How to Build a Neuroinclusive Workplace: A Webinar with Dr. Molly Taylor

Too often, workplaces are designed for one way of thinking, leaving talent untapped and employees excluded. From day one at Cosmic Centaurs, we’ve believed that organizations thrive when every individual is able to create value and belong. As we deepen our Capability Development practice, we continue to ask how to design inclusive learning experiences and, by extension, inclusive organizations,  where different ways of thinking are recognized as a source of strength.

Neurodiversity refers to the natural variation in how people think, process information, and experience the world. It includes autism, ADHD, dyslexia, Tourette’s, among other diagnoses. Research shows that teams with neurodivergent professionals can be up to 30% more productive (Deloitte) and 90% more likely to retain talent. When workplaces are intentionally designed for neuroinclusion, they become stronger, more adaptive systems for everyone, not just a few.

In a recent webinar, Cosmic Centaurs hosted Dr. Molly Taylor, Lecturer in Supportive Education and Neurodiversity Specialist at City of Glasgow College. Together, we explored what neurodivergence really means, the strengths it brings to the workplace, the misconceptions that persist, and the practical steps leaders in the GCC and beyond can take to create inclusive systems and cultures.

The Gifts of Neurodiversity

Most organizations still approach neurodivergence through a deficit lens. Yet neurodivergent colleagues bring powerful strengths, or, as Dr. Molly put it, “gifts.” They excel at pattern recognition, lateral thinking, sustained focus, and rapid error detection: precisely the skills complex work requires.

“The biggest misconception is that neurodivergence is a deficit or a problem to be fixed. When we move past that, we see strengths, talents, and the role of the environment in allowing them to shine.” — Dr. Molly Taylor

These capabilities are valuable in both high-stakes and creative roles. For example, neurodivergent individuals often thrive as “fire-fighters” in moments of crisis, bringing hyperfocus, persistence, and resilience. JPMorgan Chase’s early “Autism at Work” cohort was 48% faster at certain tasks within six months of hire, showing how the right fit and support unlock measurable business impact.

The Barriers Neurodivergent Individuals Face

Despite these strengths, neurodivergent employees encounter significant barriers:

• Learning challenges: rigid processes and one-size-fits-all training formats.

• Sensory issues: light, sound, interruptions, and crowded spaces can create constant stress.

• Ambiguity: unclear expectations or last-minute changes amplify anxiety.

• Masking: the emotional labor of “fitting in” drains energy and increases risk of burnout.

• Meltdown or shutdown responses: when overwhelmed, individuals may withdraw or become non-communicative, needing time and space to recover.

These challenges often stem not from people’s abilities, but from environments that assume everyone works the same way.

These challenges often stem not from people’s abilities, but from environments that assume everyone works the same way. Supporting neurodivergent individuals starts with redesigning environments so that difference isn’t a challenge to manage, but a source of collective strength.  Research shows teams designed for cognitive diversity, tapping into the full potential of the 1 in 5 employees who may be neurodivergent, can be 30% more productive, and 90% more likely to retain talent.

Building a Neuroinclusive Workplace

Dr. Molly emphasized that neuroinclusion cannot be an afterthought. It must be considered at every stage of the employee experience, starting with leadership commitment and extending into recruitment, onboarding, and daily management systems. Policies, processes, and everyday practices should be designed to accommodate different ways of thinking, rather than retrofitted later.

• Recruitment & onboarding: Clear, jargon-free job descriptions, standardized interview questions, and multiple ways for candidates to demonstrate skills.

• Workplace design: Flexible participation channels (in-person, online, asynchronous), predictable meeting structures, and quiet zones.

• Leadership practices: Regular informal check-ins, explicit feedback, and separating performance from behavior (e.g., tone or body language).Options, not one-size-fits-all: Whether in technology tools or communication styles, offering choices allows individuals to engage in ways that work for them.

“Neuroinclusion is not about adding something extra. It is about removing the invisible barriers that stop people from showing up as their best selves.”

Neuroinclusive workplaces embed practices that will accommodate different needs across the whole employee journey in an organization.

When organizations embed inclusion principles into how they build capabilities, learning becomes more engaging, accessible, and lasting. Research shows that neurodivergent professionals often bring exceptional focus, creativity, and problem-solving abilities, qualities that enrich how teams learn and perform together.

Inclusive workplaces rethink how skills are developed. Universal Design for Learning, a framework from education, applies directly to leadership and capability development. It encourages facilitators and program designers to create experiences that meet people where they are not where we assume they should be.

Some practical ways to bring this to life include:

• Using clear, concise communication: short questions, slower pace, and repetition of key points.Allowing longer processing time and following up in writing.

• Sharing agendas and materials in advance to reduce uncertainty.

• Breaking tasks into manageable steps and supporting with visuals.

• Offering multiple feedback formats, verbal, written, or visual.

These practices do more than support neurodivergent individuals. They strengthen learning for everyone, making capability development more effective, inclusive, and human.

From Awareness to Action

Around the world, neuroinclusion is moving from conversation to concrete change. Companies like EY, through their Neurodiverse Centers of Excellence, have redesigned hiring and onboarding to harness cognitive diversity, yielding measurable gains in innovation and efficiency (World Economic Forum). Similarly, JPMorgan Chase has shown how aligning roles with neurodivergent strengths translates into both productivity and employee engagement.

In the GCC, this shift is beginning to take shape. Organizations such as Ynmo and Tifli are strengthening early detection and support systems, while Sa3ee’s recent MoU with City of Glasgow College, in which Dr. Molly is involved, marks an important step toward embedding neuroinclusion in workplace design.

These efforts reflect a growing global and regional recognition: inclusion is not a “nice to have,” but a foundation for performance, innovation, and wellbeing.

Everyday Rituals Build Belonging

While policies are the first step to implement inclusion, belonging is actually built through small, repeated actions that give structure and meaning to daily work. At Cosmic Centaurs, our research on team rituals, published in the Harvard Business Review,  showed that rituals strengthen team alignment and higher levels of commitment. 

In neuroinclusive workplaces, rituals take on even greater importance. They create predictability and reduce cognitive load for everyone. You can implement stability by sharing agendas in advance, circulating written summaries, inviting asynchronous contributions, or rotating meeting facilitation. These small practices make workplaces predictable, transparent, and psychologically safe. 

Our Rituals Bank showcases examples of simple, powerful rituals that help build predictability and increase belonging. What makes them effective isn’t their format but their consistency. They turn values like inclusion and psychological safety into lived experiences.

When leaders design and uphold such rituals, they set the rhythm for inclusive systems to thrive, transforming inclusion from a one-time initiative into an everyday reality.

The Role of Leaders in neuroinclusivity

Neuroinclusion begins with humility. The most effective leaders know they don’t have all the answers: they listen, stay curious, and create space for others to express what they need to do their best work. Humility turns inclusion from a policy into a daily practice of awareness and adjustment.

Managing neurodivergent team members calls for clarity and empathy. Clear goals, explicit feedback, and predictable routines reduce anxiety and build trust. Small gestures, such as sharing written summaries, checking in regularly, or agreeing on preferred communication channels, signal genuine respect for different ways of thinking and working.

The same principle applies to neurodivergent leaders. Many bring remarkable focus, creativity, and pattern recognition, and humility helps them communicate their own needs openly while empowering others to do the same. Teams thrive when everyone can both express difference and accommodate it.

History offers powerful examples. Ingvar Kamprad (IKEA) spoke of how dyslexia shaped his blueprint-first approach to design. Richard Branson credits dyslexia with helping him simplify complexity and tell stories that inspire. Elon Musk has described being on the autism spectrum as integral to how he thinks and builds. Their impact was amplified by systems that fostered clarity, rhythm, and room for difference to shine.

When leaders commit to building inclusive workplaces, they not only unlock the potential of neurodivergent talent but also create organizations that are more resilient, creative, and ready for the future.

Key Takeaways

A neuroinclusive workplace is one where environments are redesigned, so that diverse ways of thinking translate into creativity, resilience, and measurable performance gains.

Create Accessible Environments

• Remove environmental obstacles that might hinder performance: noise, lighting, or ambiguous communication often cause stress and even anxiety.

• Design learning and development with inclusivity in mind: take into account different processing times,  provide visual aids, and break tasks down into manageable steps.

  
  

Design for Clarity and Flexibility

• Focus on predictability:  share agendas in advance, document decisions, and stick to routine to reduce ambiguity and provide clear frameworks.

• Offer flexible options for feedback, communication, and participation: avoid one-size-fits-all approaches: choice allows individuals to engage on their own terms.

  
  

Bring inclusivity into your leadership

• Embed inclusion at every level: review recruitment, onboarding, and performance systems to ensure they accommodate different ways of thinking, not just one standard profile.

• Practice humility: Inclusion starts with leaders who listen, acknowledge what they don’t know, and invite their teams to shape inclusion practices collaboratively.