Neurodiversity as a Competitive Advantage

Why you should embrace it in your workforce

by

Robert D. Austin

and

Gary P. Pisano

by

Robert D. Austin

and

Gary P. Pisano

From the Magazine (May–June 2017) · Long read

Paul Taylor/Getty Images

Summary.

Many people with neurological conditions such as autism spectrum disorder and dyslexia have extraordinary skills, including in pattern recognition, memory, and mathematics. Yet they often struggle to fit the profiles sought by employers.

A growing number of companies, including SAP, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, and Microsoft, have reformed their HR processes in order to access neurodiverse talent—and are seeing productivity gains, quality improvement, boosts in innovative capabilities, and increased employee engagement as a result. The programs vary but have seven major elements in common. Companies should:

Team with governments or nonprofits experienced in working with people with disabilities
Use noninterview assessment processes
Train other workers and managers in what to expect
Set up a support system
Tailor methods for managing careers
Scale the program
Mainstream the program

The work for managers will be harder, but the payoff to companies will be considerable: access to more of their employees’ talents, along with diverse perspectives that will help them compete.

In Brief

The Problem

Many people with neurological conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, dyspraxia, and dyslexia have extraordinary skills, including in pattern recognition, memory, and mathematics. But the neurodiverse population remains largely untapped.

The Cause

Conventional recruitment and career-development methods (for example, job interviews) and the belief that scalable work processes require absolute conformity to standardized approaches screen out neurodiverse people who could be valuable employees.

The Solution

A growing number of companies—among them SAP, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Microsoft, Willis Towers Watson, and EY—have reformed HR practices to capitalize on the talents of neurodiverse people. In the process, they are becoming better able to fully leverage the skills of all workers.

Meet John. He’s a wizard at data analytics. His combination of mathematical ability and software development skill is highly unusual. His CV features two master’s degrees, both with honors. An obvious guy for a tech company to scoop up, right?

A version of this article appeared in the May–June 2017 issue (pp.96–103) of Harvard Business Review.

Robert D. Austin is a professor of information systems and the faculty director of the Learning Innovation Initiative at Ivey Business School. He is also a coauthor of The Adventures of an IT Leader (Harvard Business Review Press, 2016).
Gary P. Pisano is the Harry E. Figgie Jr. Professor of Business Administration and the senior associate dean of faculty development at Harvard Business School. He is the author of Creative Construction: The DNA of Sustained Innovation.

Neurodiversity as a Competitive Advantage

In Brief

The Problem

The Cause

The Solution

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