What are the Best Jobs for Autistic People?

By: Vanessa Blanchard

I’ve had a lot of jobs in the last 20 years.  Some were great, others awful, but all of them burned me out.  Figuring out why I couldn’t hold a job helped me learn I’m autistic.  The majority of autistic adults are un or underemployed, largely because the demands of traditional jobs erase autistic needs.  So, are there jobs for autistic people?

I think yes, but the key to stable employment for autistic adults is to let meeting their needs become part of the job.  We often thrive in environments without hierarchies that foster authenticity.

My worst jobs were ones where hierarchies mattered greatly.  I’m always thrust to the bottom of social structures like this.  That’s what being “othered” is about. These are the jobs where needing accommodations is both a betrayal and a sign that you’re a liar.  

The worst job I’ve ever had was in real estate.  I wanted to talk about houses all day. Instead, I had to mask constantly and chase people’s approval.  Office work requires constant interruptions and phones make me anxious. I quickly found myself being manipulated and bullied within the office.

There were parts of that job I loved very much, but I couldn’t make it 4 months before I was fired.  The disappointment and embarrassment nearly broke me. It took me months to recover and I had to pay for therapy out of pocket just to last as long as I did.

My best job was the opposite.  I designed crochet patterns and sold them on Etsy.  This job let me organize my day around my needs. I could stim freely.  There were tasks that were good for bad sensory days, hyperfocus, or no focus, far fewer social and sensory demands, and new projects meant novelty within a routine.  Breaks were allowed because stillness brings innovation and clarity, which is integral for an art business.

I kept that job for several years before I decided to move on.  During that time, my mental health improved immensely. Building an expression, stitch by stitch is a tangible transmutation.  Finishing a thing is my favorite way to gain confidence.

I firmly believe that there could be a diverse range of  jobs out there for autistic adults that won’t chew them up and spit them out.  It will require innovation and perhaps a union so that we’re protected from discrimination, but it’s 100% possible for many more of us to have the independence and sense of purpose that employment offers.

Silicon Valley Dreams Meet Reality: The (Supposedly) Perfect Job for an Aspie

When thinking about the best job for an autistic person, it’s usually the tech industry that comes to mind. The geeky and eccentric Silicon Valley programmer archetype maps well onto stereotypes about autistic people. We’re often portrayed in media as latent mathematicians or computer whisperers, but many of us aren’t particularly good at math nor moderate debates between calculators.

I worked in IT having thought it was the most fitting career for me. And, in many ways, the job was fitting. However, office politics exasperated me.

In 2017, I was finally hired for the sort job I’d always hoped for. I was contracted to do mid-level cybersecurity work at a Fortune 100 company, and, if I performed well, there was a good chance of a steady, full-time spot on the team. I was ecstatic.

Then, a couple of months into the job, I realized how awful corporate life is. The quarterly performance evaluations made me and coworkers anxious about job security, which made the office feel competitive rather than cooperative. And most of the managers were callous and cutthroat because they would face repercussions if their team’s performance slipped.

The stress of masking combined with the company’s cutthroat work culture grew to be too much for me, so I left what I thought was my ideal job.

After that experience in IT, I felt drained but inspired to explore my other talents. I started taking writing more seriously and also worked as a professional tutor. Betraying the autistic archetype, I enjoyed writing and tutoring significantly more than any job I’d had in the three years I was working in the tech field.

Tutoring was refreshing for an autistic extravert like me, and it pays well for a side gig. Now, I’m working at a startup company called Embrace ASD, a research-based autism blog, and tutoring on the side. I discovered my niche and finally found work I'm passionate about doing with people I enjoy.

Rather than a perfect job for autistic people, it’s more about finding a work environment and culture that dissuades strict social rules and hierarchies; frankly, I believe that these changes would make the workplace more enjoyable not just for autistics, but for everyone.

So keep searching for your niche because we ought to at least be entitled to enjoying the work we do.

Jobs for Aspergers? It’s more than just the job…

By: Jimi Wills

Since my relatively recent diagnosis of Aspergers, jobs have been on my mind.  Not just what might be the best jobs for Aspergers, but also thinking about the experiences I've had in the past.  Most of us have had bad times in employment, but even what most would consider great careers can be terrible jobs for autistic people.   

I've had the privilege of a university education, and with a lot of hard work I even got a PhD.  The constant geeking-out on one subject, and lone working - it was the path of least resistance.

But before university, I worked for two supermarkets/grocery stores: Kwiksave and Sainsbury’s.  In both jobs I was basically stacking shelves, which is a boring but in principle easy role. They were essentially the same job, but I reacted very differently to them.  In Kwiksave I felt great at the end of a day’s work, happy with myself and the world. At the end of a shift in Sainsbury’s I felt drained, confused and full of self-doubt.  I was clearly very switched on in one job, as I remember the names of all my coworkers, even 23 years on. In the other job, I was clearly struggling, as I don’t even recall my manager’s name.  

But why?

Looking back now, I realise that this was entirely down to management.  I remember Mr West, the Kwiksave Manager being supportive, understanding, fun!  He made sure I knew exactly what I needed to know, when I needed to know it, and that I had breaks when I needed them.  Bearing in mind that none of us knew I was autistic back then, this was pretty amazing. The truth is, he was like this with all the other staff too.  He was just a really great manager of people.

During my studies I worked part-time, including in a hotel and a store.

It was a trinket chain-store called The Natural World. It was dry, noisey, confusing and worst of all, company policy was at odds with law, meaning that we had a lot of dissatisfied customers.  The last straw was when I had to do my induction (I'd already worked 80% of the hours I would ever be offered!) and the contents of the induction pack were just wrong. It's a hard job for autistic people to gloss over the details of a topic and just go with the gist, and so when I had to answer questions about the products we sold, I did so with typical Aspie pedantry, figuratively ripping to shreds the inadequate training material.  I handed in my notice the next day, which is just as well because when she read what I'd written my manager blew a gasket and would have sacked me anyway.

In my experience, the suitability of jobs for Aspergers depends less on the job itself, and more on the environment and the care with which the individual is managed.  My hotel job was awful: dirty, smelly work with yet more dissatisfied customers, a high turnover of staff, and terrible wages. But management meticulously articulated their particular routines and the day had a reassuringly unbreakable schedule... breakfast, billing, cleaning, laundry, reception, ironing.  On paper, it's the worst job I've ever had and would be equally terrible for anybody, but in reality the best Aspergers job I ever had because of the explicit structures and routines!

Before getting what academics call a “proper job” (I think most of them don’t realise that this is supposed to be an ironic phrase) I worked every job from farming to data-entry.  But after my PhD I started in a laboratory role, and my only part-time work since then has been occasional free-lance consultancy. 

I started off as a post-doctoral research associate working on interpreting and mining data from mass-spectrometry in a biological context.  I collaborated with other scientists, which basically means we geeked-out together, and I spent a lot of time on my own developing algorithms and computer programs, processing workflows and automations to aid the lab in which I worked.  In collaboration with some real biologists, we published one of our approaches and its application in the top journal Cell. Up to this point, being a postdoc was great!

But this is when things started to go wrong for me. After our Cell paper, I was invited to write a review on machine learning, a core tool in our approach. I still didn’t know I was autistic, but I knew I wasn’t comfortable writing about things I felt I wasn’t expert in.  And no matter how much I read, I just didn’t feel I understood enough about the topic to present myself as an authority on the subject. I guess scientists not as far along the spectrum might just fake it until they make it. But for me, any job requiring blagging is not a job for autistic people.

So I transitioned to a support role, mass-spectrometry laboratory manager, in which there is less pressure on me personally to publish.  There’s a mix of technical and academic work but also customers and politics. 

I actually have no problems interacting with people, especially as many of them show signs of being on the spectrum.  Academia seems to attract neurodivergent people. But what I wasn’t ready for was the specific way things have changed in the place I work.  From changing management structure to laboratory renovations, it all uses up my spoons (you’ve heard of spoon theory right?) Because I’m providing a service to people, I cannot simply take the time I need to recover from these events, and the ever-changing environment and constant demand on my time has driven me to the point of mental ill health.

Since my diagnosis though, I have been able to ask for adjustments at work, the main one being allowed to wear headphones in the lab to listen to music (which is normally against H&S policy)  This helps me regulate my emotional state, but it’s not enough.  

In transitioning from postdoc to lab-manager, I thought I was moving into a better job (starting to suspect I might have it), but the environment has made it worse not better, and good management makes it barely tolerable.  Still, knowing what I now know, I would definitely consider the same role in a different environment.

You see, whether a job is good for autistic people seems to have less to do with the work itself and so much more to do with the environment and management.  Perhaps you hate your current job, but that same job might be a great job for aspergers in another context.

Asperger Life: The Highs and Lows of an Autistic Person in the Workplace

By: An Anonymous Aspie

I didn’t know I was autistic until seven years after I left the traditional working world – by that, I mean 9-5 office work, with the commute and the team building and the office politics and the competitiveness and the goal setting and the performance management. Ok, so writing that last sentence, as an Aspie (who is now more self-aware, and respectful of self) gave me a bit of an anxious-Aspie heart-squeeze. 

I was 35 when I was diagnosed with autism/Asperger’s Syndrome. I had suffered an episode of autistic burnout, which had led me to diagnosis. As a woman, this is rather common. Coming out of burnout, I had become basically non-functional, non-verbal, flat and my senses were out of whack. I thought (and it was said to me “If you were working, you would never have the advantage of sleeping all day to recover like this!”). Nice. 

As much as it hurt to hear that, and invalidated my experience and abilities, it got me thinking. It was true. The traditional workplace was laden with neurotypical expectations. It was designed for it. Think about it. 

• Open plan workspaces (to encourage collaboration. Cringe)

• Arbitrary performance goals, reviews and instituted competitiveness (meant to encourage competition and thus, performance. Sigh) 

• Team Building (packing bags to run for hills over here) 

• Office politics (and as an ND woman? Argh!)

• Office romance misunderstandings 

• The job itself. I was in IT, as a Business Analyst. My job definition was basically the “communication bridge between technical development and the end user”. I will leave you, dear Aspie, to your deductions. 

This was one of the most awesome companies to work for at the time, but I cringe to think how I would function happily there now, now that I had “gone full Aspie”. 

Fast forward to this year. I have the best office – my couch. I have the best coffee machine – my own. I have the best colleagues – my ESA cat. I have awesome lunch breaks – think Star Trek and hot dogs with spaghetti. I have the best physical environmental conditions – 16 degrees Celsius always, dim lighting, and the opportunity for a shameless power/depression nap. My dress code is lit! PJ’s! My boss does need to “meet” with me sometime and, it’s NOT a video call! Always a voice call and/or screen sharing! My performance management? I don’t have to compete with anyone! I just deliver. Heaven!  I am a part time freelance technical documenter and software tester. I run a small online vintage clothing store and I do volunteer work in the community almost every day. 

By my standards, this is the best. Even if it doesn’t conform to the neurotypical version of success.

The lean autism at work guide to hiring your first autistic employees (including a Trello board checklist).

Autism at work is a hiring program designed to include autistic people in the workplace (it’s much needed since there are almost no jobs for people with autism and Aspergers). Companies like SAP, Microsoft, E&Y and more already hire autistic adults and Aspergers. This complete guide shares their experiences, learnings, and insights from the programs they run for adults with autism.  But while we can see evidence from huge corporations who successfully launched this program, I believe there can be a leaner version of that program, that fits smaller companies, startups, and SMBs who want to hire neurodivergent employees. Actually, I think there is probably a better chance that involving neurodivergents in smaller companies is easier (although the lack of resources) since the company is more flexible and it’s easier to raise awareness for autism. I hope the following guide, which is based on the above complete guide (but not endorsed by) + other resources on the Spectroomz blog (like to autistic-friendly employer meter) will help you do that.

1. Sell (and be sold on) the idea of hiring autistic people to your team and decision-makers. Here’re the benefits of hiring autistic people (ROI):

   • Autistic and aspergers people possess many desired skills, but generally have excellent tech orientation, which makes them a great talent for tech companies. There is an increasingly huge need for such employees (see HBR). 

   • Highly retained employees (to SAP 1% increase in general employee retention worth US$ 50M/year).

   • Tens of thousands of $ worth of tax benefits.

   • It adds to the general diversity of the company, which according to scholars and researches contributes to the ability to meet customer needs, creativity, innovation, and the accessibility of products. 

   • It enhances the company’s brand as an inclusive employer, and therefore attracts top talents. Anyone wants to work in an inclusive workplace that is open to everyone.  

   • Managers of autistic people become better managers to their neurotypical employees as well. They are more inclusive, give better feedback and set clear expectations.  

   • Existing autistic employees (who kept it confidential so far) will be happier (as indicated by Microsoft). According to a survey by StackOverflow, 2.6% of the programmers indicated they are autistic.

   • Many scholars identify autistic people as trustworthy, innovative, attentive to details, analytical thinkers, productive, reliable and more. Many of them become masters of their trade and therefore are immune to boredom. Now, go and search for these keywords in your current job listings and see for yourself you are already looking for such candidates. 

   • With 500,000 teens entering adulthood in the upcoming 10 years (in the US), and with direct and indirect annual costs of US$ 236 Billion to the American taxpayer, hiring autistic people and providing them with the professional fulfillment is both socially and economically right. 

   • Being more diverse means getting more diverse customers = more income.

2. How do I even start:

   • You should start with a pilot, nothing more. That means 1-2 hires in one location to get things going and learn (like startups that need to get to the market as soon as possible in order to get real feedback). 

   • Find a self-starter who can orchestrate everything and cares about the cause + see the great potential. Among others they will need to: 

     • Together with HR, D&I and management decide what roles will you hire for. The goal is to hire the right full-time employee for a meaningful role. A major factor will be the right manager and the right team, which need to be supportive and inclusive as well as dedicate the extra time. 

     • Decide on which location (if the company has several) will they hire based on the right team, managers and the company’s need. 

     • Write the job description together with the hiring manager and HR.

     • Design a proper screening process of candidates with the hiring managers and HR (more on that below) based on the job qualifications. 

     • Make sure you are able to accommodate the needs of your autistic employees (e.g. providing noise cancelation earphones, enable modification of the light for your autistic employees if needed, find proper space, etc.). 

     • Prepare online or offline preparation/education for other employees regarding autism (1-2 hours which can be done by an outsource consultant).  

     • If needed, form relationships with potential partners who can help sourcing candidates, consulting you on a day-to-day as well as coach your neurodivergent employees. 

     • Coordinate with legal. 

     • Secure the budget.

3. Scope of employment:

   • Autistic people’s skills are diversified, and so do the roles they can do. These are the roles they were hired to in Microsoft, SAP and more: Software engineers, data scientists, service engineers, finance, marketing, HR, project management, analysts, cyber, robotics, bankers and more. 

   • In most places, autistic people worked full time. Part-time and internships were also available. You should also consider enabling remote a day or two.

4. Sourcing the talent:

   • This is a solution Spectroomz intends to launch soon. 

   • You can source via potential partners and NGOs. 

   • Social media.

   • Referral from your current employees.

   • PR - notify the local press on your pilot, this could drive lots of candidates. Here’s how to do your own PR.  

   • Universities and colleges: 

     • Career services.

     • Work readiness program.

     • Academic units.

     • Disability units.

5. Interview and selection process:

   • At Microsoft, some of the autistic candidates who got accepted in the autism-tailored process, were rejected previously in the traditional process, which doesn’t work for many autistic people. Generally, the ideal hiring process requires more resources (several days-weeks of doing actual work (paid) with the candidates + preparing them for the work environment). Below is an alternative, lean, process.

6. Initial screening:

   • Set a different email for autistic candidates’ CV submissions. Be less judgmental, and if you feel someone might be promising, make a quick call to uncover relevant experience which might have not been mentioned clearly enough in the resume. 

   • If the job requires technical skills, send candidates online tests that assess these skills. Be reasonable, this is a preliminary stage.

7. Interview and assessment process: 

   • Determine the skills needed for the role and design an activity to test each skill and the ability to learn it. 

   • Have the hiring managers conduct the interviews, and try to design the activity so it will be a mutual working session. Educate the managers about autism and increase their awareness before the working sessions. 

   • It’s best to simply have the candidates come over for 1-7 days of paid ‘working sessions’ in which you assess them (big corporations do that for several weeks). Interviews can cause stress, and have people arrive for a few days to experience what’s it’s like to work at your company is a good way to reduce that stress. This helps to assess soft skills as well. 

   • Set clear expectations about each working session and be specific, don’t be vague. Also, be clear about the time each working session should take. Make sure the candidates understand the instructions. 

   • Ask candidates for their environment preferences and try to accommodate (e.g., reduce lightning, quite rooms, noise cancelation headphones). If they want to work on their own laptop and not use a whiteboard, let them. 

   • Prior to the interview, send an itinerary of the assessment process with a clear structure (including who will be present). 

   • If you have autistic employees, try to have them involved in the process (and get their help designing it). 

   • Provide unstructured time during the working sessions for candidates to deal with cognitive overload. 

   • Conduct working sessions of 45 minutes, but be flexible if the candidate asks for more time. Have a debrief before and after each session.

   • Avoid surprising your candidates, but show them you are flexible to accommodate their needs.

8.        Your decision:

   • If you decided not to continue with a candidate, give them useful, actionable feedback on-site or on a video call (please please, treat people nicely). Tell them you are okay with having another person on the call (relative, job coach, etc.). Don’t just send your regular email. Candidates need to be able to benefit from the process.  

   • Ask for feedback about your process (send a survey as well as on-site).

9. Training autistic employees:  

   • Technical skills: Focus on the specific technical skills and tools needed for the job. This can be done as part of the assessment process, regular employee onboarding or dedicated training for autistic employees. 

   • Orientation to the organization and soft skills: Give an overview of the company’s values, mission, etc. Tell employees about the support and services intended to support them. This can all be done during the hiring process or as part of the regular onboarding process.

10. Training existing neurotypical employees: 

    • Create a welcoming and inclusive environment for autistic employees by raising awareness and educating current employees about autism. This training can be done in house or by external vendors. This should happen prior to the employee’s starting date. 

    • In-person training is better, but a leaner way would be online training. 

    • Privacy is super important. Share people’s needs, not identity. 

    • Keep an internal mailing list or a Slack channel about neurodiversity and update it with new materials.

11. Onboarding:

    • Set a date that works for the employee and the team to start. 

    • Talk about the dress code if necessary, as well as other rules. 

    • Explain who do they report to (preferably the person who does the onboarding will be the hiring manager who is the most significant player in creating an inclusive workplace). 

    • Consider having a welcome-mentor for the initial period (preferably someone from the team).  If there are other autistic employees, consider having them as mentors as well. 

    • There are federal-funded job coaching programs that you might want to involve in the onboarding process (for 90 days).

12. Retention:

    • Have the manager give the employee constant feedback (bi-weekly launch, in the beginning, could be a good format). 

    • Changes can cause stress. If the direct manager or team members are changing, communicate it clearly and don’t surprise the employee. Make the proper intro to the new manager and make sure they are well educated about autism. 

    • There are several online groups in which managers can ask feedback and advice from other autistic adults (check out for example in item # 5). In addition, there is this Facebook group.

Bonuses: 

1. Based on the above plan, I have created a free Trello board (a free task management tool) for you to use in your company, you can get it here.

2. We’re launching a job board for autistic people to meet autism-friendly employers, you can submit jobs using this link, and we’ll take care of great candidates. You can submit jobs even if you just intend starting a pilot as described above.