YOU RARELY KNOW WHO IS NEURODI- VERGENT, AND YOU DON’ T NEED TO. WHAT BECOMES VISIBLE INSTEAD IS HOW DIFFERENTLY PEOPLE ENGAGE WITH THE WORK.
NEURODIVERSITY
BY PIER RAGONE
ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY ADOBE STOCK
THE NEURODIVERSITY DISCONNECT HOW TO RECONNECT WITH EXCELLENT NEURODIVERGENT AGENTS.
I
’ m starting from a few assumptions. That diversity and inclusion matter. That neurodiversity is real. And that listening is one of the most important skills a leader can develop.
If we agree on those foundations, then it’ s worth exploring what leaders can actually do to better support agents in a contact center.
Contact centers demand constant communication, emotional regulation, and the ability to make sense of other people’ s confusion in real time.
For neurodivergent individuals, that can be exhausting. But it can also be exactly where their strengths shine.
Whether a contact center becomes a place of burnout or belonging has less to do with the individual- like for a neurodivergent agent- and far more to do with how willing leaders are to truly understand how different minds work.
THE AGENT’ S JOB: AND NEURODIVERSITY
A contact center agent’ s job is, at its core, to make people feel heard and understood. All day long. Repeatedly. And often when those people are frustrated, anxious, confused, or already at the end of their patience.
YOU RARELY KNOW WHO IS NEURODI- VERGENT, AND YOU DON’ T NEED TO. WHAT BECOMES VISIBLE INSTEAD IS HOW DIFFERENTLY PEOPLE ENGAGE WITH THE WORK.
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