Fragmented thinking has invaded every part of society including the education system, which as a result, limits our ability as individuals and organizations to solve hard problems. Fragmented thinking is when parts of a system are treated as unrelated segments that can be studied, solved, and sustained by focusing on one or more areas while ignoring the system as a whole. For example, many secondary schools and colleges teach math, chemistry, and engineering separately as opposed to teaching them as one integrated, connected system which is why students struggle to grasp the fundamentals of each subject individually. We also see a fragmented approach in healthcare where doctors specialize in one area while ignoring other areas that are, more often than not, impacting the area they specialize. And we see it in the neurodiversity community where there is an alarming and largely unrecognized unemployment/underemployment problem being addressed by fragmented solutions. The Neurodivergent Employment Ecosystem (NEE) suffers from fragmented thinking which has resulted in many specialized professionals, tools, and technologies that are well meaning, but have not positively impacted the overall neurodivergent employment rates.
The Problem
We often speak about disparate systems and fragmented approaches to problem solving from an abstract standpoint, but there are real life problems affecting every family in some form. The neurodiversity community, mostly represented by Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) / Intellectual Developmental Disabilities (IDD) individuals, has an employment problem, and it is not because of the reasons many people think. In contrast to popular belief, neurodivergent individuals are no less capable than their neurotypical counterparts when it comes to competitive, integrated employment. In many cases, they possess comparable or greater skills, certifications, degrees, and intelligence for the jobs and careers they seek, so what is the problem? Disparate systems from fragmented thinking.
Disparate Systems
When we think of disparate systems, we usually visualize computers and machines that are not efficient or effective because the various parts are not working together as a whole. In fact, that is why Directed Analytics invented its technology, 4SightGPS. We wanted to take on hard problems caused by disparate systems, not just in technology, but also the disparate systems found in nature and in organizations. The Neurodivergent Employment Ecosystem (NEE) is a disparate organizational system that suffers from endpoint solutions that mean well but do not move the whole system towards its overall goal in unison like effective systems such as a bicycle or the endocrine system. At best, these endpoint solutions fix one area while ignoring another area or they cause an overall performance regression of the entire system because in many cases, end point solutions in a disparate system result in opposing and not synergetic forces.
The Solution
Like with any system found in our universe, systems require systemic solutions that address the root causes of the problem by addressing the entire system and not parts. So, we must get away from fragmented thinking, fragmented approaches, and fragmented solutions if we want to continuously lower the unemployment and underemployment rates of the neurodiversity community. The way in which we do this is by creating connected NEE’s. We previously wrote about connected NEE’s, so we will not revisit it again here, but in essence, NEE solutions must use a wholistic approach to helping neurodivergent individuals. This is an area of problem solving that does not get a lot of attention in practical applications, but we can no longer overlook this problem. If we want to solve hard problems, we must move away from fragmented thinking and towards solutions that work in unison.
