Sharon Goldie, consultant at iansyst Ltd, looks at how to recognise the signs of dyslexia and offers simple strategies on how organisations can tailor their training plans to ensure they create a dyslexia-friendly workplace.

What do Richard Branson and Steve Jobs have in common with Walt Disney, Salma Hayek, John Lennon and Pablo Picasso? In addition to being extremely successful in their chosen professions, each of them is dyslexic.

A learning neurological disorder which can affect a person's reading, writing and spelling skills, dyslexia affects approximately one in 10 people in the UK workforce. Within the workplace, the ability to identify its signs and provide support for a dyslexic employee could be the key to finding the next Henry Ford, Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell. 

 

Dyslexia is recognised as a disability under The Equality Act 2010. Although legislation may be the driver for change, it is ultimately the entire organisation that benefits from implementing training policies and techniques to address the support needs of dyslexics.

Dyslexics often have average or above average intelligence with excellent creative thinking skills which allows them to see a variety of solutions to a problem. However, many companies are still unaware of the impact that this disability can have on an employee's job or how a few simple strategies can help to unlock their potential.

Dyslexia is often referred to as the 'hidden disability' as there are no visible physical signs. It is completely unlinked to intelligence and many dyslexics are innovative and strong leaders across a variety of industries, as witnessed by the aforementioned examples. It is important that organisations understand that dyslexia affects people in a number of different ways and that identifying its signs is vital to both the employee as well as your organisation. 

Some people short term memory recall problems, while others have difficulty processing written or oral dialogue. Commonly, dyslexics take longer to read through information, create documents or process a series of instructions. The most obvious signs to look out for include inconsistent spelling, poor time-keeping, difficulties understanding written directions, difficulties taking notes at meetings and/or a disorganised workspace. 

A less obvious, but no less important, indicator could include an employee regularly passing up promotion opportunities due to extra paperwork or regularly calling in sick due to struggling to work in an open-plan environment.

A key factor is that information is not simply presented but rather it is important to engage someone with dyslexia which will allow them to fully appreciate and understand the training given. Allowing them to have information early to digest and understand before the training session commences is also a benefit, being put under a pressured learning environment or on the spot answering questions will all add to the 'stress' of that specific training programme. 

Varying methods of presenting information should be used - not just handouts on a white piece of paper - changing fonts, paper colour, and having the information broken down into digestible sections with images and tips also helps. Concentration spans and short term memory recall are usually shorter in a dyslexic person so regular breaks and refreshers have to be included, possibly more than a normal training programme would involve.

 

Making the necessary adaptations to the workplace for dyslexic employees will only be successful if the organisation's management are aware of how best to work with their staff. Therefore, it is vital that line managers throughout the company are given training about what to look for and how best to maximise the work performance of a dyslexic employee. Every strategy and hint that follows will only be successful if an organisation's management are aware of their employee's dyslexia and are able to take it into consideration during their regular work schedule.