{"id":934,"date":"2022-04-20T01:26:15","date_gmt":"2022-04-19T15:26:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seedpeopleconsulting.com.au\/uncategorized\/extraordinary-skills-of-neurodiversity-in-the-workplace\/"},"modified":"2026-05-16T15:37:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T05:37:11","slug":"workplace-neurodiversity-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seedpeopleconsulting.com.au\/workplace-neurodiversity-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"Extraordinary Skills of Neurodiversity in the Workplace"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

April is Autism Awareness Month and what better way to celebrate than to shed some light on neurodiversity in the workplace!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\r\n

So, what is neurodiversity anyway? <\/span><\/h2>\r\n

Neurodiversity is a way of thinking and can include Autism, ADD, Dyslexia and ADHD.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>In Australia, it is estimated that 1 in 8 Australians are neurodivergent.\u00a0 Large Australian companies such as Telstra and NAB are actively recruiting neurodivergent people as part of a program, and benefitting from their extraordinary skills of neurodiversity in the workplace.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What does this mean? New ideas, looking at things from a completely different lens and avoiding group think!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The benefits of neurodiversity in the workplace<\/h2>\r\n

There are many benefits to hiring neurodivergent employees, which is why Australia\u2019s largest companies are jumping on board.\u00a0 Proven benefits have included:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Productivity\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

JP Morgan Chase\u2019s Autism at Work program found employees on the autism spectrum (who had only been employed 6 months by the company) were 48% more productive than employees not on the spectrum who had been employed in the same job for 3 to 10 years.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Unique skill set\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

DXC\u2019s Dandelion Program found that the skills of people on the Autism Spectrum in particular their ability to see patterns in information that other people could not, had significant relevance and impact for Australian Government Departments such as Defence.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Neurodiversity targets<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Telstra\u2019s Neurodiverse Recruitment program in 2020 was so successful in onboarding new employees that Telstra has now incorporated targets for hiring more people with disabilities as part of their graduate program.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Extraordinary skills at no additional cost<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre\u2019s 2016 Study: Autism in the Workplace<\/span><\/i><\/a> study found employing a person with Autism provided benefits to employers and their organisations without incurring any additional costs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It is vital for employers to understand the needs of their neurodiverse employee both as an individual and in a team environment.\u00a0 To do this, an employer can:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n