Making neurodiverse people feel comfortable in Job Interviews.

^{[AD. This is a contributed post]}

Job interviews can be stressful and confusing for everyone, but imagine for neurodiverse individuals with ADHD, Autism, Dyspraxia, or Dyslexia the way interviews are often structured can prove tremendously challenging, leading to anxiety and such individuals are often put off even applying for a job to which they would be ideally suited, thanks to rigid application forms and interviews designed for neurotypical people.

^{[Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash]}

While there is still plenty of room for making things easier for neurodiverse people, things have moved on. There are some wonderful organisations set up to help other businesses provide a nurturing environment for existing and future neurodiverse staff. Often those involved in starting up these organisations have first- hand experience and therefore benefit from plenty of empathy towards those they seek to help.

Nicola James, the founder of Lexxic – one such organisation, for example – also had to face challenges with her own dyslexia, so she knew all too well the areas that urgently needed improving.

Giving jobs to neurodiverse people is not an act of charity. Neurodiversity can, in many settings be a great competitive advantage. Take Adam as an example. He is incredible at maths and is a natural in software development. He has a double masters, both with honours. He would be a shoe in for most tech companies, you’d think.

But Adam has autism and his sensitivity to noise and activity means he wears noise cancelling headphones most of the time. He can’t focus on more than one person talking at a time – and even that is sometimes a challenge. He also needs a clear plan for his day. All of the job interviews he’s been to involved an interview panel. Many involved coming up with solutions to surprise problems, on the spot in front of the panel.

This type of interview process involves enormous bias against people like Adam. Many jobs in, many industries and in particular tech companies are perfectly suited to people like Adam. In fact he is better suited to some of these jobs than anyone else on the planet. So it is in everyone’s best interest that the application and interview process is made more suitable for all the Adams out there.

Key tips.

• Choose the environment carefully. Avoid crowded places with lots of sensory
  distractions.
• Keep it one on one. Neurodiverse people can often find it overwhelming to have to
  focus on panel interviews.
• Focus on key skills. Keep the interview focused on the most important skills needed
  for the job at hand, avoiding unnecessary emphasis on more social skills like teamwork, unless they are absolutely vital. Cognitive assessments and work trials have proven to be excellent ways to test candidates and avoid bias against neurodiversity.
• Be direct and avoid abstract questions. Keep the line of questioning direct and be
  patient. Don’t interrupt and avoid open questions.

Remember that this is a learning process and no company becomes perfectly inclusive overnight. By taking on board the general ideas explored here you can definitely reduce the risk of letting some extraordinary gifted talents pass you by.