How to Ensure Reasonable Adjustments Are Tailored to Your Business

It used to be the case that businesses needed only to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ for the occasional individual. Today, when it comes to making reasonable adjustments in the workplace (for those who say they’re struggling due to autism and/or cognitive differences), this approach simply isn’t working. There are now just too many people claiming ‘reasonable adjustments’.

Unfortunately, the rhetoric behind ‘neurodivergence’ and accommodation in the workplace is unbalanced. Everything is focused on the employee and the constraints that a business is working within are completely ignored. This is causing businesses to adopt an approach of mitigation, rather than investigating whether making a set of reasonable adjustments available at team level makes business sense.

However, to create positive change that works for both the business and the employees, both sides must be heard.

Time, cash flow, and the needs of other team members are key constraints that businesses experience when making reasonable adjustments. These key factors are the main disruptors to an idealistic view of what an employer should be expected to do in supporting staff, and why the word ‘reasonable’ exists in the term reasonable adjustments.

Friction is created between managers and business owners, when it comes to finding the balance between doing what is right for individual employees and what is right for the business. Often, managers will appear to show bias towards the needs of the business, but without the business there are no employees.

A counter argument to this is that when employees are well supported, they perform better. This, of course, is beneficial to businesses, but time and resources are needed.

Ultimately though, businesses want happy, competent and effectively performing teams as this is what makes businesses thrive. But how do they find the balance that benefits both the individual employee and the business?

When businesses are faced with a reasonable adjustment request, it will almost certainly be a reactive action, often stemming from a problem (and more often will appear as extra work). In a short time, the employer will need to figure out what reasonable adjustments are required and how to implement them. Therefore, the initial reaction is often to resist, as managers are generally very busy.

However, we can confidently say that requests for reasonable adjustments will increase as more people are identifying themselves as autistic, having ADHD or struggling with mental health challenges.

Therefore, businesses now need to start being prepared. So, how do they do that?

Audit Your Company’s Capabilities

Take the time to audit your company’s capabilities regarding reasonable adjustments. This means that when you get a request for a reasonable adjustment, you should already know what to implement, how to implement it, what the investment in doing so is, and why/if it will work.

You’ll also identify things which are easily implemented, not costly and can be made available to employees to help them perform, because an adjustable workplace does not only benefit those with disabilities.

Define What is Reasonable

Establish what’s ‘reasonable’ and ‘unreasonable’. In doing so – and by proactively seeking legal confirmation – you can immediately provide managers with confidence in these conversations. It is also a good exercise to review your own business and the environment you provide your employees - in collaboration with staff.

An example of an unreasonable adjustment would be someone requesting that all staff be banned from social chit chat because they feel excluded because their autism means that social chitchat is completely pointless and boring. This is unreasonable because social chitchat is vitally important for other members of staff, for maintaining social connection with each other. Instead, explain the function of social chitchat and help the staff member identify alternative ways of building connection with team members.

An example of a reasonable adjustment in most circumstances would be for a manager to adjust feedback so that details lead towards general principles, instead of using the details to illustrate the general principles (or vice versa). This reasonable adjustment could help other members of staff too.

An example of a potential reasonable adjustment would be to provide someone who thinks more visually, with inexpensive diagramming software to help them map out and put their thoughts in order before writing a report. This could be especially helpful for complex reports.

An example of a potentially unreasonable adjustment would be someone requesting the Adobe Suite because it is the ‘best’ and because that is what they learnt to use at university. The expense of this software means that there has to be a clear business case for its use. A case that is difficult to make when much cheaper (or even free) software is adequate for current business needs.

Show Understanding

The very fact that different people are suited to different job roles is an indication of cognitive diversity within a team or wider workplace. If a manager is not aware of the different ways in which people think, then it is natural to run the team according to how the manager thinks. This often means that some people feel that their contribution is not valued, because they don’t know how to make the manager understand their point of view. It can also lead to avoidable mistakes, when someone sees a problem, but isn’t listened to.

An understanding of cognitive diversity is not just useful for reasonable adjustments, it can improve communication and performance within a team.

Seek Expert Help

To be able to proactively provide a more adjustable work environment, seek expert help. Then, when you receive a request for reasonable adjustments, the task of determining and implementing them will be much less daunting.

There is another benefit to this; when an employee requests an adjustment you cannot provide, you will also be able to:

• Explain why the adjustment is not possible

• Demonstrate that significant thought has already been put into this decision

• Provide alternative provisions that are available that will help.

Need some expert support? Contact the team here at Aspiedent.