Neurodivergent employees have much to offer employers regarding abilities, capabilities, and creative thinking. Workplace mentoring is a strategy for helping neurodivergent employees overcome challenges so they succeed by delivering their best performance. - BY Joseph Warren

As the workforce becomes more diverse, the principle of psychological safety takes on a deeper meaning, especially for neurodivergent employees. People with different perspectives, life experiences, and physical, emotional, and neurological challenges will only be able to feel they belong and to be fully productive when they feel psychologically safe. The challenge for organizational leaders is developing a workplace culture that embraces everyone, including neurodiverse employees, without bias and a workplace where people get the proper support based on their particular needs, enabling them to do their best work. Peer mentors and mentorship programs can deliver the support that neurodiverse employees need to thrive in their jobs, guiding them through their assimilation period and being a point of contact when needed.

The First Step in Mentoring is Understanding Neurodiverse Mentees

Neurodiverse employees can be at a disadvantage because people they work with may not see them as a good “culture fit” or view them as incapable of working well on teams because of their communication and behavioral styles. Their managers feel uncomfortable having conversations to address their needs and workplace experiences. Supervisors may even assume neurodiverse employees are “grateful” for their jobs and do not plan on advancing. Biased coworkers might be unreasonably fearful their coworkers might have emotional outbursts or interfere with their ability to be successful due to an inability to be a good team member.

These are some challenges that neurodiverse employees have experienced, per their descriptions. Like all diverse groups, they struggle to overcome stereotyping when there is a range of conditions, and each has different mental and behavioral impacts. Some of the conditions include autism spectrum conditions, ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dyspraxia. A person with ADHD may have trouble concentrating, while a person with autism may hyper-focus on tasks. Someone with dyslexia may be an excellent engineer, while someone with dyscalculia could be an expert talent management professional. To be as effective as possible, mentors must understand these differences.

People with neurological conditions frequently have unique abilities because they learned to turn what society considers a disability into a capability. Challenges in one area become strengths in another. An employee who is a creative thinker and has dyslexia may be able to visualize parts of a problem better and imagine how the parts can come together as a whole, leading to innovation. When placed on a project team, an employee with high-level pattern recognition and information processing abilities can be instrumental in problem-solving. Helping neurodiverse employees succeed benefits them, and the organization, and one of the best strategies is implementing a neurodiversity mentorship program and support networks.

Mentoring Employees with Unique Neurocognitive Abilities

Awareness is growing concerning neurodiversity and what it means for the workplace. In some cases, neurodiverse people are hired and expected to find a way to “fit in.” Often, they are excluded from socializing, project teams, and employee networks. Mentoring programs can change that by providing bespoke guidance to each employee. The guidance is delivered by mentors who understand the employee’s needs and strive to meet those needs with tools and resources.

Mentoring can be part of a new hire onboarding program that pairs a neurodiverse individual with someone who can help them achieve specific goals. Though not always feasible, the ideal mentor is neurodiverse and understands the challenges the mentored person faces and must overcome. However, any skilled mentor can help the new hire form organizational relationships, provide resources, and be available to discuss workplace experiences. The mentor is a psychologically safe professional who helps the person access the accommodations that help the new hire be fully productive.

Some organizations develop a dedicated platform for a mentor and employee to use for communication. This ensures the mentor is easily accessed. As the new hire learns the job requirements and settles in, the mentor becomes someone the employee can engage in respectful and open communication. Like all successful mentoring programs, the mentor can also help the neurodivergent employee access the projects, teams, and connections with people who have the expertise and knowledge they need to succeed in their current position and advance.

Another approach is peer mentoring. In this mentoring model, a peer becomes the guide for the new employee. Some companies use a Neurodiversity Employee Resource Group for peer mentoring. Peers who mentor need training also because mentors need to clearly understand their role. They can help fellow employees meet people, access resources, get familiar with the organization’s layout, and become a go-to resource. Once again, ideally, a neurodiverse mentor is matched with a neurodiverse employee.

Skills Training an Absolute Necessity

Mentors need to understand the different learning styles of neurodiverse employees to use the best communication strategies. For example, some learn best through auditory, visual or experiential learning. Mentors also need listening skills to understand what the mentored individual is feeling and the behaviors the feelings are driving. Mentors must understand the talent, capabilities, and challenges of the neurodivergent employee. Leaders can collaborate with the mentor to strengthen the organization’s culture of inclusion by learning from the mentoring relationship how to interact with and manage neurodiverse people.

Best practices begin with establishing a structured mentoring program, whether it is a peer or another person serving as a mentor. A structured program includes a defined purpose and goals, mentor skills training, data-driven matching of mentors and mentees, a mentoring plan, and a feedback system. Skills training opportunities are available. For example, the Psychology Network offers CPD-accredited courses in neurodiversity and inclusion for managers and leaders, HR professionals, and others. The Neurodiversity Hub has a set of resources for employers with numerous links to a wealth of resources. Another resource is the Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN), which has resources for peer training and mentoring and a variety of learning resources on neurodivergent workers, from recruitment and hiring to leveraging the creativity of neurodivergent employees through mentoring. These are just a few resources organizations can access as they pursue inclusion and belonging for neurodivergent individuals.