“Employers are doing a number of things to create safety around neurodivergence,” says Hiren Shukla, global neurodiversity leader, EY.

WorkingNation sat down with Shukla at the 2023 Disability:IN Conference in Orlando.

“Are we adapting, adjusting hiring practices to be neuroinclusive?” asks Shukla. Suggesting a pivot to performance-based interview processes, Shukla notes, “Are we looking at behavioral-based interviews which don’t often allow neurodivergent individuals to present themselves as best?”

Referencing the rise of artificial intelligence, Shukla says, “The topic of skills today is more relevant than ever, especially because generative AI like ChatGPT. When we think about the skills that need to be unlocked, employers really need to see past what they would think as standardized performance measures – such as how eloquently does somebody speak versus what is their interaction with an open AI source and how are they able to extract value and data?”

 Shukla – who was just diagnosed with ADHD in recent months – continues, “When you start educating your managers, your line members, your team members around creating psychological safety and belonging, that means people show up differently. And that’s okay, because once we start breaking that paradigm of having to show up in the way that everybody else shows up, that’s where we start really looking at building rapidly new skills which is something in today’s workforce that are either going to make or break companies.”

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