Neurodiversity program develops unique skills and talents for National Australia Bank

Committed to continue building a workplace that’s as diverse as it’s dynamic, in April 2019, National Australia Bank (NAB) partnered with DXC Technology to establish the Neurodiversity at NAB program. Based on the DXC Dandelion Program, the intent of the program was to embed diversity and inclusion into the culture and fabric of the bank through the employment of people on the autism spectrum.

The DXC Dandelion Program, a holistic employment experience offering benefits to both the participating individuals and private sector organisations, provides an opportunity for businesses to address IT talent shortages by harnessing the unique skill sets that often come with autism, such as the extraordinary capacity for visual thinking, the comfort of routine and systematically-oriented activities, as well as accuracy, honesty, close attention to detail and the ability to identify errors. For individuals on the autism spectrum, the program provides an opportunity to develop technical and social skills to obtain long-term, meaningful employment in the technology field.

Business challenges

The constant demand for new talent and the competition for resources in the IT industry is intense. The security arena in particular offers only a small pool of talented resources in high demand by many organisations. NAB believes that to achieve true competitive advantage in the technical world, it is essential to have a diversity of thinking and culture within its teams.

The characteristics of many people on the autism spectrum make them well suited to the IT realm. In particular, individuals working in the cyber security area need to look at things differently, so creativity of thought is important. Recognising patterns, solving difficult problems, and enjoying and thriving in routine-based environments is also important. In addition, some of the work can be quite repetitive so attention to detail and an ability to sustain superior focus for long periods without getting bored is also crucial.

NAB recognised the opportunity to integrate individuals with autism into the workforce and the advantages a neurodiverse workforce could bring.

Implementation process and operational phase

The DXC Dandelion Program, which is part of DXC Technology’s Social Impact Practice, helps organisations access the wealth of talent in the neurodiverse space not currently being utilised. It helps address significant skills shortages in certain areas, while providing an opportunity for people on the autism spectrum to gain long term viable employment. The program is unique in that the recruitment process encourages individuals who may not have been given a chance in the past, as well as providing ongoing support to participants. This helps people who may never have worked before to develop the valuable skills that make them an asset to the IT industry, while also learning about and integrating into a workplace so they can do their job to the best of their ability.

During establishment of the Neurodiversity at NAB program, 18 individuals were invited to attend a one-day workshop, with 12 candidates invited to participate in a subsequent three-week assessment program. At the end of the assessment, six individuals were offered positions in the Enterprise Security department working within the Staff Identity and Access (IdAM) team at NAB.

The new team was successfully integrated into the NAB culture and working environment. Performance management was undertaken using consistent tools and methods to assess autism support and mental health management needs to ensure trainees were not impacted adversely by working within the program.

DXC and NAB established working groups to initiate an internal communication strategy to introduce the Neurodiversity at NAB team to bank employees, and analysis was undertaken to establish an overall training strategy and framework, and to define and tailor initial and on-going training packages to suit the organisation’s requirements.

Results speak volumes

The Neurodiversity at NAB program is helping address challenges in recruiting the right skillsets. The group quickly established themselves as valued team members by making significant contributions to the IdAM team in achieving key targets, improving service to NAB employees and customers, and provisioning and fulfilling critical applications with high accuracy and speed.

The business results are outstanding with a report assessing output after three months identifying a 26% productivity increase by the DXC Dandelion team compared to the existing teams’ output. Another example highlighted a trainee who scripted a new program within their first couple of weeks that effectively saved the bank hundreds of hours.

It also makes a difference for people working in the team to see their organisation committed to diversity. A number of existing team members have commented on how much they appreciate working for an organisation showing such commitment to diversity. They speak of the difference it’s made for them personally, having someone in their team that thinks differently and can bring a new perspective to their work. Additionally, where previously individuals might not have felt confident to think or express themselves differently, this program encourages them to do that – thereby conceiving innovative solutions to previously unsolvable problems.

Organisations like the NAB are embracing the program because it’s good for business. The DXC Dandelion Program helps tap the untapped potential that exists in the community and the competitive advantage and business case for that is hard to ignore.

NAB engaged DXC for three years, however the intent is to embed the program as an ongoing recruitment talent pool, rather than simply bringing in groups at certain points in time.

The program aims to have trainees move quite quickly out of their initial role if that’s of interest to them. This includes secondments to other areas or where individuals will apply independently for employment in other areas of the bank. NAB anticipates that many of these placements will result in more permanent secondments.

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