Neurodiversity at work: Drive innovation, performance, and productivity with a neurodiverse workforce, by TheoSmith and AmandaKirby, London: Kogan Page, 2021, 310 pages, $xx paperback

I must begin by applauding the authors of this book for tackling the ever-fascinating and much-needed topic of neurodiversity at work. Given the state of the literature, this was most certainly a daunting and ambitious endeavor. As a relative newcomer to the workplace literature on neurodiversity, I was eager to dive into this book. I will say that I was both pleased and disappointed by the end. First, it is important to note that the authors state that they hope their book will be valuable to a wide range of individuals, including parents, employees, employers, recruitment professionals, HR managers, occupational psychologists, individuals working in higher education (among others). Appealing to such a diverse audience is difficult, as it runs the risk of being overly simplistic for some and overly complex for others, with relevant points interspersed with irrelevant ones. This was exactly my take on the book (though far more simplistic than complex overall); I was pleased with the broad brushstrokes that painted the picture of the importance of neurodiversity at work and was disappointed with the depth of coverage of specific research on the topic. As such, I believe this book is best suited to those seeking a cursory overview of the issues with some quick and easily implementable ideas to get the ball rolling immediately. If you are new to the topic of neurodiversity, this is a fine primer. The authors, Theo Smith and Amanda Kirby, are clearly passionate about the topic, having spent their careers involved in neurodiversity efforts before neurodiversity efforts were cool. They do an admirable job of delivering basic information in an accessible, simple manner. They provide many examples and raise awareness of topics that could be sensitive or offensive if handled improperly. For example, they mention the oft-heard comment “Nothing About Us Without Us” (p. 239) to highlight the point that we shouldn't exclude those we are trying to serve. Demonstrating this very point, the authors provide numerous case studies, interviews, and first-person perspectives throughout the chapters to give a voice to neurodiverse individuals on the issues raised. These elements paint a picture in a way that is likely to generate empathy and, ideally, action. In terms of the layout of the book, there are 16 chapters (with references at the end of each), an appendix with brief summaries of some of the common disorders that comprise neurodiversity, and a glossary with terms used within the book. I will speak briefly to each and then provide my overall takeaway. The first chapter sets the stage, answering the question of why neurodiversity is important. The reasons are simple (and obvious?) but sound, and while many of them are why diversity in general is good (e.g., ethical, moral, legal responsibilities, not miss potential), the points hold. In Chapter 2, Smith and Kirby discuss labels, how they change over time, and the benefits and drawbacks of using labels. The authors note, “We are not teaching or preaching; we want to excite, delight and open up discussion around neurodiversity” (p. 21). Unfortunately, some of this chapter does, in fact, come across as “preaching” and some conflicting points may fail to open dialogue and instead close it. For example, the authors note in their introduction that “we are all neurodiverse” given that “everyone's brains are wired differently” (p. 3). They then aptly note in this chapter (p. 24) and again later (Ch. 11, p. 190) that statements such as “Everyone is a bit ADHD!” or “Everyone is somewhere on the spectrum” can come across as dismissive and shut down conversations. They further note that labels “can represent a short-hand descriptor to a ‘club’ we want to join or alternatively a group we don't want to belong to” (p. 29). Such mixed messaging may lead to confusion and uncertainty on how to proceed. This is not to say there is one right answer, of course. It simply means that a reader should not expect to find definitive guidance on the use of labels within this chapter. Smith and Kirby, to their credit, note that this chapter was the hardest for them to write and expect it to have the most debate. My take is they are correct in that assessment. Chapter 3 emphasizes the point that there is a great deal of variability in strengths and challenges for individuals and addresses this issue through the concepts of spiky profiles and “MAD” abilities. There was much to appreciate in this chapter, including the explanation that individuals are not easily classified as one thing or another, and that instead there may be, as the authors say, “a greater contrast between the peak of an individual strength versus the dips of particular cognitive challenges” (p. 45), hence the “spiky” profile. This simple and intuitive statement about individual variability is important and worth the space. Unfortunately, many of the examples provided sound like a sales pitch for the second author's assessment tool, with the answer to “How to fix it?” being “So maybe if everyone just went and did the [assessment], that would help to have a language of strengths as well as discussing support needs” (p. 56). I understand it's natural to promote one's product, especially if it is meant to be a valuable aid, but it felt a bit icky to me (technical term, of course). As for “MAD” abilities, this stands for “Moving Attitudes towards Diverse abilities” and was coined by the lead author. I found this a tad confusing despite it being half the chapter (and not appearing in the glossary or elsewhere in the book). In all, I think the points the authors were trying to make with this chapter were sound but could have been presented more clearly without the heavy reliance on their own assessments and terminology. Chapter 4 is titled “Eliminating Kryptonite and Enabling Superheroes” (which shares the name of the first author's podcast). Despite the fun title, I found this to be more of a ‘filler’ chapter than one with much content. It could easily be skipped. In Chapter 5, the authors discuss why some individuals are identified earlier than others as being neurodiverse and why some individuals are left behind. The focus here is on pre-employment, namely, within the education systems and society as a whole. There were some nice case studies included, and good points for reflection, though little in the way of applicability to work, which might be disappointing for those seeking this book out based on its title. Legal information is discussed in Chapter 6, and has a strong focus on the policies and procedures that exist in the UK. There is mention of other locations, such as the United States, but understandably a full discussion of legal issues worldwide would be well beyond the scope of the book. I will not pretend to be knowledgeable enough about UK law to speak to this chapter's accuracy, but it is written in an easy-to-understand manner that may be worthwhile for UK practitioners to read. The authors provide practical advice on navigating key legislation and handling such topics as performance appraisals. A nice touch in this chapter is the inclusion of three scenarios at the end that provide thought exercises on what one should and/or would do in various situations involving neurodiversity at work. With Chapter 7, we begin to see material directly relevant to practitioners looking for actionable suggestions on navigating neurodiversity issues in the workplace. In this chapter, the focus is on recruitment. Chapter 8 focuses on apprenticeships, internships, work placements, and the like. Interviewing and assessments are discussed in greater detail in Chapter 9. Chapter 10 tackles the question of how workplace adjustments can and should be made. The authors address induction and onboarding in Chapter 11. Chapter 12 is titled “Line management means having good conversations” and felt repetitive with previous information presented. Chapter 13 focused on creating neuro-inclusive meetings, conferences, and seminars. Chapter 14 provides information on how to set up and build networks and communities within an organization, with champions to help facilitate an inclusive workplace. Within these chapters (7 through 14), the authors provide some practical tips, numerous case studies, and sample materials (e.g., sample inclusion policy on p. 117; flow diagram for creating internship scheme, p. 131). I appreciated the comprehensiveness of the suggestions, and the links to specific apps or sites to do what they suggest (e.g., links for checking readability of online sites; link for checking color-blindness issues; links for free options to check for inadvertent biases in messages). The variety of tips would certainly be helpful in giving individuals ideas of quick steps they could take to make a change. Whether or not everything recommended was realistic is a different story - but I would argue the ideas were still worth giving. My biggest qualm about these chapters, aside from some of the repetitious nature of the material (very similar suggestions across chapters), was that some of the content seemed to discount some research findings. For example, I cringed when I read, “Interviews and assessments can be entrenched in archaic processes that were designed via outdated research and evidence” (p. 137). While that is certainly true, the cringe aspect was that there had been several other places that seemed to blast some established methods without necessarily offering research-driven suggestions. In Chapter 3, the authors discuss “rigid interview structures” (p. 53) and advocate for some changes that could arguably make it harder to compare across candidates. The authors do bring in the notion of validity and the need for “validated, research-supported assessment methods” (p. 144), but this is buried in a single case study taken from an online blog. My point: if you are looking for suggestions thoroughly grounded in research you should look elsewhere. The authors close the book with two final chapters. Chapter 15 provides some of the authors’ predictions for what the future of workspaces and workplaces could and should look like. In the final chapter, the authors present four individuals who have had success with implementing changes in their organizations that have been beneficial with regard to neurodiversity. Overall, the authors provide a nice introduction of an extremely important topic that has only begun to receive mainstream attention. It's an easy, accessible primer with several pages I bookmarked with ideas I'd like to establish in my own workplace. Although repetitive at times and simplistic in presentation, the authors bring awareness to an area in need of more attention and have allowed this community to have a voice. While the book itself isn't for everyone, the message should be, and for that the authors should be applauded.