experiences symptoms with the same severity, AI ethicist Ms Chan shared her best advice: “Understand your dyslexia, your ADHD, for what it is (and) for you how you experience it.”
Still, there are occasional hiccups. “The problem is remembering to put it in your calendar,” he admitted.
4. Be upfront about your needs
Once neurodivergent employees embrace their differences, it becomes easier to speak up about what they need, said those who have advocated for themselves at work.
Ms Foo recalled clients who have told her that they don’t want to lead people or manage a team. They know that they’re good at what they do and want to stay in that zone, she noted.
“And that’s fine. If we can be upfront about it, I think that would make it a lot more optimal in terms of allocation of resources as well,” she said.
Meanwhile, Mr Loh, who is autistic, said he’s not afraid to ask for clearer or more detailed instructions. But he admitted that some people “still maintain their own style of communication without adjusting to me”.
In such cases, “unfortunately, the only way to get by is to put in more effort to learn their style of communication and infer what they are saying”, he added.
“If they’re not explicit enough, I’ll just ask them some more.”
5. Share your diagnosis with context
Finally, for those considering to disclose their diagnosis, Ms Foo stressed that it’s not helpful to “share it in a vacuum”.
She pointed to employees who may simply tell their manager that they have neurological difference and expect their manager to know what to do with the information.
When managers don’t understand how to help, such conversations could end up “amplifying their ignorance”, she noted.
Ms Foo added that what employees can do instead is frame the conversation by sharing what has helped them manage their struggles and ask if their manager is able to provide certain support.
Doing so also shows the employee’s “awareness of how they work best”.
This content was originally published here.