ADHD in your workforce - how to manage it.

The topic of this article is on ADHD in your workforce and how you as a manager and/or an employer can manage it. ADHD is a condition, a neurological condition, that is characterized by a few things: ADHD is characterized by an inability to pay attention. ADHD is also characterized by a constant amount of energy. It is characterized by an inability to stick to deadlines. It is characterized by an inability to stay organized. ADHD is also characterized by constant moving, a stream of energy that seems to be uncontrollable and unchanelled. As you can see there are many behaviors that characterize ADHD. Because of all of these manifestations of ADHD, people with ADHD have a tendency to become frustrated, confused, depressed, even irritable and prone to conflicts with co-workers because of low self-esteem.

With all of these characteristics and potential problems stemming from ADHD in the workplace, you as a manager or you as an employer might think that it would just be easier to try to exclude ADHD from your workplace. However, you should stop that thought right in its tracks. People who suffer from ADHD might have a lot of difficulty concentrating, paying attention, being attentive in meetings and meeting deadlines. However, people who have ADHD are also incredibly creative, often incredibly bright and intelligent, are very hard workers when they are disciplined and have a concrete project in front of them, and can end up being your most productive, your most innovative, and your most successful members of your workforce team. Not to mention, that not hiring someone because they have ADHD is discrimination, which is illegal.

The topic of this article is on ADHD in your workforce and how you as a manager and/or an employer can manage
So here is some information on ADHD in the workplace and some tips on how you as a manager or you as an employer can deal with ADHD and manage it successfully so that it is productive both for you as the manager and for the individual or individuals in your workforce who have ADHD. Mental health experts estimate that ADHD affects up to 10 percent of adults. That's a ton of people out there. That's also a ton of potential frustration and confusion. However, it is also a ton of creativity that just needs a constructive work environment so that all of that creativity and energy can be handled in a productive way. Something that you need to be aware of as a manager or as an employer is that under the 1990 American Disabilities Act, any adult who has been diagnosed with ADD and/or ADHD has the right to have workplace accommodations made for them. One thing that is important for you to do as a manager is not to jump to conclusions about the ability of the individual to work successfully. Instead, the very first thing that you need to do when you are told or find out that someone in your workforce has ADHD is to make adjustments for success. If the individual is in a career path that he or she really enjoys, that love for the work will be able to control and contain the potentially negative ADHD symptoms.

So, do not make any assumptions. Instead, make adjustments. There are several things that you can do as a manager. Encourage treatment. This does not necessarily mean that you are encouraging chemical treatment, but rather encourage visits to a counselor so that the individual can learn how to deal with and channel energy and become more productive. Encourage creativity in the workplace. Is your workplace environment incredibly hierarchical, with lots of rules, regulations, red tape, and obsessive regulations? Well, for the sake of everyone who works there, you need to lighten up. Encourage collaborative working. Encourage brainstorming. Encourage creativity by having people work together to come up with ideas and then discussing these ideas in a group, rather than simply having boring presentations. Help set deadlines. Work with the individual to ensure that firm deadlines are set so that they have a motivation to work towards. It helps to have a combination of both openness and concreteness in the workplace. Encourage them to set reminders of deadlines and other important dates so that they can keep on track. Have weekly meetings to set tasks. This will give the individual a firm idea of what should be achieved each week, and each task can be crossed off.

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Categories: Employee Performance, Management,

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