Innovation through neurodiverse teams

Abstract

In the rapidly evolving current era, innovation is a crucial step organizations need to take to adapt to changes in the market environment and survive and remain competitive. To date, there has been much research conducted around how organizations can increase their innovation potential through various mechanism, while different aspects of team diversity have been studied as a catalyst for team innovation. This study builds upon previous research around diversity in team innovation, focusing on diversity in terms of neurology, aiming to find out the potential of neurodiverse teams for innovation. From the research conducted, it was concluded that neurodiverse teams have both unique strengths and challenges, and that there are ways to mitigate the challenges while upholding the strengths. The key results of the research are that neurodiverse teams’ strengths in innovation include increased team creativity through cognitive diversity, increased flow of ideas through persistence and resilience, flexibility, and openness to experience, mediated by team learn and inclusion. Meanwhile, the challenges for innovation through neurodiverse teams consist of communication, social distance, team learning and inclusion, and stigmatization. These challenges can be mitigated through tailored accommodations, adapted communication strategies, intrapreneurial teams, low organizational proximity, strength-based roles, and training.