Neurodiversity

It is estimated that 1 in 7 people in the UK have Neurodiverse conditions, however, organisations are often unaware of the proportion and needs of their Neurodiverse employees or the value that this talent pool can offer.

Amongst the many benefits of Neurodiversity for employers are productivity gains, quality improvement, boosts in innovative capabilities, and increased employee engagement. And each variation of Neurodiversity offers its own particular advantages.

Neurodiverse thinkers are typically split into Visual Thinkers, Pattern Thinkers and Word or Fact Thinkers. Pattern Thinkers in particular have a number of skills that are extremely desirable in financial services, which includes problem solving abilities, attention to detail, and persistence, as well as being highly analytical, all of which are enormous assets in roles such as Actuaries, Financial Analysts, Accountants. Auditors, and Data Analysts. In addition to these skills, Neurodiverse employees are typically extremely conscientious, honest, loyal and reliable, with far greater levels of retention than the Neurotypical employees.

Thinking differently about Talent

Neurodiverse talent is hugely underrepresented in the UK workforce. Currently only 16% of autistic people in the UK are in full time employment, but 77% of unemployed autistic people want to work. 1/3 of adults with ADHD are jobless at any one time and 50% of adults hide dyslexia from employers and colleagues.

It is the case that some of the challenges experienced by Neurodiverse people can be barriers to employment, however it is important for employers to recognise that the issue often lies not with Neurodiverse people, but with hiring processes that define talent too narrowly. Especially with reliance on job interviews, which are biased against people with atypical manners of interaction. This bias often goes hand in hand with employment perspectives that view Neurodiversity as ‘the problem’ rather than addressing the inappropriate management of diversity.

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