Neurodiversity in the Workforce: Dr Shirley Knowles Of Progress On Why It’s Important To Include Neurodiverse Employees & How To Make Your Workplace More Neuro-Inclusive
An Interview With Eric Pines
Give grace to those who are neurodivergent. Many people in this group have gone through life being misunderstood, judged, or not being in supportive environments. Managers should lead with an open mindset and be supportive in any way they can — it can make all the difference.
Research suggests that up to 15–20% of the U.S. population is neurodivergent. There has been a slow but vitally important rise in companies embracing neurodiversity. How can companies support neurodiversity in the workplace? What are some benefits of including neurodiverse employees? To address these questions, we are talking to successful business leaders who can share stories and insights from their experience about “Neurodiversity in the Workforce: Companies Including Neurodiverse Employees”. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Shirley Knowles, Chief Inclusion & Diversity Officer, Progress Software.
In her role as Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer at Progress, Dr. Shirley Knowles is dedicated to cultivating a culture of inclusion, diversity and belonging so people are empowered to be their best. Shirley sees her work at Progress as equipping employees to achieve by tapping into the richness of diverse human experiences. A transformational leader and educator, Shirley strives to positively impact the way people think, interact and collaborate across cultural, generational, racial, gender, socioeconomic, religious, disability, and educational lines. — -
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you ended up where you are?
My undergraduate degree is in Journalism. My career started working in education and then I moved over to Corporate Communications for a few years. I was also an instructor at local colleges in Massachusetts with a focus on cultural diversity and public speaking. I am an avid traveler and absolutely love visiting new cities all over the world. I have a strong appreciation for cultures and people.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Listening — most of my work is centered around listening to everyone, no matter their values, viewpoints, or beliefs. Once I listen and understand where someone is coming from, I’m better able to identify the ways in which they can be more inclusive in an increasingly diverse workplace and world.
Learning — I am a life-long learner. I am inquisitive. I love learning about the human condition — how events in one’s life, whether good or bad, mold them into who they are today. It is my belief that you’re not growing if you’re not learning. Do some reading. Listen to an opposing viewpoint. Ask ‘why?’ I can say, with certainty, that a large part of my success is due to my love of learning and understanding the world.
Perspective — it would be challenging for anyone in a diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging role to stay in this space a long time if they lack perspective. My role connects me with people from around the world — from Brno to Sofia, from Alpharetta to Rotterdam — who see the world differently than I do. I wouldn’t be able to do my job effectively if I didn’t appreciate their views and perspectives and then identify ways in which I could present my work in a way that would make sense to them. There really are two sides to every coin — I always have to be willing to look at things with an inquisitive mind that’s open to various perspectives.
Can you share a story about one of your greatest work-related struggles? Can you share what you did to overcome it?
I am a qualitative learner and presenter and I often work with people who value the quantitative data and results. It can be challenging when your default is storytelling through words and examples, yet the target audience sees ‘wins’ through numbers and percentages. How have I overcome this? I tell my story through words and numbers. Perhaps I’ll share, “We’ve increased our diverse hiring percentage by X amount, and I’d also like to share some feedback from applicants who have appreciated our employee resource group’s work in X community.” Pairing the numerical data with feedback from an intended audience has helped to make inclusion, diversity and belonging more tangible for many audiences at Progress.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I am currently collaborating on an inclusive leadership program with our Organizational Effectiveness team. In short, the program will help our leaders lead more inclusively and understand practical ways in which they can be better leaders that appreciate and acknowledge the many ways in which their teams are diverse.
Fantastic. Let’s now shift to our discussion about neurodiversity in the workforce. Can you tell our readers a bit about your experience working with initiatives to include neurodiverse employees? Can you share a story with us?
Neurodiversity is not new in the tech space, but I do believe speaking about it as much as we are now — which is amazing, by the way — is new. One thing that has helped educate me on our neurodivergent employee population is asking — and not assuming — what each individual person needs when working with me. I used to work with a woman who was dyslexic, and I had no idea. So, you can imagine how frustrated I would get when letters and numbers would be backward on projects I worked on with her. It wasn’t until she told me about her diagnosis that I knew I needed to give her extra time on projects and partner with her on double-checking presentations. I also work with a few colleagues who were diagnosed as adults with ADHD. Now I’m able to adjust my communication and work style to be collaborative with theirs. It’s all about understanding the other person and their required needs — as a Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer, even I am not exempt from learning about the ways in which I can be supportive.
This may be obvious to you, but it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you articulate to our readers a few reasons why it is so important for a business or organization to have an inclusive work culture?
Simply put, every business with more than a handful of people is going to be comprised of folks from different walks of life. The differences can be based on gender, socioeconomic status, disability, skillset, communication style, military status — the list goes on and on. Wouldn’t it be great if companies implemented DEI work that positively impacted each of these groups? Additionally, not only is having a supportive culture of belonging the right thing to do, but it also positively impacts an organization’s bottom line. The products become more diverse and inclusive, the people applying to the company come from all walks of life, and people from various backgrounds and experiences start getting promoted into senior-level roles — the possibilities and potential are endless.
Can you share a few examples of ideas that were implemented at your workplace to help include neurodiverse employees? Can you share with us how the work culture was affected as a result?
I have a recent example, actually. One employee wrote a blog post about what it’s like being bipolar in the workplace and it is the first time during my tenure here at Progress that someone has been open to sharing their story on a public forum. You don’t know how happy that made me — to read about her story, both the highs and the lows, had such an impact on me and so many other employees. The blog post highlighted something that many people, both inside and outside of Progress, are trying to navigate through every day. And that’s the environment that our people create within the company — a space where it is psychologically safe to state who you are, the impact being neurodiverse has within your life, and then provide tips on how people can support you. Our corporate culture is better for it — I look forward to learning from more employees like her.
What are some of the challenges or obstacles to including neurodivergent employees? What needs to be done to address those obstacles?
Historically, one of the biggest challenges has centered around including people who are ‘different.’ This concept is applicable to many diverse groups across the board, and this is especially true for those who are neurodivergent. Perhaps they communicate differently than people in the majority. Maybe their work style is different. It can even be they need more time to process ideas or conversations — whatever the case may be, there are, unfortunately, many people who are challenged by these ‘differences.’ On a positive note, we are moving into a time in human history when it’s becoming more acceptable to speak up on differences and recognize them as something that could actually benefit a team. Just think about it — even five years ago, how many mainstream publications were highlighting neurodiverse talent and highlighting all of the amazing qualities this population brings to the table? We have to keep talking more about it. Companies must continue to provide accommodations to those neurodiverse folks who need them. No progress will be made without discussion followed by action — I feel like we are on the right track, but there is still more work to be done globally.
How do you and your organization educate yourselves and your teams on the concept of neurodiversity and the needs of neurodivergent employees? Are there any resources, training, or workshops that you have found particularly helpful?
One of our biggest resources at the moment is our disabilities employee resource group (ERG), ENABLE. This group, which just started in late 2022, has already made such a significant impact in our company, which supports employees with disabilities and allies who would like to learn more about various (dis)abilities.
Earlier this year, I shared an article with the group that centered around the benefits of working remotely for people with various disabilities. I then asked the group what benefits they could speak to and the answers left a huge impact on me. We had one person talk about their journey being bipolar and how they can have their highs and lows at home instead of in the office. There are parents of children with autism — working from home allows them to cater to their children’s needs more. All of their stories showed that Progress has been on the right path with allowing people to continue remote work during and after the pandemic.
We also have various online, self-paced trainings as well as workshops we roll out during the year that highlight the actions that need to be taken in order to create an inclusive workplace for all employees.
This is the main question of our interview. Can you please share five best practices that can make a business place feel more welcoming and inclusive of people who are neurodivergent? If you can, please share a few examples.
1 . The primary way is educating employees on what neurodiversity is! It’s not one or two things, right? A person can be dyslexic and on the autism spectrum — and be the most talented person on the team. One has to understand the many things it can be — or can look like — before one can start doing other supportive actions for neurodiverse employees.
2 . Once you’ve learned about what neurodiversity is and have identified colleagues who are a part of this population, it’s time for you to start adjusting your behavior — your communication style, the way you lead that person or the support you give — that will help make that person successful. Being flexible on your end will help the neurodiverse employee feel as though they belong.
3 . Recognize their strengths when appropriate. Even though someone may process differently or work differently from others doesn’t mean they aren’t valuable. There are many neurodiverse leaders from around the globe who are absolutely brilliant and have strengths that are different from everyone else’s. That should be celebrated.
4 . Publicly promote that your company hires and develops people who are neurodivergent. Imagine a job-seeker who fits into this category sees your social media posts about your disabilities resource group — something Progress often does — and they know they will be accepted at your organization. That’s a game-changer. Now you’re starting to get people from all walks of life who could be your top employee one day applying because they know your company is a place where they could grow and thrive. This is something that more organizations should think about.
5 . Give grace to those who are neurodivergent. Many people in this group have gone through life being misunderstood, judged, or not being in supportive environments. Managers should lead with an open mindset and be supportive in any way they can — it can make all the difference.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story about how that was relevant in your own life?
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
Whether or not I agree with someone’s beliefs or values, I do my best to make them feel seen and heard. I want even the biggest critics of inclusion, diversity, and belonging to understand that my job is not to judge them, but to get them to understand someone else’s life experiences and how those shape individuals into who they are today. But I can’t bridge that gap — especially being the head of inclusion and diversity — if someone doesn’t trust me and my ability to listen and understand. If I make someone feel like their perspective matters, I have a greater chance at helping them be more inclusive, appreciate diversity, and be a better person.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
This is tough — there are so many movements going on right now that have made an enormous difference in the DEI space. What I’d love to see more of? Listening. Uninterrupted listening and learning. I would love it if people with opposing views could hop into a conversation with one another where each person has a few minutes to speak about their life, their experience, their views — and the other person had to listen, with an open mind and heart. Wouldn’t that be something? I think this is the biggest struggle for so many — they think they have all of the answers, so when someone brings up a topic or a point they don’t agree with, they jump in quickly to shut it down. But what if you couldn’t? What if you had to listen to one’s “origin story,” or hear about a life event that impacted someone from a different background? That’s where the real work behind — just listening and learning.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
The best place to follow my work is our Facebook, LinkedIn, Youtube, Instagram and Twitter, as well as my LinkedIn.
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this. We wish you continued success and good health!
About the Interviewer: Eric L. Pines is a nationally recognized federal employment lawyer, mediator, and attorney business coach. He represents federal employees and acts as in-house counsel for over fifty thousand federal employees through his work as a federal employee labor union representative. A formal federal employee himself, Mr. Pines began his federal employment law career as in-house counsel for AFGE Local 1923 which is in Social Security Administration’s headquarters and is the largest federal union local in the world. He presently serves as AFGE 1923’s Chief Counsel as well as in-house counsel for all FEMA bargaining unit employees and numerous Department of Defense and Veteran Affairs unions.
While he and his firm specialize in representing federal employees from all federal agencies and in reference to virtually all federal employee matters, his firm has placed special attention on representing Veteran Affairs doctors and nurses hired under the authority of Title. He and his firm have a particular passion in representing disabled federal employees with their requests for medical and religious reasonable accommodations when those accommodations are warranted under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (ADA). He also represents them with their requests for Federal Employee Disability Retirement (OPM) when an accommodation would not be possible.
Mr. Pines has also served as a mediator for numerous federal agencies including serving a year as the Library of Congress’ in-house EEO Mediator. He has also served as an expert witness in federal court for federal employee matters. He has also worked as an EEO technical writer drafting hundreds of Final Agency Decisions for the federal sector.
Mr. Pines’ firm is headquartered in Houston, Texas and has offices in Baltimore, Maryland and Atlanta, Georgia. His first passion is his wife and five children. He plays classical and rock guitar and enjoys playing ice hockey, running, and biking. Please visit his websites at www.pinesfederal.com and www.toughinjurylawyers.com. He can also be reached at eric@pinesfederal.com.
