Neurodiversity in the workplace: House of Communication Vienna launches information workshop

According to the latest studies, 15 to 20% of all people are considered neurodivergent: their brains work differently than those of neurotypical people. Neurodiversity includes autism, ADHD, and hypersensitivity, among other conditions. How this affects the workplace and how good cooperation can work in this regard was explored in a workshop at the House of Communication in Vienna in October 2025.

Workshop leader Beccs Riley (n.e. Verein “Minzgespinst”) is autistic themselves and describes neurodiversity as “us all running on different operating systems.” Examples include

- different ways of processing stimuli

- what routines are needed, and

- the precision required in communication to achieve good work results efficiently.

The workshop primarily provided basic information and raised awareness among management, executives, and colleagues. It was also intended to break down taboos surrounding the topic and, through an interactive approach, take a first step toward demystifying its complexity. The goal was to create awareness of the different ways of working, forms of interaction, and sensitivities that occur within the neurodivergent spectrum.

“At House of Communication Vienna, we see workshops like this as an opportunity to develop greater acceptance for different personal ways of working, which can become strengths in the right setting. Always working according to a set formula and using the same template for everyone in the company does not necessarily lead to the best output,” says Andrea Kahr, Director of HR at House of Communication Vienna.

The next step is to develop measures that can be implemented in everyday work to better understand the “operating system” of colleagues – even without diagnoses – because if this succeeds, inclusion can truly be put into practice.

Websites:

https://minzgespinst.net/

https://www.beccsriley.de/

Photo credits:

House of Communication Vienna