A Person-Centred Approach to Onboarding: The Employee Lifecycle Series

This is the third blog in a series which considers how HR professionals might support neurodivergent talent using the Employee Lifecycle model as its structure. The thinking behind this is explained in the first blog, HR’s Role in Supporting Neurodivergent Talent. The series aims to offer practical tips, and to pose questions for HR professionals looking to develop neuro-inclusive practices within their organisations.

In the second blog, Recruiting Neurodivergent Talent Right, I focused on attraction and recruitment as a combined phase of the model. This blog will focus on the onboarding phase of the lifecycle.

Onboarding can be understood as the process, or processes, by which new talent is integrated into an organisation. Whilst neat and efficient processes are attractive, efficiency doesn’t always equate with effectiveness. If we are to get onboarding right, and not just for neurodivergent talent, it might pay to review this aspect of our work. We need to ensure that onboarding is not a case of people fitting our process, but our process fitting our people.

The Whole Should Be Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts

The employee lifecycle is a good way for organisations to break down their neurodiversity management work into manageable chunks, but it’s important not to lose sight of inter-dependence of the phases. The image presents the lifecycle in neat segments. What it doesn’t do so well is to highlight the connections that need to run through and across the phases. We might refer to this as a golden thread and it can be seen as a continuum of activity, where activity in each phase is aligned with and supports the others. To misquote Aristotle, “the whole of the employee lifecycle should be greater than the sum of its parts.” To illustrate this, we might ask ourselves:

What Activities from Other Phases of the Employee Lifecycle Contribute to and Inform Onboarding?

Let’s look at recruitment and selection. Some of our onboarding will already have begun during the recruitment and selection phase. It is highly likely that we will have begun to showcase what candidates might expect if they were to work for us. It is worth noting that many interviews conclude with candidates being asked: ‘Do you have any questions for us?’ Often, candidate questions will be about the specifics of the role, the environment or development opportunities. They have already begun to visualise working for you. For those who are successful, particularly neurodivergent candidates who might struggle with anxiety, it is imperative that these visualisations are as accurate and as informed as possible. These kinds of questions asked during interviews indicate that the onboarding process, or at least the transition from recruitment and selection to onboarding for the candidates, is already underway.

Tip: Increasingly, candidates are given questions prior to an interview. It can be helpful for them to be given examples of the kind of questions they may wish to ask at the end of an interview.

As you begin to consider whether onboarding in your organisation could be more neuro-inclusive, it might be worth asking:

What Are the Aims of Onboarding in My Organisation?

My simple definition proposed that onboarding was the process by which new talent was integrated into an organisation. As such, the aim could be argued to be quite simple: integration. But the definition also uses the word ‘process’, and we should be cautious about prioritising process over people. Organisations need processes to be efficient and easy to administer, but onboarding must balance both people and process.

In considering how onboarding works for neurodivergent talent we can adopt a useful perspective by asking:

To What Extent Does Onboarding in Our Organisation Address the Anxiety Which New Talent Might Be Experiencing?

I suggest you ask this question as it puts the person at the centre as we work to make our onboarding more neuro-inclusive. 

If there are four more evocative words than ‘first day at school’, they might just be ‘starting a new job’. Whilst the first days and weeks in a new job are demanding for all employees, they can be particularly demanding for neurodivergent talent. How organisations recognise and support new employees with the emotional load of starting a new job is essential. We know that neurodivergent individuals experience high levels of anxiety compared with their neurotypical peers. Research suggests that 80% of autistic individuals will experience a co-occurrence of anxiety and Dr Luke Beardon points out that this anxiety is constant in some autistic individuals. 

Consider this against the backdrop of employment data for neurodivergent individuals. Statistics indicate that neurodivergent individuals are less likely to be in full time employment than any other group. For autistic individuals of working age, only 3 in 10 are in employment and individuals with ADHD are 60% more likely to be fired from a job. The picture painted by the employment data for the neurodivergent community is bleak. Consequently, where neurodivergent individuals are successful in securing employment the pressure to make it a success can be overwhelming. Our onboarding needs to be considerate of this.

This pressure in the first days and weeks of a new job can heighten levels of anxiety that are already likely to run at a high level. One implication of heightened anxiety is that executive function is likely to be compromised. Executive function refers to the part of the brain that helps with things like planning, organising, and executing tasks. All skills which need to be optimised as we integrate within our new role processing a significant volume of new information and adapting to new routines and social conventions. Under pressure, this can create a situation where anxiety can spiral. 

Why Anxious Brains Don’t Learn

The pace of onboarding, how we structure and plan it, and the space we give neurodivergent talent to process and assimilate information can play a hugely significant part in helping to moderate anxiety. Anxious brains don’t take on board new information. Stress has an impact on cognitive function and the ability to take on board new information. As I’ve already quoted one Greek philosopher already in this blog, it is perhaps appropriate to close with a quote from another. Recognising that “all learning has an emotional basis” (Plato (427–347 bc.), and that many onboarding tasks involve learning, a perspective which considers the emotional state of incoming talent can add a valuable dimension to any review, evaluation and development work. A dimension which can make a significant difference not just for neurodivergent talent but all new starters.

To conclude, as we look to review and develop our onboarding practice to make it more neuro-inclusive, a good starting point might be to ask, along with those already posed in this blog, some of the following questions:

Onboarding Questions to Consider

  • What measures are in place to support colleagues should they become overwhelmed by the onboarding process?

  • To what extent can our onboarding process be personalised? (Are we person or process led?)

  • What do we do to prevent information overload?

  • Do we share an onboarding timetable with new employees soon enough after selection?

  • Do we use a variety of training methods to allow new talent to take on board new information?

  • What steps can new employees take to let us know if they are overwhelmed during onboarding?

  • What measures does our onboarding take to prevent sensory overwhelm?

  • How do we gather information from our existing neurodivergent talent to inform onboarding and what changes have we made as a result? 

Keep an eye out for the next blog in this series!

Lexxic provides a variety of tailored solutions to support your organisation in reaching its neurodiversity goals. Examples of our recruitment support includes services such as:

Additionally, we offer one-to-one support services, including screenings, workplace needs assessments, coaching, and skills-based training for neurodivergent individuals that can be of great benefit as they onboard into your organisation to give them the best start in their new role.

Ready to start your journey toward neuro-inclusive recruitment? Book a chat with one of our experts today to see how we can help you attract the best talent for your organisation.

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