In this episode of Culture by Neurodesign, Dr Lisa Colledge explores what happens when culture meets people where they are—not where we think they should be.

Using Steve Silberman’s now-classic Wired article The Geek Syndrome as a starting point, Lisa describes how Silicon Valley became a pioneer in neuro-inclusion—by attracting talented people, with traits that made them well suited to technology and that also happen to be associated with autism. These people created a particular culture in which they could lead with their strengths.

We explore:

• Why autistic talent gravitated towards Silicon Valley—and thrived.

• What cultural features made this possible (hint: clarity, logic, structure, and asynchronous workflows).

• What companies keen to build capabilities in AI team performance can learn from this.

• Why designing for neurodivergence is not about charity—it’s a performance strategy.

Related resources:

• Culture by Neurodesign, Episode 15: Autism, allism, and innovation: a case study with Prof. Laurent Mottron. https://www.lisacolledgeconsulting.com/podcast/autism-allism-and-innovation-a-case-study-with-prof-laurent-mottron

• The classic referenced article: The Geek Syndrome by Steve Silberman (2001, Wired). https://www.wired.com/2001/12/aspergers/

• If you’d like to read an article version of this material: Autism traits and high-performing teams: lessons from Silicon Valley. https://www.lisacolledgeconsulting.com/inside-view/building-high-performing-teams-lessons-from-silicon-valley

I'm Lisa, and I take inspiration from neurodivergence-inclusion to help leaders create cognitively inclusive cultures that connect people with different cognitive styles, empowering everyone to contribute their best.

Learn how my services can transform your team: https://www.lisacolledgeconsulting.com/services

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