Meg Ryan’s Post

78% of people that have autism are unemployed   787% the diagnose is up and is finally starting to be recognised   71.7 years old for men with autism and 69.6 for women autism is the average age of life expectancy   a neurodivergent person without learning difficulties is 9x more likely to die of suicide   These stats were eye opening and there are so many more. On Thursday I had the pleasure of attending Unlocking potential: Hiring and Embedding Neurodiverse Talent event hosted by Resource Solutions with Louise Fowkes and Jennifer Dootson (Msc, PCC) as inspiring key speakers at the event. Massive thank you to you both.   The dynamic breakfast event was designed to bring experts from the industry, to share their valuable insights and best practices to support embedding neurodiverse talent in the workplace. The breakfast covered topics like understanding the why, building a business case and acting.    We debated a few powerful questions in the breakout sessions. All companies are learning each step of the way and its even better we can collaborate and share our achievements. In the breakout sessions I was proud to share our MS ABS journey and what we have achieved in such a short space of time from creating a business case to creating and implementing what we now have today. From our focus room to hosting expert panel discussions on neurodiversity, It was great to reflect how far we really have come. There is simple tweaks that can be made along the way even in attracting new talent, from sending a photo of your office along with the interview questions to applicants to provide a simple one pager of recruitment process that shows the step by step, this is not only good for someone that is neurodivergent it also making it simpler for all.   These two questions below stuck with me since the session, I hope they help your workplace too:   What can workplaces do to support new and current talent in the workplace?   What action can you take to foster a neurodiverse workplace? 

💡 We hope you enjoyed Neurodiversity Celebration Week last week as much as we did! 💡Here at The Neurodiversity Practice we have spent some time reflecting on the messages that came across most strongly on social media & in the amazing webinars we joined. 💡 Here’s what we came up with: 1. Neurodivergence is not a superpower, it’s just a fact 2. It’s ok not to celebrate all aspects of your neurodivergence 3. Neurodiversity is not just autism & ADHD - we embrace all forms of neurodifference 4. Many workplace strategies that benefit neurodivergent people actually benefit everyone 5. Making your workplace neuroinclusive is not a tickbox exercise 6. Language is important. But understanding mistakes or differences of opinion is important too 7. “Shame dies when stories are told in safe spaces” - the more we share, the stronger we are 8. The neurodivergent community is powerful & is driving global change. 💡 What do you think - which of these insights stands out most to you? Do have any to add? 💡We are proud to embrace these issues as fundamental pillars across all our projects. For example: ➡️ Neuroinclusion requires change across organisations at every level, over not just one week, but all year round. This is why our evidence-based SuCCeSSeS framework has Empathy and Understanding at its heart, driving authentic Evolution of your business. ➡️ Our upcoming membership community The Neurodivergent Parent Space will create a safe space for sharing & learning from each other, to break down the walls of shame, brick by brick. 💡 We are so happy to be a part of the global neurodiversity movement 🥳 ⏩️ Follow the link in our bio to find out more about how you can help shape The Neurodivergent Parent Space, & how our SuCCeSSeS framework can support your workplace. Lauren, Siobhan & Jo #neurodiversitycelebrationweek #neurodiversity #embracedifferences #neurodiversitymatters #autismawareness #adhdpositivity #diversityandinclusion

Take a look at The Neurodiversity Practice's reflections on last week's Neurodiversity Celebration Week. 💡 Is there anything you'd add? #neurodiversitycelebrationweek #neurodivergence #neurodiversity

What did you take away from #neurodiversitycelebrationweek? Check out The Neurodiversity Practice’s insights below 😃⬇️

Today at Highspot's All Hands meeting, we celebrated Autism & Neurodiversity Month by hosting a panel discussion led by leaders of our Minds of All Kinds ERG. Michelle Yeager and Megan Carlisle (she/her) explored the impact of neurodiversity in our workplace, its role in driving inclusion for neurodivergent individuals, and how it's a competitive advantage from a customer perspective. As a proud member of this community, I embrace this aspect of myself, which enhances my ability to drive DEI effectively across large organizations. Special thanks to Kim Clark, who helped moderate this engaging conversation and allowed us to understand how neural diversity plays into how we evaluate the performance of individual employees, ensuring equity for their success and contribution. It also highlights our ability to benefit from the brilliance that they bring. 💡 Did you know that 15-20% of the world's population is neurodivergent? This includes 10% with dyslexia, 6% with dyspraxia, 5% with ADHD, and 1–2% with autism, among others like dyscalculia and Tourette's syndrome. 🙌🏽 Interestingly, 88% of dyslexics view their dyslexia as an advantage, while 46% of non-dyslexic individuals agree. This underscores the unique strengths neurodiversity brings to our teams and organizations. Let's continue to champion diversity and inclusion in all its forms! #NeurodiversityMonth #Inclusion #DiversityAndInclusion

We've got 4 brilliant webinars lined up to celebrate and share tips as part of neurodiversity celebration week series "Be The Change": 1. Neurodiversity in the Workplace (March 19): Led by Sam Williams CEng MIET CSEP MINCOSE ADHD coach, Change Specialist and Chartered Engineer. Sam is the founder of SeedSpark a neuroinclusive change consultancy. Perfect for neurodiverse candidates looking for a new role and organisations who want to learn how to become more equitable and inclusive 2. Spinning Plates: ADHD in the Workplace (March 20): Led by our very own Rae Dixon ACIM who will be talking about her journey through ADHD diagnosis and how she navigated and currently navigates her day to day in the workplace, packed with top tips and an open and safe space to ask questions. 3. Creating Inclusive Processes (March 21): This looks to be a really insightful sesh with Gattaca's Head of ED&I Annabel Honour CertRP LLB (Hons) and Lisa Rogers O'Sullivan System Engineer at BAE and Founder of Be Accessible To All. Aimed primarily the hiring and fellow ED&I community Bels and Lisa will discuss strategies for creating processes, best practices, real-world examples, and actionable tips to help you attract, assess, and hire talent for the full range of neurodiverse candidates. 4. Be the Change: Dyslexia in the Workplace (March 22): We're lucky enough to have Lisa Rogers O'Sullivan back with us on Friday to bring the week to a close where she'll be talking about her own personal experiences of being Dyslexic and sharing tips to get your workplace (new or old) to be accommodating and inclusive. All links to registration in the comments!

Today is World Autism Awareness Day. A day that is observed worldwide to bring in more awareness around autism and neurodiversity. This year’s theme is: Moving from surviving to thriving. And it can’t be more beautiful. It tells us that life for autistic individuals is more than just surviving. But it’s thriving. We can do that when we create inclusive environments. Supportive workplaces. We have two programs we offer to build inclusive, supportive workplaces: 1. Neurodiversity 101 : Find out how to work with neurodiverse individuals, accommodations, raising awareness and taking actionable steps for inclusion. 2. Leveraging Neurodiversity and Building Inclusive Teams: Tailored for hiring managers, HR, professionals, managers, and leaders. This program will deep-dive into talent experiences, inclusive policy processes, case studies, talent acquisitions, benefits, and more. DM us to know more. And we leave you with this breathtakingly beautiful quote by author Naoki Higashida. “For us, you see, having autism is normal—so we can’t know for sure what your 'normal' is even like. But so long as we can learn to love ourselves, I’m not sure how much it matters whether we’re normal or autistic." #AutismAwarenessMonth #CelebrateDifferences #Autism

✨ ♾️ Neuroinclusive recruitment and onboarding that supports and promotes good mental health - how can it be done? 💚 ✨ Delighted to be a guest at a roundtable today with Natalie Lightfoot at Oliver James to talk about one of my favourite topics and more! Although it's been a while since I changed jobs (though you might argue that each introductory session with a potential client / collaborator is an interview), I've recently helped two of my coaching clients secure jobs that meet their neurodivergent needs 🎉 (and yes, navigating the process was a journey!). #neurodiversitycelebrationweek #neuroinclusion (I wish LinkedIn's hashtag suggestions had camel case in it)