communicating as a manager
Work life can be lonely as a personnel manager when you spend most of your time with staff that reports to you. there is a tendency to provide more info or tailored guidance to like-minded reports at the expense of those who may revolutionize than those who request more information you think is irrelevant.
The reality is that one person with neurodivergent conditions need a completely different set of ingredients than another to make sense o fully u or the same information just in a different form (text-based instructions instead of verbal, etc.)
Conformity and opacity can feign team cohesion.
Just as a lack of disagreement does not prove consensus, your staff respects all team members or even collaborate effectively. Inclusive communications liberally dispenses trust and respect, and prioritizes access to resources (and information) so that staff can make the best decisions possible. They serve as an extension of you so give them all that they need without your paraphrase, curation/edits or tests to prove their value.
share executive reasoning or critique verbatim (no paraphrase)
establish location/use/access/author expectations for standard documentation (See Waldo matrix)
refer to central templates, exemplars and current project plans in a shared, location outside of email
insist manager treatment/considerations same as staff re: locating materials or status updates, responding to surveys—use the structure your reports have installed
Traditional promo criteria may ignore/penalize neurodivergent talent
*A quick look at the demographics of secondary leadership turnover (i.e.,comparing non-White, non-male, non-hetero reports of Directors to racial, gender, cultural majority at this level) will provide an to compare across departments in your effort to detangle social dexterity from actual job performance.
for hr managers
Not all high achievers have a natural team orientation or ability to mentor. Unfortunately, BigTech and Fortune 500s often regard personnel management as a promotion track instead of the distinct competency it is.
As you consider potential placements for existing talent, or new hires in personnel management roles, we recommend additional weight given wherever candidates
acknowledge all lower level staff responsible for wins, taking sole responsibility of shortfalls
share learnings with unfamiliar team member, develop prevention tools/strategies for other departments
let reports make some strategy decisions —order of projects, charter elements, 180 feedback, etc.
do not seek or claim to “understand” the experiences of marginalized community members
Offer support and boundaries without limiting the flow of information.
Provide context for individual projects, clear & measurable objectives
Cultivate cross-cultural mentorships, and seek managerial feedback from admins, facilities, etc.