Managing Neurodivergent Employees: Case Studies from Reddit / Suggestions from AI

As I am working on a book titled, Neurodiversity: The Key to a Stronger, More Innovative Organization | How to drive innovation and organizational change by embracing neurodiversity. I started to realize I was missing some real life examples. Mainly because I didn’t have any from the manager managing a neurodivergent employee perspective. Then I realized — this is 2023, the internet is full of some real life (or fake but real life enough for what I needed) examples. So I was off to reddit to search, I found two different stories of managers seeking advice; so I took those and with the help of prompt engineering and GPT4 I got some examples with possible options;

HOW DO I APPROACH AN EMPLOYEE THAT I SUSPECT IS NEURODIVERGENT? /R/LEGALADVICECANADA

I’m a supervisor with a relatively new employee that’s just… different… Not necessarily in a bad way either. For context, I manage what’s called a render farm for a visual effects studio. Artists working on the effects of a movie will submit their scenes to be processed on the by a large cluster of computers. The farm itself runs 24/7 so I do supervise a team that helps me manage the farm. The job takes both technical knowledge and some customer service finesse since there is some troubleshooting that might need to happen if things aren’t really going according to plan.

Now, I have someone we hired, let’s call them Bill, whom over the course of the 3 month probationary period seems extremely fast in certain aspects but extremely slow in others. He’s both extremely eager and extremely…lost… Which to be honest seemed reasonable for someone completely new to the industry. There’s a lot to learn. But we’re now near the six month mark and certain aspects still feel like they’re lacking. Things like attention to detail and anything that deviates even slightly from what was previously done. I then explain why the situation is different and that the previous solution to a different but similar problem may not be the best approach, but it doesn’t seem like it sinks in. I feel like I’m having to break down my instructions to extremely granular and literal detail that I haven’t had to with the past dozen people I’ve hired and trained over 8 years I’ve been doing what I’ve been doing. It doesn’t seem like Bill is disinterested at all. He still asks questions and is in general very intrigued. It just feels like the “why” hasn’t sunk in yet. So, I have this feeling that Bill has some sort of neurodivergent issues, like something with Bill is different.

How do I go about broaching the subject? Since this is merely my gut talking, I can’t exactly go through HR. Now, it can certainly get frustrating to having to constantly break things down timsuch a granular level and have the level of hand holding I’m doing at six months, but doesn’t that come with the territory of supervising?

Case Study 1: Bill, the Render Farm Employee

Bill, a render farm employee, is highly skilled in certain areas, but struggles with attention to detail and adjusting to new situations. As his supervisor, you suspect he may be neurodivergent. Here are some strategies to leverage Bill’s strengths and accommodate his needs:

1. Strength-based approach: Focus on tasks that Bill excels at and restructure his responsibilities to align with his strengths. This may involve assigning him tasks that require speed and technical knowledge, while allocating tasks that demand attention to detail to other team members.
2. Clear communication: Provide explicit, step-by-step instructions when assigning tasks that are new or different from previous tasks. Use written communication, like email or task management software, to supplement verbal instructions, giving Bill an opportunity to review and refer back to the information.
3. Encourage questions: Foster a supportive environment where Bill feels comfortable asking questions and seeking clarification. This will allow him to better understand the reasoning behind different solutions and improve his decision-making.
4. Regular check-ins: Schedule frequent, informal check-ins to discuss Bill’s progress, answer questions, and provide guidance. This can help address any misunderstandings or knowledge gaps promptly.
5. Collaboration: Encourage Bill to work closely with his colleagues, as they can help provide alternative perspectives and explanations that may resonate with him.

EMPLOYEE MIGHT BE NEURODIVERGENT? /R/MANAGERS

Hello all! I am new to this community so apologies in advance if I’m doing anything wrong within this post. Am also on mobile, so hopefully there aren’t too many mistakes. Apologies for long post too.

I manage five people within a public sector organisation in the UK. I’ve been managing this team for a little over a year. The role is quite detail oriented and it’s important for my team to be accurate in their work.

One of my employees, to put it frankly, has some performance issues at the moment. They are making mistakes that are causing issues for other teams in the department and are even causing discord within my own team as this individual’s colleagues end up fixing their mistakes a lot of the time. I have been monitoring this individual’s output (they are aware of this, we’ve had conversations about performance) and the next stage is escalating to formal monitoring / potential performance disciplinary. Sadly things are not improving so it looks like I’ll be taking this step in the very near future.

The thing is… I really think this individual is neurodivergent in some way. The mistakes that are being made are ones that are obvious to me and this person’s colleagues, but not to them — there is genuine amazement when I mention them, but not upset, more of an acceptance? This has happened a few times, it’s like a new conversation every time despite it being one we’ve definitely had more than once. There’s also some social tics that are affecting communication between colleagues, which is exacerbating the frustration others feel. I have delicately mentioned the need to communicate better (and of course offered pinpointed support and ideas, as I have with every suggestion I’ve made) and again it’s amazement but acceptance that there’s a problem.

I’m not going to diagnose, but I really want this person to get assessed so I and my workplace can better support (excellent support structures in place at this organisation). I truly believe that something underlying is creating a lot of these issues and diagnosis/support would mitigate a lot of it. But, I don’t know how to approach this, or if I even should. They are not forthcoming with me if they do know there’s something going on, and if they don’t I don’t know how to be the one to address the elephant in the room. My own manager has given the advice of “treat what you see”, so I’m addressing the performance side of it while leaving the door open for conversation when this individual is ready. In some ways I feel like that’s all i can do, but does anyone have any advice/experience with this sort of thing? Would like other perspectives as this is a real source of worry for me. Thank you in advance!

Case Study 2: The Public Sector Employee with Performance Issues

In this case, an employee in a detail-oriented role has performance issues that you suspect may be related to an undiagnosed neurodivergent condition. To support this employee, consider the following:

1. Open dialogue: Initiate a conversation about their struggles at work, focusing on the challenges they face and how they feel about their performance. Encourage them to share any concerns or needs they may have, and discuss potential support options available within the organization.
2. Adapt work processes: Implement accommodations to help the employee manage their workload more effectively. This may include providing checklists, using assistive technology, or breaking tasks into smaller, manageable steps.
3. Offer support: Connect the employee with internal or external resources, such as HR, employee assistance programs, or support groups for neurodivergent individuals. This can help them access additional guidance and accommodations.
4. Foster understanding: Educate the team about neurodiversity and the value of embracing different ways of thinking. Encourage open communication and teamwork, helping colleagues empathize with the employee’s situation and contribute to a more inclusive environment.

Overall not bad, some suggestions are better than others but an interesting reply none the less. By understanding and accommodating the unique strengths and needs of neurodivergent employees, organizations can create a more inclusive workplace that fosters innovation and growth. Using a strength-based approach, clear communication, and support systems, supervisors can empower neurodivergent employees to thrive and contribute their diverse talents to the team.