The Neuroinclusion Imperative

Unlocking Untapped Potential

Nearly one in five people, and almost 30% of those under 30, identify as neurodivergent. Yet many workplaces still run on norms that misread, constrain, or overlook their strengths. This report shows what organizations gain when they redesign work to make room for more ways of thinking, communicating, and contributing.

89%

say they possess unique strengths or abilities they rarely see displayed by others

83%

say aspects of their work style are repeatedly misperceived or misunderstood

82%

say workplace culture or unspoken expectations often make no sense to them

RESEARCH REPORT

2025

WHAT WE FOUND

01

The problem is often the system, not the talent

Neurodivergent professionals are frequently judged against narrow expectations about communication, engagement, pacing, collaboration, and professionalism.

Those expectations can hide strengths that are already present, from systems thinking and pattern recognition to creativity, independence, speed, memory, and information synthesis.

02

Misperception is expensive

Neurodivergent employees described being labeled difficult, disengaged, inflexible, rude, slow, or untrustworthy when their behavior often reflected strengths or different ways of processing information.

When organizations misread those differences, they can lose high performers, suppress useful dissent, create unnecessary friction, and leave valuable capability untapped.

03

Flexibility can reveal performance that rigid systems miss

The report argues for measuring contribution more directly and giving employees more flexibility in how work gets done — focus time, camera-optional meetings, different communication styles, varied schedules, asynchronous participation, and clearer expectations around outcomes.

Flexibility should be part of the system, not an exception employees must repeatedly request.

04

Neuroinclusion can be a business advantage

Six strategic advantages organizations can unlock when neurodivergent strengths are properly enabled:

  • Neutralized risks and inefficiencies

  • Undiscovered synergies

  • Output beyond expectation

  • Seamless project execution

  • Kindness that outperforms niceness

  • Next-level processing power

FROM THE INTERVIEWS

“If there were more space for different ways of thinking and showing up, less emphasis on appearances, more curiosity and flexibility, I think I'd be able to deliver even more impact without burning myself out.”

NEURODIVERGENT PROFESSIONAL

“When my hyperfocus is applied in the right direction, I can do the work of two to three people.”

NEURODIVERGENT PROFESSIONAL

“When I first interacted with a large language model, I had the feeling of intuitively understanding how it works, because it works the way my mind does.”

NEURODIVERGENT PROFESSIONAL

THE FRAMEWORK

The Neuroinclusion Operating System

The report moves from diagnosis to practice with a set of playbooks for HR, leaders, and peers. The core idea is simple: expand ways of working so more kinds of talent can thrive.

For HR

Build flexibility into systems, equip teams with practical tools and coaching, and measure performance in ways that recognize different forms of contribution.

The operating system is designed to make neuroinclusion part of everyday work rather than a series of one-off accommodations.

For leaders

Create optionality in how work gets done, take a strengths-based approach to talent, and make expectations and purpose clear.

For peers

Signal communication preferences, reduce misinterpretation, and build trust across different working styles.

WHAT ORGANIZATIONS CAN DO NOW

Five changes to the system

The full report carries the Neuroinclusion Operating System, the employee stories behind it, and the six strategic advantages in detail.

  • Create clear parameters for schedules, focus time, meeting norms, camera use, response expectations, and asynchronous participation.

  • Assess people based on output, contribution, impact, and capability rather than superficial signals of engagement.

  • Identify what people do unusually well and shape work so those strengths can be used more often.

  • Use tools like Personal User Manuals and communication signals to reduce crossed wires and avoid reading intent into style.

  • Give managers better tools for feedback, create multiple pathways to demonstrate readiness, and make sure high contribution is not overlooked because it comes in an unfamiliar form.

What potential is already inside your organization that your current ways of working are failing to see?

METHOD

Virtual focus groups and one-on-one interviews with 60 neurodivergent professionals, supported by a brief participant survey, subject-matter expert interviews, a literature review, and ongoing desk research.

Participants included professionals with ADHD, autism, dyslexia, OCD, anxiety, CPTSD, and other forms of neurodivergence. A formal diagnosis was not required to participate.

HOW TO CITE

Center for Talent Innovation. The Neuroinclusion Imperative: Unlocking Untapped Potential. Coqual Global Lab, 2025.

PRESS & MEDIA

For journalists, editors and event producers

The Neuroinclusion Imperative examines how traditional workplace norms can hide valuable capability and what organizations can do to create more adaptive, higher-performing systems.

press@talentinnovation.org