Which directions to take people with ASD
In people with autism spectrum disorders, with whom we
According to Temple Grandin, Associate Professor at the UniversityFort Collins State of Colorado, many people with ASD are suitable for jobs that involve visual thinking and long-term memory. These areas include programming, design, web design, engineering with a focus on drawings. Also, with ASD, you can be a system administrator, a video game designer, a computer animation creator.
As part of the inclusion experiment, we recruitedemployees into data markup - photos and videos: this is monotonous manual labor, where you need to constantly maintain a high level of concentration. Markers also have a fairly low threshold for entering the profession, they do not need to study for a long time in order to perform basic functions. The main thing is to own a computer and be able to use office applications. The task of the markup is simple - to view the data from which artificial intelligence will learn, and in various ways to mark fragments or events of interest in them. Work can be both with something familiar: photos, videos, texts, audio recordings, as well as with complex data, for example, MRI images.
People with ASD are excellent at marking tasks,while many employees without such a diagnosis quickly began to get bored, their attentiveness gradually fell, they could make mistakes in marking by the end of the day. With autism, the focus lasts much longer, and the monotony of work is more of a plus than a minus - everything is simple and clear, there is no variability of actions, uncertainty inherent in various creative directions.
In our opinion, highly functional andMotivated specialists with ASD can also master other areas in IT: for example, the profession of a tester - this also has a relatively low entry threshold.
In general, specialists with ASD do an excellent job ofthose areas where a high focus on trifles is needed, perseverance, painstakingness, where tasks of the same type are assumed. If the job requires constant switching from one to another, it will be very difficult for autistic people in it.
How and where to look for employees with an autism spectrum disorder
In Russia, MVS Group became one of the pioneers in hiring employees with ASD in IT. Since 2020, it has hired more than 20 such employees and released an inclusive hiring guide.
A very big problem for both employers andprofessionals with ASD is that few people help such people to look for work. We were lucky to find the Rabota-i social center in St. Petersburg, from where companies can attract specialists for project tasks. The staff of the center picked up two people for us for a trial period. In Moscow, you can look for specialists with ASD through the Naked Heart Foundation.
We have prepared a job description, describing whatskills needed, what tasks to perform and so on, and sent to employees "Job-i". They looked it over and asked for a more detailed description - this is one of the key conditions for hiring. At first it seemed, where is it more detailed? And then colleagues from MVS Group helped us with materials for preparing such descriptions.
It turned out that it is really possible to write much more:tell in detail about the specialty (markup), show examples of tasks, range of tasks. The requirements for the applicant should be described in detail - not just “computer skills”, but what is meant by this: what programs, what actions.
Thanks to feedback from colleagues, wethe parties looked at their work and were able to better understand our work processes. And literally a week later we received resumes of candidates for the position of a marker.
How to conduct an interview
ASD is not a severe diagnosis that is globallychanges communication with a person. Therefore, there is no need to make any major changes to the interview or test item. We selected candidates and decided on their admission to the team based on the same criteria that we impose on people with developmental disabilities. It is important not to make any concessions so as not to deceive the guys, because they are very sensitive to the fact that they are sorry. As experience has shown, it is psychologically easier for them themselves when they go through the same stages of selection as candidates without ASD.
At the interview after meeting the candidatesfirst there is a short conversation, then test tasks - they are the same as for applicants without ASD. But during the interview it is very important to build all the questions in such a way that they do not hide any subtext, the second bottom. Many people with ASD take everything literally, so look for simple structures and words. And be sure to stock up on calmness and patience: such applicants can answer questions a little longer, this is normal.
Write the test task as much as possiblein detail, so that there are no options for subjective interpretation in any paragraph. There is an opportunity - add screenshots, graphics, so that everything is clear and understandable even to a schoolchild. It's also a good idea to have an online meeting showing the markup for this tutorial, give the opportunity to ask any questions, and then send the candidate a video of the meeting so they can go back to the video tutorial. Any methods are good here: the main thing is accessibility and understandability.
How to educate people with ASD
People with ASD can learn - many of them do notnot only finish school, but also receive higher education. And at work, educational programs may well take place. But since it is a little more difficult for them, the process is delayed. And for business, long training is not always economically feasible. Therefore, even when we were just thinking about giving a place in the staff to specialists with ASD, we immediately realized that with such health characteristics, it is better to introduce them first into areas that do not require special education and knowledge.
However, we have an introductory period where newcomerstry their hand, improve their skills and gradually immerse themselves in their tasks. We accept all employees, not only those with ASD, for a trial period of two months, and only then decide whether to join the team or not.
At the beginning of the probationary period, the guys performtest. It is similar to what you have to do in the first months of work. On a call, we give a task, show instructions on how to do everything step by step, the guys ask questions. This call is recorded, the video is sent to the general working chat. A week is given for the test task, and you can ask questions along the way. After a week, we look at the result, and if everything is fine, we give the main pool of work.
In our experiment, training forbeginners with ASD were conducted by invited specialists who work with people with different developmental characteristics, including those on the autism spectrum. It took a little more time for such employees than if we hired a person without autism for the same position, but this training has a positive effect on the quality of work. Therefore, in the end, the costs of resources pay off.
How to adapt new employees to work
At first, specialists with ASD need a curator,which will help to adapt to the place, to the tasks, to answer all questions. Whom to put in this role - an internal or external person - each company decides individually. But it can be difficult for an unprepared employer to cope with such a load, some moments in communication with such employees may be incomprehensible. And there are not always resources to single out a person only for the role of a curator. Combining the two roles is difficult - the curator is constantly in touch, involved in the work of the wards.
We had a curator from the center "Work-i",Anastasia, who went through the entire work process with new employees. For example, when the children received a test task, the curator delved into it together with them in order to suggest how and what to do at the first stages. She answered most of the questions, and only if she could not cope, the guys turned to us. At the first stages, the curator was present at some calls of the team in a working chat, together with the newcomers, she did their work to see if they understood everything correctly.
Also, in the adaptation of employees to work, mypersonal experience of interacting with children with ASD. And the methodological materials from the center and colleagues from other companies were useful: we studied them in order to be ready to interact with newcomers.
What difficulties may arise
People with ASD have problems with social andemotional intelligence. For example, when we discussed current tasks on phone calls, a new employee with ASD could ask a salary question. For him, this is a work question, nothing like that. Such moments happened periodically, sometimes I could not hide my surprise. But over time, the employee began to separate personal and work, to understand that personal can be written to me separately in Telegram, for example, and not asked in the general chat.
The guys from the marking team were at firstit is unusual to hear slower speech, unusual speech constructions. But now everyone has got used to the calls, they calmly communicate, they exchange jokes. That is, employees with ASD normally adapt to society. The main thing is to be patient and sometimes gently smooth out some points, explain. Over time, communication becomes easier.
If you arrange an employee with ASD in the office, heyou need to create special conditions. Often such people perceive much that is imperceptible to others as strong irritants. For example, the flickering of lamps or the squeak of computers. We audited the office at the beginning of the experiment, and the autistic person noticed a lot of annoying details that added to the background noise. This is how the light falls, and what sounds are made where. Our ASD newcomers work remotely, so we didn't have to change anything. But in general, this is an important issue in employment. As it turned out later, other employees also paid attention to these irritants, but simply did not say what was bothering them.
Tips for an employer who decides to employ employees with ASD
Tip #1: Don't jump to conclusions.For a trial period, we took two specialists. The first showed responsibility, diligence, but we spent more time on him, explained more to him, constantly answered questions. Nevertheless, for two months this specialist showed himself very well. And we spent less time and energy on the other candidate - he did not need to explain much, he asked fewer questions and seemed to cope with everything easier. However, he did a smaller amount of work - and sometimes he was lounging or doing some non-work activities.
At the end of the probationary period, the first specialistdid three times more work than the second. And although we could take both of them, as a result, we arranged only the first one, because only he was seen as the real motivation and readiness for work. With the second agreed on project employment.
Tip #2: Be as detailed as possibleinstructions for such employees. This applies to both the main tasks and the test ones at the interview. People with ASD need a step-by-step plan of action that does not involve many variations of one step or another. Each task should have a clearly defined goal or end point. Then the employee will perform the work efficiently, on time and without stress.
In general, specialists with ASD are integrated into the teamjust like the others. They have a longer adaptation, they need to find the right format of communication with them, they should describe tasks in more detail. However, with a competent approach, they are able to integrate into a team and are not inferior to people without this diagnosis in terms of efficiency, and in some moments even surpass them. Therefore, businesses should not be afraid to employ such specialists: both on staff and for project work.
Read more:
First-of-its-kind material withstands 'projectiles' that travel at the speed of sound
A shock wave from the Sun has opened a crack in the Earth's magnetic field
17-year-old engineer came up with a magnetless motor: it can be used in electric vehicles