Placement agencies and employers 

Position Papers Toolkit

Experiences from supported employment learned that individual tailored support and guidance can help persons with a distance from the labour market to get and to maintain a job.

Elements which can contribute to a successful job placement are:

1. Dynamic assessment: a dynamic assessment helps the person to experience different  specific types of work so that the person involved can make informed decisions about whether or not this type of work is suited to him or her, should he or she has little or no knowledge or experience of work options. The dynamic approach also involves a pro-active attitude. The person involved and the job specialist work together to find suitable options and solutions.

2. Job finding: this involves a survey on the open labour market to identify job placement  opportunities suited to the individual job seeker. The central criterion for suitability is that the job is consistent with the individual’s interests as well as his / her abilities. Another criterion for opportunities is the employer’s needs for employees.

3. Job analysis: a job analysis can identify in detail  the work tasks and can be used to find out if these tasks are suitable for the person involved. 

4. Job matching: the info ration acquires from the job analysis and the assessment of the person involved can be used to match with a particular job. However, a perfect match between employees skills and the demand of the position is unlikely. The intent is to find the best possible match between the interests, skills and abilities of the person involved and the demands of the position,

5. Workplace introduction: before starting in the company a workplace introduction, which includes work related safety and health issues, work environment etc. can be of great help. Also the introduction to co-workers and supervisors.

6. Coaching on the job: it might, depending on the individual situation, that coaching on the job is needed. The type of coaching can be different from person to person. The coaching can be provided by the job placement organisation or a persons from the company.

7. Ongoing support: ongoing support might be needed, however, this shall differ from person to person. The type of support and the intensity shall also be different depending on the individual situation. In general this type of support shall help in preventing problems or help when problems arise. The support can be provided for the person involved and for the employer.

Example:

Heidi, 37 years has already a career of twelve years  as a web developer. She noticed that she often got stick in communication with people in understanding them, in conversation and also in carrying out the assignments. 

In the years after she received an indication for autism she contacted De Overstap, which is an ambulatory organization for guidance, coaching and re-integration with offices in Hengelo and Zwolle in The Netherlands. 

As mentioned she had already a job and wanted to get further in it. She asked the De Overstap if she could be coached to progress in her work. With the support she noticed that she is now making steps forward, because she dares to tackle things, because she sees things through and/ or that she can spar  for a while. She comes into her own. She does nice things and can say that she enjoys going to work. She tried that before, but now it really works.

Beside these general elements specific attention for job placement opportunities for neurodivergent persons is needed.

These are e.g.:

• Job interviews: the interviews need to take into account the individual situation of the person involved. 

• Style and type of communication

• Disclosure – non disclosure: specific attention is needed related to the personal situation of the person involved. A disclosure of relevant information that can affect the work performance or the needed accommodations is important. A non disclosure can have a negative effect. There might be situations to choose for non-disclosure when e.g. this has no impact on the work performance and when there is no need for workplace accommodations.