They witness
- Delphine Pouponneau, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Orange
- Audrey Barlet, recruitment project manager, Talent Solutions ManpowerGroup
- Dominique Le Douce, director of ADAPT (Association for the social and professional integration of disabled people)
- Stéphanie Bourgeois, co-founder of the start-up Holy Owly
- Thomas*, recruiter and director of a recruitment agency
That’s the point of talking about your disability, of telling yourself that you’re not alone (…) In fact, your brain makes a kind of seesaw: you are less good in certain things and you become better in others. ‘others. Like a visually impaired person who hears better, for example.
Franck Gastambide, actor, screenwriter, director, producer (in an interview with Konbini about his dyslexia, see the video above)
Dyslexia: a little-known disorder in the workplace
42%: this is the percentage of employers who admit their ignorance of the skills of dyslexics, according to the study “Dyslexic thinking” conducted by the Dyslexia association and ManpowerGroup in 2021 among 1,061 dyslexic employees. “ Even though things are moving in the right direction, recruiters are unfamiliar with DYS disorders,” confirms Dominique Le Douce, director of Adapt. ” It is an invisible handicap, therefore badly approached, which needs to be popularized with HR and managers “says Delphine Pouponneau, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Orange, at the initiative of the new “Neuroteam” program, dedicated to “cognitive diversity”.
Result: the recruitment or evaluation processes are still poorly adapted to dyslexic people in the business sphere. ” Spelling tests do not value dyslexic candidates, who tend to be sidelined, even though once in office, there are many tools that can remedy spelling difficulties says Audrey Barlet, RPO project manager at Talent Solutions ManpowerGroup. According to the study, half of dyslexics believe that their employer does not understand the skills associated with their disability. But what skills are we talking about?
80% of disabilities are invisible, dyslexia is one of them.
The specific skills of dyslexics
Dyslexia is a genetic difference that causes a learning disability and the ability to process information. The brains of dyslexics being different, they develop skills that are unique to them. According to the Dyslexia study, communication, visualization, imagination and reasoning are common skills among dyslexic workers. ” What characterizes them the most is their ability to solve problems in an abstract way. They have a three-dimensional spatial logic, which they have developed by learning things other than by writing them down “, explains Audrey Barlet. It is this three-dimensional perception that attracts NASA to the dyslexics it recruits.
These visual skills are reinforced by a faculty of multidimensional apprehension. Since they have learned to think differently, dyslexic executives do show hindsight when a situation arises. They approach it in a more global way, with an open mind. ” This is an asset in project management, since they manage to see, when a problem is posed, several possible entry points”, she indicates. Finally, empathy, initiative and time management are skills often associated with dyslexic thinking, according to Dyslexia. ” Sociability is a good characteristic of dyslexics, who have a great ability to work in a team “, adds Audrey Barlet.
The most suitable professions for dyslexic executives
In reality, ” there are no professions more conducive to dyslexics than others. It is rather the way of equipping them that counts “, insists Audrey Barlet. With the exception of editorial professions, where dyslexics are in more difficulty. However, these executives seem particularly well placed to exercise professions where the skills they develop are in demand. ” Their ability to solve complex problems is a transversal skill that is particularly useful for positions related to Big Data, quality, customer relations », Illustrates Delphine Pouponneau. Their design ability, linked to this three-dimensional perception, also allows them to shine in positions of IT architects. ” And more generally to all positions that require a 360° vision in product modeling, prototyping… “, she adds.
It is not uncommon to see dyslexic executives in managerial positions. ” Their empathy and global vision make dyslexics excellent managers. », Illustrates Audrey Barlet. Their creative abilities, due to the fact that they used circumvention strategies, also make them gifted in graphic design. ” To communicate, they use infographics more than texts. Imagery is a strength in the creative professions “, she confirms. Since they have very early, sometimes since childhood, used computers to express themselves in writing, many of these executives also hold positions in IT.
More generally, it is rather in large groups that dyslexics exercise their profession, “the environment offered by SMEs requiring too much versatility for them”, concludes Dominique Le Douce.
Professions where dyslexic executives excel
- Expert in digital marketing
- Application Developer
- robotics engineer
- IoT specialist
- FinTech Engineer
- Data Analyst
- Cybersecurity expert
- Management analyst
- Logistician
Source: Study “Dyslexic thinking”, Dyslexia (2021)
Why the British Secret Service Recruits Dyslexics
Jo Cavan is in charge of recruitment and strategy for the British intelligence services, the Government Communications Headquarters, which provides network and telecommunications monitoring. He explains to Guardian why 4 out of 10 people in his department have dyslexic disorders: “We are looking for people who can quickly spot small anomalies in the big picture. They must be able to sift through large amounts of data to prevent a terrorist act or the organization of a crime. Skills such as good shape and pattern recognition are essential. And many of my colleagues with dyslexia have these abilities.”
Testimony of Stéphanie Bourgeois: “My memory compensated for my shortcomings related to my dyslexia”
Stephanie Bourgeois
Now co-founder of the start-up Holy Owly, Stéphanie Bourgeois has turned her dyslexia into a strength. Her compensation strategy of learning everything by heart allowed her to be a caring manager when she worked as an executive at General Electric.
“I was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of 6, when I was in CP: I confused the letters and then I had no geometry in space. The specialists who followed me encouraged me to follow protocols in order to compensate for my shortcomings. One of them focused on the development of long-term memory. Throughout my studies, I therefore learned my lessons by heart, thanks to this memory that I had well developed. I was very scholarly, because excellent at retaining very long things. Where I had difficulty was in applying them, especially when it came to financial or accounting exercises. After completing my studies at Neoma Business School, I worked as a buyer at General Motors. I then became Director of Purchasing at General Electric and I was then managing nearly 300 people. Thanks to my memory, I knew the background of each of my collaborators and I had no trouble knowing who was working on what. I showed empathy with them: when a person was in difficulty, I was protective vis-à-vis them, certainly because I had been in this situation myself. As I worked in an American company that was a fan of “ranking”, I built support plans for my employees to bring them up to speed. However, during my career, I never wanted to say that I was dyslexic, for fear that it would do me a disservice. Each time I returned writings, I reread myself a dozen times and I used the spell checker. »
Testimony of Thomas*, head of a recruitment firm: “When I recruit, my dyslexia is not a handicap”
“It’s not a disease, there’s no cure for it, but I’ve always dealt with it. I was a dyslexic child, a dyslexic student (I got two masters), I became a dyslexic adult. And a dyslexic recruiter! I think I can make a difference to companies even if I don’t want to claim it. The fact that I don’t remember people’s names may seem to be a handicap in this profession of recruiter. This is not the case: certainly my brain anonymizes CVs but I can memorize up to a hundred career paths for the same position. My brain creates a dynamic image of the candidates and that makes the selection easier. When I receive specifications, I quickly spot the key points and inconsistencies and this allows me to be very responsive in responding to them. It often happens that I call a collaborator by a name other than his own. I told them and they don’t mind. To overcome my spelling problems, I systematically have my emails proofread by Antidote or/and a collaborator. But sometimes, to go faster, I allow myself to send uncorrected text messages to clients who know me well. My dyslexia has necessarily made me more attentive to differences in others, I always try to find a positive aspect in them. » PDS
* He preferred to remain anonymous
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