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Bodo Mann, CEO and managing director of auticon Australia and New Zealand joined HR Leader’s roundtable on 6 October. He discussed all things diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and how auticon is creating opportunities for neurodiverse people.
Shandel McAuliffe, editor at HR Leader: “What is auticon’s mission?”
Mr Mann: “We were founded 11 years ago by a German entrepreneur whose son was on the spectrum, and so he was disenchanted with a career of low job prospects for autistic talent. Since then, we stayed true to that mission. So, we hire a whole range of autistic individuals. Following a probation period of six months, we do require a formal diagnosis.”
He continued: “auticon is not a charity, it's not a recruitment company, we are a social enterprise. We are now in nine countries around the world. We have a group of shareholders such as Sir Richard Branson, as well as the Porsche Family Trust and a few venture capital funds.”
“Our entire mission is providing meaningful employment for people on the spectrum, particularly in the IT space. So, software engineering, data analytics, quality assurance, and testing. We started in Australia about three and a half years ago, and are right now in the process of expanding into New Zealand,” said Mr Mann.
Editor: “How does Australia compare with other countries in DEI?”
Mr Mann: “Australia [has come] a long way if you look at gender or LGBTIQ, but it feels like neurodiversity is the next frontier and the time is right.”
“[Australia is] probably about three years behind Europe when it comes to embracing disability in general, [particularly] neurodiversity. If you look at countries like Germany, France, the UK, they're much more progressive when it comes to policies and general acceptance in society in terms of working with disability,” Mr Mann explained.
“In Australia, a lot of the conversations I'm having are very much around: this is a charity topic or this is a NDIS topic. Whereas we come from the exact opposite side. So, this is an innovation topic, a productivity topic, and if you look at the holy grail of corporate success, it's really around innovation and by definition you need to think differently.”
Editor: “How can recruitment be more accommodating to neurodiverse people?”
Mr Mann: “The vast majority of our recruitment process in Australia [is] obviously geared for neurotypical individuals: the competency-based interview process, you have a job description, you're trying to get a fit, et cetera.”
He continued: “That doesn't lend itself at all to a neurodiverse candidate. So, I think companies need to understand that there's a different approach altogether, on the recruitment side and then later on as well, maintaining successful relationships around particular support structures, making sure they're in place.”
The transcript of this roundtable episode, when quoted above, was slightly edited for publishing purposes. The full conversation from the event is below.
Jack Campbell
Jack is the editor at HR Leader.
