Hiring Neurodivergent Talent: Accommodations vs Accessibility vs Neuroinclusion
"Please let us know if you need any extra support or accommodations during the interview process."
These days, you'll see this line slapped at the bottom of most job adverts. But does it actually help Neurodivergent candidates?
If 53% of people in tech identify as Neurodivergent and only 3% actually disclose to their employers, what percentage do you think to disclose during the interview process? As the stakes are much higher, I'm certain less than 3% disclose before they join a company.
This is where understanding the difference between accommodations, accessibility, and neuroinclusion comes in.
N.B: This article is loosely based on the concepts presented in The Canary Code by Ludmila Praslova (one of the best books I’ve read on neurodiversity in the workplace!)
What are accommodations?
If a Neurodivergent candidate discloses to the recruiter and asks for the interview questions in advance or for an alternative interview format, that's an accommodation.
Accommodations (or adjustments) are things that can be put in place to reduce or remove a barrier someone faces due to their disability.
What is accessibility?
A friend of mine recently had an interview in which the interviewer pasted the question in the chat after saying it verbally. They didn't have to ask for it, but as they're Neurodivergent, they actually really benefitted from it.
Another Neurodivergent friend was given the question ahead of a complex technical interview without having to ask for it.
These are examples of accessibility; it's like accommodations but universal. And Universal Accessibility (also known as Universal Design) is actually a thing! It's defined as:
The design of buildings, products, environments to make them accessible to everyone regardless or age, disability or other factors. It addresses common barriers to participation by creating things accessible to the maximum number of people.
Do you put the subtitles on when you watch tv, movies or youtube videos? Well you can thank Harry Lang for that! Harry, who is deaf, started the advocacy movement for closed captioning on tv after being unable to follow the historic Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969 due to the lack of captions.
Universal design benefits everyone and good universal design looks like this:
What's neuroinclusion?
Another friend of mine had a challenging and long final interview for a leadership role. As time passed, they started to become overwhelmed and trip over their words. Instead of pressing on, the observant interviewers noticed and asked if they would like to take a short break and come back to it. They gladly took the offer, came back in with a much clearer mind, smashed the rest of the interview, and got the offer. That's neuroinclusion.
Neuroinclusion is harder to distil into a neat little definition than accommodations or accessibility. But in a nutshell it's how Neurodivergent people are perceived and treated as a result of our traits that mean we function and behave differently from other people. It's recognising that our definition of "good" or "capable" might look different for Neurodivergent people. Accommodations and accessibility don't guarantee neuroinclusion.
So, which one should you focus on?
Well in an ideal world, you'll focus on all three areas to truly make your hiring process better for Neurodivergent candidates.
We need accommodations because every Neurodivergent person is different. Maybe one day we'll reach a place as a society where accommodations aren't required because the world thinks about everyone, but if it's even achievable, I don't think we're anywhere near it. So until then, Neurodivergent people need and deserve accommodations that address their challenges and barriers.
We need accessibility because many people don't disclose information in the workplace or during interviews. This limits how much people can benefit from accommodations. Making things widely accessible to everyone helps the people who don't disclose. But it also benefits a much wider group of people because, let's be honest, interviews are bloody hard, so small changes like pasting the questions in the chat will help the majority of people!
And we need neuroinclusion because it doesn't matter if someone is given extra time for a tech test or questions in advance if they're going to be judged based on stereotypes and bias stemming from ableism by the interviewers and get rejected for a job; they are fully capable of doing.
Practical tips to take away from this article:
👉🏾 Encompass accommodations, accessibility and neuroinclusion if you want your efforts to have the biggest impact. And not just for your Neurodivergent candidates but a wider group.
👉🏾 Reduce your reliance on candidates disclosing and asking for accommodations, and think about ways to make your hiring process more universally accessible, like the examples I shared in this article.
👉🏾 Start to think about ways to advocate for neuroinclusion in your hiring process. Have your hiring managers, recruiters, and interviewers been trained in Neurodiversity in recruitment? Have you derisked your decision-making process for hiring or can Neurodivergent candidates still slip through the cracks?
Understanding the difference between accommodations, accessibility, and neuroinclusion is key to designing hiring processes that work for every brain — not just those who fit the traditional mould.
If your organisation is ready to move beyond good intentions and start building hiring systems that are genuinely inclusive, I can help 👋
We work with recruiters, hiring managers, and HR teams to redesign recruitment frameworks, run inclusive hiring training, and audit existing processes to remove barriers and bias.
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Thanks for reading and stay fabulous!
Parul x
