ThinkDiverse
A website for neurodivergent
Neurodivergency
Neurodivergence is the concept that highlights the natural diversity of human brains and minds, celebrating how people experience the world differently. It includes a spectrum of conditions such as ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Dyslexia, and more, showcasing that these variations are not deficits but distinctive aspects of human diversity.
This perspective appreciates that everyone's brain works in unique ways, impacting sociability, learning, attention, and mood, and emphasises the value and richness these differences bring to our collective human experience.
Solo Product Designer, UX Researcher
My role
Two weeks
Timeline
Research, Ideate, Design, Iterate
Process
Figma, Google Forms
Tools
Ranking
Gain access to a company's rankings to identify the top workplaces.
The problem
In corporate recruitment, traditional selection methods often create significant barriers for neurodivergent individuals. Rigid interviews and standardized assessments typically fail to recognize their unique talents, resulting in many qualified candidates being overlooked.
In these situations, neurodivergent individuals often feel unheard and isolated, which gets me thinking: how can I help such a big community be heard?
How might we empower neurodivergent people
bring awareness of their needs in selection process?
The solution
ThinkDiverse is a platform where neurodivergent individuals can share insights and feedback on job selection processes, giving a voice to those often overlooked. By highlighting the actual inclusivity of companies, ThinkDiverse aims to make job searching more accessible for neurodivergent individuals, raise awareness of neurodiversity, and inspire a cultural shift towards embracing diverse minds in the workplace.
User Research
I began my user research by developing an online survey targeted toward neurodivergent individuals. The survey was designed to provide insights into their opinions, experiences, and habits related to the selection process. To analyse the quantitative and qualitative data I gathered, I will share the data, our key takeaways, and the main insights.
Evaluate
Bring your experiences to our community and share your insights on the selection process you encountered
Blog
Access a variety of topics related to neurodivergence and the professional world.
43,3% of them have difficulties in the written test phase
78,2% report feel disadvantage due to their neurodivergence
28,6% report that "Unprepared HR" contribute to their discomfort during the process
51,6% believe that a adapted process is the best solution fora better selection process
28,6% agree that understanding the neurodivergent perspective is the best adaptation a company could do
Survey's neurodiversity
Age Range
Profile
The survey reveals a significant representation of ADHD at 44%, followed by ASD at 31%. Notably, 2.2% of participants fall into an 'Others' category, which includes conditions like Tourette Syndrome, Schizophrenia, and Bipolar Affective Disorder, among others. This diversity underscores the broad spectrum of neurodivergent experiences.
Understanding who we are designing for
Persona
Empathy Map
User Journey
A little bit about the Design
It was important for me to carefully consider each detail of the design, as ThinkDiverse needs to be a neurodivergent-friendly website. I carefully selected the fonts, colors, and icons with accessibility in mind. Moreover, I created a logo to ensure that our community could easily identify with it. You can see the thought process below:
I prioritised the website's requirements by formulating "How Might We" statements based on the insights gathered from my user research and brainstormed different ideas based on them
Creating the prototype
Mapping the road for users
Wireframing
I came up with four final features as my MVP (Minimum Viable Product):
1.
Ranking of Companies: Empower neurodivergent individuals by providing transparency about which companies are best at accommodating their needs.
2.
Evaluation Form: Enabling neurodivergent users to evaluate and provide detailed feedback on their selection process experiences, this tool directly facilitates the expression of their needs and experiences.
3.
Blog: A blog focusing on neurodivergent topics can serve as an educational resource, raising awareness about neurodiversity and promoting best practices for inclusive hiring.
4.
Company Profiles: That include detailed outlines of each company's selection process steps, specific adaptations for neurodivergent applicants, and an evaluative rating system to assess their inclusivity and accommodations.
Prototyping the product
Key takeaways
A large majority (78.2%) of respondents feel at a disadvantage due to their neurodivergence.
More than half of the respondents (51.6%) believe that an adapted process is the best solution for improving the selection process.
A notable 28.6% of respondents reported that "Unprepared HR" contributed to their discomfort during the selection process. Additionally, ableism was highlighted by 24.5% of respondents as a significant issue.
Usability Test
I used my initial prototype to conduct usability tests with 3 participants. They were asked to complete the following tasks:
-
Log in
-
Evaluate a company
-
Delete an evaluation they did
-
Find out if their evaluation is anonymous or not
-
Delete their account
All of them were able to complete the tasks, but I collected some feedback that helped me iterate on and improve my designs.
Iterate
The users mentioned that the stars on the companies' profiles did not clearly specify what they were evaluating, so I added a title to clarify this.
The first two balloons in the evaluation form were not readable, so I increased the font size.
The delete buttons could have a different reaction to emphasise the delete action. Therefore, I animated the hover effect to move the button slightly to the left, revealing that there is something underneath.
Reflection
This was a very special project for me. Seeing so many responses that my forms reached and reading about so many people having difficulties finding a job due to a lack of awareness was indeed sorrowful.
One of my biggest learnings was that every detail matters. For example, the menu needs to be a breadcrumb to remind users where they are, so it has to be fixed while scrolling. It's also important to have text labels on icons so everyone can understand; never take anything for granted.
Looking forward, I would like to try out a forum so people could embrace communication within the community and, I envision a hub where companies can access resources to reach out and a place where companies could share their opportunities with members.
Bringing such a potential community to life makes me wonder what if I could really put this online and I have a personal objective to do that one day.
I hope you enjoyed it as well!