A new ‘neurodiversity’ toolkit for businesses aims to help them become more inclusive when hiring staff.
The free toolkit, which is published in the form of a PDF document, was launched by online recruiter Indeed and Dublin City University.
It explains that neurodiversity refers to the wide range of differences in individuals’ brain function and behavioural traits, and includes autism, ADHD, Asperger's syndrome, dyslexia and dyspraxia.
A best practice approach is that this type of diversity be as recognised and respected as other differences in the workplace, such as gender, race or sexual orientation, to ensure an inclusive and optimal work environment.
The toolkit/guide includes explanations of neurodiversity and provides practical advice for hiring managers and HR teams, as well as a sample job description.
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It also advances the idea that employers who accommodate neurodiverse employees in the hiring process will reap the rewards of higher productivity, more creativity and better retention rates.
The publication also shows that some neurological conditions can enhance the employee’s performance in certain areas: for example, many people with dyslexia have been found to possess enhanced global visual-spatial abilities, which may be advantageous in jobs requiring three-dimensional thinking such as molecular biology, engineering, and computer graphics.
The toolkit makes practical recommendations about how companies can change their hiring practices to make them more inclusive.
Among the recommendations, employers are encouraged to ensure that their websites and job descriptions talk about how the company wants to ensure equity and inclusiveness in its hiring practices.
Other recommendations suggest that any online application process facilitate completion in more than one session, and that it works with speech reader software.
In terms of pre-interview preparation, the toolkit recommends that employers consider how sociable someone needs to be for a particular job – if it is not an essential skill then do not use it as a judgement criterion.
Employers are also asked to consider name cards for interviewees and ask candidates if they would prefer to sit or walk around during the interview.
Indeed’s LeFawn Davis commented that if an organisation lacks a sense of inclusion, diversity and belonging, an open door will become a revolving one.
“People need to feel that they belong in a workplace from the moment they apply for a job there. A strong sense of belonging allows employees to present their authentic selves, spend less energy trying to hide their differences and more time celebrating them. A happier, more effective team is going to deliver a better result for the organisation at large,” Davis continued.
Photo (l-r): Michelle Carpenter and Derek Diviney of Indeed; Sandra Healy, DCU Centre of Excellence; and Peter Brabazon, Specialisterne (Pix: Chris Bellew /Fennell Photography)
