Before Dane DiCaprio found a neurodivergent-friendly workplace in Melbourne, he freelanced in London where he says he kept his dyslexia hidden.

"I wouldn't disclose it during interviews and I would just struggle silently," Mr DiCaprio says.

Mr DiCaprio said he was constantly trying to "fit in with the workplace" rather than feeling free to suggest a different approach that worked for him.

According to the recent census, 11 per cent of the Australian workforce identify as neurodivergent.

However the actual figures of neurodivergent people in the Australian population could be as high as 20 per cent, and that many choose not to disclose this or are unemployed. 

So, why is there such a difference in these figures, and how can we create more neurodivergent friendly workplaces?

What is neurodivergence?

Neurodivergent is an umbrella term used to describe neuro-processing differences. These can include conditions such as autism, ADHD, Tourette's syndrome and dyslexia, and often they are co-occurring.

Neurodivergent and neurodivergence describes all people whose neurological conditions mean they do not consider themselves neurotypical.

"Neurodivergent people have always been here, this is not new. It's just that our level of understanding has improved," Vicky Little, CEO of Specialisterne Australia, tells ABC Radio National’s This Working Life.

For the past two decades, Ms Little has worked as a specialist recruiter supporting neurodivergent employees in large corporate firms.

While things have improved, she says workplaces still have a long way to go. And she says it's in a business's best interest to be "neurodiverse friendly".

"People used to think, 'Oh they're just doing it as a tick box [exercise]'," Ms Little says.

"Actively hiring and supporting your neurodivergent staff isn't just a nice thing … the value that neurodivergent employees bring to the workplace is invaluable."

This was demonstrated in a 2016 Curtin University study, which found that employing adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) benefits employees, employers and their organisations without incurring additional costs.

For example, employees with ASD performed above standard levels in regard to attention to detail, work ethic and quality of work.

Ms Little says it's a major advantage that neurodivergent people think differently to neurotypical people.

"[They] can solve problems in a way that perhaps neurotypical people can't because they can see the bigger picture, or they can see the detail, and they can look at the problem from a different side and come up with solutions in that way."

Content creation agency The Digital Picnic CEO Cherie Clonan is a proud autistic woman and roughly half of the staff are neurodivergent. She says this cohort bring great value to her business.

"It's been really beneficial for me and this business's bottom line to go all in on neural inclusivity," Ms Clonan says.

One key component of the company's success is the enthusiasm that her team has for their work.

"[Many other executives have] got the polar opposite problems that I have, where they're trying to find folks who are passionate about the work that they're employing them to do and I'm like, 'Actually I have excessive passion' … I have to remind folks to close the laptop and call it a day," she says.

Inclusivity starts with recruitment

Ms Little says most organisations recruit in a very traditional way. It's a process she describes as "archaic" and one that tends to be the first major obstacle for neurodivergent employees to overcome.

"[They're] only assessing someone's capacity to speak really well in a short, stressful environment where they're really being assessed on their non-verbal communication and their likeability and their interpersonal skills, and not on their capacity to do the actual job," she says.

Ms Little says that by conducting recruitment in this traditional way, "you're only going to get a certain type of person".

She works with companies such as Telstra, Westpac and Coles to encourage these organisations to rethink their recruitment processes.

"[They need] to enable people to show what they can do, to enable neurodivergent people to really have the chance to demonstrate their skills," Ms Little says.

Ms Clonan adopts non-traditional recruitment methods. This includes allowing applicants to see the interview questions prior to the interview, and allowing people to redo answers if they're not happy with their first response.

She's not the only one changing things. In 2020, the federal government launched the Aurora Neuroinclusion Program aimed to help neurodivergent people start careers within the public service.

Kate Halpern is the director of Employ for Ability, an organisation which partners with Services Australia as part of the Aurora program. She believes positive change is occurring in workplaces.

"I'm neurodivergent myself and a lot of us are finding our voice and realising our worth within the workplace and starting to have conversations and making organisations accountable," she says.

Ms Halpern says she hopes to help "blow up the traditional recruitment process" through the Aurora program.

Yet while recruitment pathways are important, she says neurodivergent people "have already infiltrated the workplace".

"We already have a very high prevalence [of neurodivergent staff] within organisations, so I want to see a top-down, bottom-up approach, where we invest in education, in busting the stigma, the misconceptions, the stereotypes [while] coming from a neuroaffirming approach." 

A neuroinclusive workplace

Beyond recruitment, a lot of thought has gone into the design of The Digital Picnic office space in order to create a neuroinclusive workplace.

Lighting is a key consideration, for example.

"We know for some people, lighting can be a really hard topic in office environments, particularly when it's that harsh white, bright lighting," says account director Victoria Obieglo.

Instead, their office has dimmable lighting and each desk has its own adjustable lighting.

"[Also] we recognise that not everyone deals with noise in the office in the same way," Ms Obieglo says.

So, to help cater for these different needs, noise-cancelling headphones are supplied to staff members. There are also designated quiet spaces in the office.

The office has a large supply of fidget tools that clients and team members can use when they're in meetings. These include poppers, fidget spinners and sensory pick pads.

Ms Halpern labels these sorts of changes as "reasonable adjustments" that aim to create a psychologically safe workplace.

One of the major difficulties is the "invisibility" of neurodivergent conditions, Ms Halpern explains.

"I often have conversations with managers that will say to me, 'I feel so much more confident to support someone with a physical disability because I feel that I know what to do as part of that adjustment, but when it comes to autism, it is invisible'," she says.

However, she reassures managers that they shouldn't be overwhelmed by these adjustments.

"It comes down to education and capacity building so people are aware … and then putting in place those adjustments, which often cost absolutely nothing to implement," she says.

The pitfalls of an unsupportive workplace

Many neurodivergent people leave jobs because they find managing or masking their neurodivergence without workplace support too hard.

That was the case for Jessie Zevaka, The Digital Picnic's marketing manager.

"In my first role in marketing, I had no idea about anything neurodivergence-wise. I didn't know that women could have autism, I didn't know I could possibly have autism," Ms Zevaka says.

And while she says her output was at a very high standard and volume, she was consistently called into the manager's office.

"The one problem the owner had with me, he just couldn't put his finger on … and he would say 'It's your facial expressions, it's your body language, it's the sound of your voice', and he had literally convinced me that I needed to learn etiquette and deportment," she says.

Ms Zevaka eventually left that job and then spent years freelancing before arriving and working happily at The Digital Picnic.

Similarly, Dane DiCaprio says he's happier working in a more inclusive work environment, where he is open about his neurodiversity and is allowed to adapt things to his needs.

"We've got much more of a focus on strengths, rather than shaming folks for different challenges," Ms Chonan says.

A big loss

Ms Little has a simple message for cynical employers: by not being neuroinclusive "you're going to be missing out on the talent".

And that is a big loss.

"If you're not putting in place the adjustments that people might need … or at least taking the time to understand how they work best and what they need to succeed, then you're not going to retain that staff and that's a huge percentage of your workforce," Ms Little says.

According to Ms Halpern, workplaces tend to get caught up in labels and whether or not someone is diagnosed, when these "reasonable adjustments" are universal best practice.

Ms Little agrees.

"What is good for neurodivergent staff is good for everyone."