Jobs for Aspergers? It’s more than just the job…

By: Jimi Wills

Since my relatively recent diagnosis of Aspergers, jobs have been on my mind.  Not just what might be the best jobs for Aspergers, but also thinking about the experiences I've had in the past.  Most of us have had bad times in employment, but even what most would consider great careers can be terrible jobs for autistic people.   

I've had the privilege of a university education, and with a lot of hard work I even got a PhD.  The constant geeking-out on one subject, and lone working - it was the path of least resistance.

But before university, I worked for two supermarkets/grocery stores: Kwiksave and Sainsbury’s.  In both jobs I was basically stacking shelves, which is a boring but in principle easy role. They were essentially the same job, but I reacted very differently to them.  In Kwiksave I felt great at the end of a day’s work, happy with myself and the world. At the end of a shift in Sainsbury’s I felt drained, confused and full of self-doubt.  I was clearly very switched on in one job, as I remember the names of all my coworkers, even 23 years on. In the other job, I was clearly struggling, as I don’t even recall my manager’s name.  

But why?

Looking back now, I realise that this was entirely down to management.  I remember Mr West, the Kwiksave Manager being supportive, understanding, fun!  He made sure I knew exactly what I needed to know, when I needed to know it, and that I had breaks when I needed them.  Bearing in mind that none of us knew I was autistic back then, this was pretty amazing. The truth is, he was like this with all the other staff too.  He was just a really great manager of people.

During my studies I worked part-time, including in a hotel and a store.

It was a trinket chain-store called The Natural World. It was dry, noisey, confusing and worst of all, company policy was at odds with law, meaning that we had a lot of dissatisfied customers.  The last straw was when I had to do my induction (I'd already worked 80% of the hours I would ever be offered!) and the contents of the induction pack were just wrong. It's a hard job for autistic people to gloss over the details of a topic and just go with the gist, and so when I had to answer questions about the products we sold, I did so with typical Aspie pedantry, figuratively ripping to shreds the inadequate training material.  I handed in my notice the next day, which is just as well because when she read what I'd written my manager blew a gasket and would have sacked me anyway.

In my experience, the suitability of jobs for Aspergers depends less on the job itself, and more on the environment and the care with which the individual is managed.  My hotel job was awful: dirty, smelly work with yet more dissatisfied customers, a high turnover of staff, and terrible wages. But management meticulously articulated their particular routines and the day had a reassuringly unbreakable schedule... breakfast, billing, cleaning, laundry, reception, ironing.  On paper, it's the worst job I've ever had and would be equally terrible for anybody, but in reality the best Aspergers job I ever had because of the explicit structures and routines!

Before getting what academics call a “proper job” (I think most of them don’t realise that this is supposed to be an ironic phrase) I worked every job from farming to data-entry.  But after my PhD I started in a laboratory role, and my only part-time work since then has been occasional free-lance consultancy. 

I started off as a post-doctoral research associate working on interpreting and mining data from mass-spectrometry in a biological context.  I collaborated with other scientists, which basically means we geeked-out together, and I spent a lot of time on my own developing algorithms and computer programs, processing workflows and automations to aid the lab in which I worked.  In collaboration with some real biologists, we published one of our approaches and its application in the top journal Cell. Up to this point, being a postdoc was great!

But this is when things started to go wrong for me. After our Cell paper, I was invited to write a review on machine learning, a core tool in our approach. I still didn’t know I was autistic, but I knew I wasn’t comfortable writing about things I felt I wasn’t expert in.  And no matter how much I read, I just didn’t feel I understood enough about the topic to present myself as an authority on the subject. I guess scientists not as far along the spectrum might just fake it until they make it. But for me, any job requiring blagging is not a job for autistic people.

So I transitioned to a support role, mass-spectrometry laboratory manager, in which there is less pressure on me personally to publish.  There’s a mix of technical and academic work but also customers and politics. 

I actually have no problems interacting with people, especially as many of them show signs of being on the spectrum.  Academia seems to attract neurodivergent people. But what I wasn’t ready for was the specific way things have changed in the place I work.  From changing management structure to laboratory renovations, it all uses up my spoons (you’ve heard of spoon theory right?) Because I’m providing a service to people, I cannot simply take the time I need to recover from these events, and the ever-changing environment and constant demand on my time has driven me to the point of mental ill health.

Since my diagnosis though, I have been able to ask for adjustments at work, the main one being allowed to wear headphones in the lab to listen to music (which is normally against H&S policy)  This helps me regulate my emotional state, but it’s not enough.  

In transitioning from postdoc to lab-manager, I thought I was moving into a better job (starting to suspect I might have it), but the environment has made it worse not better, and good management makes it barely tolerable.  Still, knowing what I now know, I would definitely consider the same role in a different environment.

You see, whether a job is good for autistic people seems to have less to do with the work itself and so much more to do with the environment and management.  Perhaps you hate your current job, but that same job might be a great job for aspergers in another context.

Asperger Life: The Highs and Lows of an Autistic Person in the Workplace

By: An Anonymous Aspie

I didn’t know I was autistic until seven years after I left the traditional working world – by that, I mean 9-5 office work, with the commute and the team building and the office politics and the competitiveness and the goal setting and the performance management. Ok, so writing that last sentence, as an Aspie (who is now more self-aware, and respectful of self) gave me a bit of an anxious-Aspie heart-squeeze. 

I was 35 when I was diagnosed with autism/Asperger’s Syndrome. I had suffered an episode of autistic burnout, which had led me to diagnosis. As a woman, this is rather common. Coming out of burnout, I had become basically non-functional, non-verbal, flat and my senses were out of whack. I thought (and it was said to me “If you were working, you would never have the advantage of sleeping all day to recover like this!”). Nice. 

As much as it hurt to hear that, and invalidated my experience and abilities, it got me thinking. It was true. The traditional workplace was laden with neurotypical expectations. It was designed for it. Think about it. 

• Open plan workspaces (to encourage collaboration. Cringe)

• Arbitrary performance goals, reviews and instituted competitiveness (meant to encourage competition and thus, performance. Sigh) 

• Team Building (packing bags to run for hills over here) 

• Office politics (and as an ND woman? Argh!)

• Office romance misunderstandings 

• The job itself. I was in IT, as a Business Analyst. My job definition was basically the “communication bridge between technical development and the end user”. I will leave you, dear Aspie, to your deductions. 

This was one of the most awesome companies to work for at the time, but I cringe to think how I would function happily there now, now that I had “gone full Aspie”. 

Fast forward to this year. I have the best office – my couch. I have the best coffee machine – my own. I have the best colleagues – my ESA cat. I have awesome lunch breaks – think Star Trek and hot dogs with spaghetti. I have the best physical environmental conditions – 16 degrees Celsius always, dim lighting, and the opportunity for a shameless power/depression nap. My dress code is lit! PJ’s! My boss does need to “meet” with me sometime and, it’s NOT a video call! Always a voice call and/or screen sharing! My performance management? I don’t have to compete with anyone! I just deliver. Heaven!  I am a part time freelance technical documenter and software tester. I run a small online vintage clothing store and I do volunteer work in the community almost every day. 

By my standards, this is the best. Even if it doesn’t conform to the neurotypical version of success.

The lean autism at work guide to hiring your first autistic employees (including a Trello board checklist).

Autism at work is a hiring program designed to include autistic people in the workplace (it’s much needed since there are almost no jobs for people with autism and Aspergers). Companies like SAP, Microsoft, E&Y and more already hire autistic adults and Aspergers. This complete guide shares their experiences, learnings, and insights from the programs they run for adults with autism.  But while we can see evidence from huge corporations who successfully launched this program, I believe there can be a leaner version of that program, that fits smaller companies, startups, and SMBs who want to hire neurodivergent employees. Actually, I think there is probably a better chance that involving neurodivergents in smaller companies is easier (although the lack of resources) since the company is more flexible and it’s easier to raise awareness for autism. I hope the following guide, which is based on the above complete guide (but not endorsed by) + other resources on the Spectroomz blog (like to autistic-friendly employer meter) will help you do that.

1. Sell (and be sold on) the idea of hiring autistic people to your team and decision-makers. Here’re the benefits of hiring autistic people (ROI):

   • Autistic and aspergers people possess many desired skills, but generally have excellent tech orientation, which makes them a great talent for tech companies. There is an increasingly huge need for such employees (see HBR). 

   • Highly retained employees (to SAP 1% increase in general employee retention worth US$ 50M/year).

   • Tens of thousands of $ worth of tax benefits.

   • It adds to the general diversity of the company, which according to scholars and researches contributes to the ability to meet customer needs, creativity, innovation, and the accessibility of products. 

   • It enhances the company’s brand as an inclusive employer, and therefore attracts top talents. Anyone wants to work in an inclusive workplace that is open to everyone.  

   • Managers of autistic people become better managers to their neurotypical employees as well. They are more inclusive, give better feedback and set clear expectations.  

   • Existing autistic employees (who kept it confidential so far) will be happier (as indicated by Microsoft). According to a survey by StackOverflow, 2.6% of the programmers indicated they are autistic.

   • Many scholars identify autistic people as trustworthy, innovative, attentive to details, analytical thinkers, productive, reliable and more. Many of them become masters of their trade and therefore are immune to boredom. Now, go and search for these keywords in your current job listings and see for yourself you are already looking for such candidates. 

   • With 500,000 teens entering adulthood in the upcoming 10 years (in the US), and with direct and indirect annual costs of US$ 236 Billion to the American taxpayer, hiring autistic people and providing them with the professional fulfillment is both socially and economically right. 

   • Being more diverse means getting more diverse customers = more income.

2. How do I even start:

   • You should start with a pilot, nothing more. That means 1-2 hires in one location to get things going and learn (like startups that need to get to the market as soon as possible in order to get real feedback). 

   • Find a self-starter who can orchestrate everything and cares about the cause + see the great potential. Among others they will need to: 

     • Together with HR, D&I and management decide what roles will you hire for. The goal is to hire the right full-time employee for a meaningful role. A major factor will be the right manager and the right team, which need to be supportive and inclusive as well as dedicate the extra time. 

     • Decide on which location (if the company has several) will they hire based on the right team, managers and the company’s need. 

     • Write the job description together with the hiring manager and HR.

     • Design a proper screening process of candidates with the hiring managers and HR (more on that below) based on the job qualifications. 

     • Make sure you are able to accommodate the needs of your autistic employees (e.g. providing noise cancelation earphones, enable modification of the light for your autistic employees if needed, find proper space, etc.). 

     • Prepare online or offline preparation/education for other employees regarding autism (1-2 hours which can be done by an outsource consultant).  

     • If needed, form relationships with potential partners who can help sourcing candidates, consulting you on a day-to-day as well as coach your neurodivergent employees. 

     • Coordinate with legal. 

     • Secure the budget.

3. Scope of employment:

   • Autistic people’s skills are diversified, and so do the roles they can do. These are the roles they were hired to in Microsoft, SAP and more: Software engineers, data scientists, service engineers, finance, marketing, HR, project management, analysts, cyber, robotics, bankers and more. 

   • In most places, autistic people worked full time. Part-time and internships were also available. You should also consider enabling remote a day or two.

4. Sourcing the talent:

   • This is a solution Spectroomz intends to launch soon. 

   • You can source via potential partners and NGOs. 

   • Social media.

   • Referral from your current employees.

   • PR - notify the local press on your pilot, this could drive lots of candidates. Here’s how to do your own PR.  

   • Universities and colleges: 

     • Career services.

     • Work readiness program.

     • Academic units.

     • Disability units.

5. Interview and selection process:

   • At Microsoft, some of the autistic candidates who got accepted in the autism-tailored process, were rejected previously in the traditional process, which doesn’t work for many autistic people. Generally, the ideal hiring process requires more resources (several days-weeks of doing actual work (paid) with the candidates + preparing them for the work environment). Below is an alternative, lean, process.

6. Initial screening:

   • Set a different email for autistic candidates’ CV submissions. Be less judgmental, and if you feel someone might be promising, make a quick call to uncover relevant experience which might have not been mentioned clearly enough in the resume. 

   • If the job requires technical skills, send candidates online tests that assess these skills. Be reasonable, this is a preliminary stage.

7. Interview and assessment process: 

   • Determine the skills needed for the role and design an activity to test each skill and the ability to learn it. 

   • Have the hiring managers conduct the interviews, and try to design the activity so it will be a mutual working session. Educate the managers about autism and increase their awareness before the working sessions. 

   • It’s best to simply have the candidates come over for 1-7 days of paid ‘working sessions’ in which you assess them (big corporations do that for several weeks). Interviews can cause stress, and have people arrive for a few days to experience what’s it’s like to work at your company is a good way to reduce that stress. This helps to assess soft skills as well. 

   • Set clear expectations about each working session and be specific, don’t be vague. Also, be clear about the time each working session should take. Make sure the candidates understand the instructions. 

   • Ask candidates for their environment preferences and try to accommodate (e.g., reduce lightning, quite rooms, noise cancelation headphones). If they want to work on their own laptop and not use a whiteboard, let them. 

   • Prior to the interview, send an itinerary of the assessment process with a clear structure (including who will be present). 

   • If you have autistic employees, try to have them involved in the process (and get their help designing it). 

   • Provide unstructured time during the working sessions for candidates to deal with cognitive overload. 

   • Conduct working sessions of 45 minutes, but be flexible if the candidate asks for more time. Have a debrief before and after each session.

   • Avoid surprising your candidates, but show them you are flexible to accommodate their needs.

8.        Your decision:

   • If you decided not to continue with a candidate, give them useful, actionable feedback on-site or on a video call (please please, treat people nicely). Tell them you are okay with having another person on the call (relative, job coach, etc.). Don’t just send your regular email. Candidates need to be able to benefit from the process.  

   • Ask for feedback about your process (send a survey as well as on-site).

9. Training autistic employees:  

   • Technical skills: Focus on the specific technical skills and tools needed for the job. This can be done as part of the assessment process, regular employee onboarding or dedicated training for autistic employees. 

   • Orientation to the organization and soft skills: Give an overview of the company’s values, mission, etc. Tell employees about the support and services intended to support them. This can all be done during the hiring process or as part of the regular onboarding process.

10. Training existing neurotypical employees: 

    • Create a welcoming and inclusive environment for autistic employees by raising awareness and educating current employees about autism. This training can be done in house or by external vendors. This should happen prior to the employee’s starting date. 

    • In-person training is better, but a leaner way would be online training. 

    • Privacy is super important. Share people’s needs, not identity. 

    • Keep an internal mailing list or a Slack channel about neurodiversity and update it with new materials.

11. Onboarding:

    • Set a date that works for the employee and the team to start. 

    • Talk about the dress code if necessary, as well as other rules. 

    • Explain who do they report to (preferably the person who does the onboarding will be the hiring manager who is the most significant player in creating an inclusive workplace). 

    • Consider having a welcome-mentor for the initial period (preferably someone from the team).  If there are other autistic employees, consider having them as mentors as well. 

    • There are federal-funded job coaching programs that you might want to involve in the onboarding process (for 90 days).

12. Retention:

    • Have the manager give the employee constant feedback (bi-weekly launch, in the beginning, could be a good format). 

    • Changes can cause stress. If the direct manager or team members are changing, communicate it clearly and don’t surprise the employee. Make the proper intro to the new manager and make sure they are well educated about autism. 

    • There are several online groups in which managers can ask feedback and advice from other autistic adults (check out for example in item # 5). In addition, there is this Facebook group.

Bonuses: 

1. Based on the above plan, I have created a free Trello board (a free task management tool) for you to use in your company, you can get it here.

2. We’re launching a job board for autistic people to meet autism-friendly employers, you can submit jobs using this link, and we’ll take care of great candidates. You can submit jobs even if you just intend starting a pilot as described above.

5 Reddit threads about employment & jobs for Aspergers and autistic people

1. What jobs are most suitable for us?

   The person who posted this question mentioned stress as the biggest issue he/she experiences in their current job as a person with Aspergers. Different Aspergers shared their work experience in an enlightening diverse Reddit thread.  

2. How do people with Aspergers get and keep jobs?

   A very long thread (over 130 comments) of someone who is going through a diagnosis process, but confident he/she has Aspergers. He/she is frustrated by the traditional hiring process. Lots of empathic answers (“are you me?”) and people who feel the same. 

3. Work or life, not both

   A very long thread in which the original poster and the respondents share the difficulties and overload of having a job and how they cope when they return home. 

4. Bullying in the workplace

   This is a very touching post by an Asperger being bullied at work. This post got over 900 upvotes (which are the “likes” on Reddit) and almost 140 comments. There are also positive elements in this story such as the boss who really cares. 

5. How do I help my employee with Aspergers?

   This is a Reddit thread I really like. A manager reaches out to a community of autistic and Aspergers people to learn how he can help his employee to perform better. The original text has been deleted by the manager, but I remember he described a smart employee who just finds it hard to complete tasks until the end (“he does 1.1., 1.2, 1.3 but doesn’t get to 2). A lot of helpful advice given by other autistic people. 

Got more threads you like? Share them below in the comments.

32 remote (work from home) jobs for autistic people - this quiz will help you choose.

Skip to the quiz (mobile)

skip to the quiz (desktop)

Many autistic adults and Aspergers I talk to tell me they wish to work from home. Traditional jobs aren’t the best fit if the employer is not autism friendly, so I have decided to make a list of jobs you can do from home (or anywhere else). That way autistic people can reduce the stress associated with traditional workplaces, and work in their own favorite environment. This could be a major career change for you.

Choosing the best remote job for you - the quiz

There are 5 groups of roles below and a quiz that will help you choose which group is most relevant to you.

The tool doesn’t take into account your interest and qualifications. It focuses on the nature of work. If you have special qualifications, make sure to take it into account (it will be interesting for you to see if the nature of work fits your qualifications though, comment below if it is).

The quiz - How it works

1. Answer 4 questions below and get the score (it’s not a test score, it has no meaning besides helping you understand what’s the best category for you);

2. Check below the list of roles based on your score

Step 1 - The autistic remote job quiz

Take the Quiz

Step 2 - based on your score, check which work from home jobs are good for you:

I got 30-40

I got 20-29

I got 15-19

I got 11-14

I got 0-10

Group A (score is between 30-40)

1. Search engine optimization (example: help improve a shoe store’s website ranking on Google for the keywords ‘kids sports shoes”). 

2. SEO keyword research (example: use research tools to find keywords people are searching on Google).

3. Data entry (example: collecting a list of businesses and entering it into excel).

4. Data extractions (example: get contact details from an online database. These tasks can be done manually or with writing all sorts of scripts).

5. Translation (example: translating a website from English to Portuguese).

6. Transcription (example: transcribe 40 minutes audio into German).

“I got a remote position thanks to you!”

Jamie K.



Group B (score is between 20-29)

1. Audio editing (example: edit podcast recording).

2. Search engine optimization (example: help improve a shoe store’s website ranking on Google for the keywords ‘kids sports shoes”). Learn Search Engine Optimization.

3. Search engine marketing (example: advertise a site using Google Adwords).

4. Telemarketing (example: call wholesalers to offer a service).

5. Digital marketing (example: promote a business using Facebook and Instagram ads). Learn Facebook ads

6. Online research (example: find and analyze competition).

7. Content marketer (example: write content about the benefits of a vegan diet for a vegan-friendly restaurant, and promote this content online). 

8. Market research (example: check the different pricing plans of Sushi restaurants across Hollywood, LA). 

9. Software development (example: develop a mobile app). 

10. Quality assurance (example: find bugs in a software’s code). 

“I got a position thanks to you!”

Jamie K.



Group C (score is between 15-19)

1. Presentation design (example: design a startup presentation for a startup competition). 

2. Video editing (example: edit videos which will be posted on Youtube)

3. Virtual assistance (example: responding to ‘contact us’ emails’)

4. Business development (example: getting relevant partnerships for a jewelry company aiming to increase brand awareness). 

5. Email marketing (example: write and send a weekly newsletter for a company). 

6. Audio production (example: help with podcast).

7. Photography (example: take food photos for a menu). 

8. Copywriting (example: write ‘about us’ on a website). 

“I got a position thanks to you!”

Jamie K.



Group D (score is between 11-14)

1. Lead generation (example: find contact details of all pet-shop owners in Colorado).

2. Social media marketer (example: create an Instagram posts for the promotion of an event). 

3. Musician (example: create a soundtrack for an ad).

4. Public relations (example: reach out to all food bloggers to pitch this a new restaurant). 

5. Customer Service (example: support people who raise money on a crowdfunding platform). 

6. Tech support (example: help solve tech issues for customers of a tech company). 

“I got a position thanks to you!”

Jamie K.



Group E (score is between 0-10)

1. Graphic design (example: design a logo). 

2. Music composition (example: compose music for a video game). 

3. Scriptwriting (example: write a script for a school play). 

4. Campaign management (example: make preparations for a convention) 

5. Community management (example: moderate a professional online forum). 

“I got a position thanks to you!”

Jamie K.

---

FAQs - Jobs for people with autism

What are some good jobs for autistic people or Aspergers?

Check out the new story version of that question. Also, check out the complete guide to jobs for autistic people.

I have been reading, writing, and discussing this question for the past seven (7 months). The focus of this question is wrong. Autistic people, like neurotypicals, have a range of skills and fields of interest. There are no “right jobs for adults with autism”. Questions like “what are autistic people good at?” or “best careers or jobs for high functioning autism?” (which are probably typed more by parents and less by autistics) are less relevant if the focus is on the type of work. 

There is, though, the right work environment for autistic people. Once you read what autistics and Aspergers write about their job experience you understand that the focus should indeed be on the right work environment and not about the type of job you do: 

“I have the best office – my couch. I have the best coffee machine – my own. I have the best colleagues – my ESA cat.” from Asperger Life: The Highs and Lows of an Autistic Person in the Workplace

“In my experience, the suitability of jobs for Aspergers depends less on the job itself, and more on the environment and the care with which the individual is managed.” From Jobs for Aspergers? It’s more than just the job. 

“Rather than a perfect job for autistic people, it’s more about finding a work environment and culture that dissuades strict social rules and hierarchies.” From Silicon Valley Dreams Meet Reality: The (Supposedly) Perfect Job for an Aspie

“...but the key to stable employment for autistic adults is to let meeting their needs become part of the job.  We often thrive in environments without hierarchies that foster authenticity.” What are the best jobs for autistic people. 

Bullying at the workplace stories told by autistic people also confirms it’s all about the environment and less about the type of job. 

What does it mean to be an autism-friendly employer?

When we analyzed the hundreds of results for the quiz 32 remote (work from home) jobs for autistic people, you see that the most important things are minimum social interactions and that the job requirements will be well-defined. 

In addition to that, as you can learn from the autism-friendly employer meter which will help you figure out if your employer is autistic friendly or not by filling a short quiz, the following elements are important as well: 

1. Managers should be educated about autism and have ongoing support from experts about autism.

2. Usually, managers should have regular feedabck meetings with the autistic employee. 

3. An environment with fewer changes and surprises is usually better for autistic adults. 

4. Enable changes in the work environment (fewer lights and noise for example). 

The environment should be a place that the autistic employee will feel comfortable to disclose his/her autism. Autistic employees shouldn’t be in the closet with regards to their autism. You can read more about disclosing your autism to your boss here and here. 

What are some examples for companies that hire autistic employees?

Microsoft, SAP, IBM, Dell and E&Y are known for hiring autistic people. Aspiritech, Ultranauts and Daivergent are also dedicated to hiring autistic adults.

In addition to those, companies hire autistic freelancers who work from home on Spectroomz for their SEO needs. An example for such companies Peer5, Numero, Rabbet - all VC-backed startups that hired autistic freelancers on Spectroomz.

How can I choose the right job as an autistic?

In my opinion, it all starts with not hiding your autism. That’s part of who you are, even if employers can’t always tell. I know hiding it is “tempting” since many autistics are unemployment and “you gotta do what you gotta do” in order to make a living. 

Once you did disclose your autism, ask questions about the work environment and how flexible is your potential employer about accommodations. 

I’m aware this process isn’t always realistic when you search for a job. But there are good news. COVID, which increased the work-from-home movement and a platform like Spectroomz which enables autistic people to work from home in their own terms is an opportunity. 

Spectroomz was launched because many autistics and Aspergers wanted to work from home, but didn’t have an autistic-friendly freelancing platform to go to. A platform in which clients already know they hire autistic freelancers.

Spectroomz also offers you an SEO course that will enable you to start a new career path and simply upgrade your skills. 

Take the quiz and find out which remote (work from home) job fits you best as an autistic/aspie