2022 ANNUAL REPORT
Table of Contents
01
About neurowrx
02
03
04
05
06
07
Welcome Letter
New Website Launch
Membership Directory
International Conference
Board of Director Changes
Thank you & Conclusion
Our story so far About Us Neurowrx is a global alliance of corporations, non-profits, and individuals working together to create, foster, and inspire employment opportunities for persons with autism spectrum disorder in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) industries. Together, we are creating long-term, meaningful jobs for people on the autism spectrum in STEM throughout the world.
WELCOME LETTER This year has seen floods, hurricanes, wars, continuing pandemic restrictions, business expansions, business collapses and so much more! Many of these challenges have had both direct and indirect impacts on the work of our members and associates with the need to adapt to changing economic, political and environmental climates. We remain an international alliance of mentors and leaders who support and learn from each other as we strive for our common goal: advancing the employment of those on the autism spectrum in competitive, skilled and rewarding employment. During 2022, we have seen big changes in our board of directors. Our website has also been refreshed with a new look on a new platform using the same url, www.neurowrx.org. We continued to host monthly conference calls with membership and friends of Neurowrx at rotating times to accommodate the many different time zones participants operate within. These had varying degrees of attendance but allowed us to explore and share information with each other on research progress and outcomes related to autism in the workplace, business opportunities, business expansions and how we were each coping in a post-pandemic world. One of our biggest feats this year was the planning and convening of our second international conference in Antwerp, graciously and generously hosted by Passwerk. It was good to meet and hear both in person and virtual presentations addressing a wide range of research, topics and issues important to the work we do. While meeting virtually may be much more convenient, there is nothing that can compare with those incidental conversations and observations that come along with face-to-face meetings. We look forward to planning our next gathering in North America in 2023. We trust you will find this report informative and compelling. Our mission brings us together and the stronger and more united our voices, the greater our impact will be.
Membership Continuing to inspire and guide the organization, our membership has grown over 2022. As our primary source of funding, it is responsible for maintenance of the website and for the planning and staging of events, such as our recent conference. Thank you for your ongoing support! Eric Chan, China AsperIT, Poland Focus Professional Services, Canada Logik Evolution, USA and The Netherlands AQA, Israel Aspiritech, USA Meticulon, Canada Level IT Up, Canada Autimatic, Belgium Autiquest, UK Distingtec, Russia Geosynergy, Australia Iterators, USA Mind Spark Training Academy, USA Passwerk, Belgium Swink, The Netherlands Talent Twist, The Netherlands Testworks, South Korea Zavikon, USA
Board Changes
1
2
Over the past year we bid farewell to one of our founders and strongest supporters, Brenda Weitzberg. Brenda retired from her role as CEO of Aspiritech and is enjoying a slower pace (maybe), chasing after grandchildren, traveling and keeping up with family and friends. We wish her and her husband, Moshe, all the best as they enter this new, exciting phase of their lives.
We are also bidding a fond farewell to Dirk Rombaut, another of our Founders and staunch supporters. Dirk is the Commercial Director at Passwerk and will remain a key advisor into the future. We are indebted to him for his vision, business insights and contributions to our recent conference.
Brenda Weitzberg
Dirk Rombaut
3
Rebecca Beam
4
In April, Rebecca Beam, joined the board. Rebecca had worked with Mindspark Training Academy and Auticon US prior to founding Zavikon. She has been an insightful, energetic addition to the board and has willingly taken on more responsibilities, assuming a co-chair role as we move into the new year.
Tara May, who was appointed CEO of Aspiritech in April, joined the board in July and brings with her insights into marketing and product strategy along with a commitment to increasing the employment of and appreciation of embracing all humans in the workplace.
Tara May
Our new website Over the past year, the Wordpress version of the Neurowrx website was repeatedly hacked, making it very difficult for us to showcase the work we do and who we represent. We made the decision to migrate the website to the Wix platform under the leadership of board member Changsin Lee and with additional help from Rebecca Beam. Together they mentored and supervised the work of auticon Canada consultant Simone Anderson and Passwerk graphic designer Wannes Pelsmakers. The site has been designed to be a fresh take on many of the same features as in the previous version and we encourage you to visit and check it out for yourself. We continue to make additions, and amendments and hope to have our “member zone” developed and populated soon. Our immense thanks to Changsin, Rebecca, Simone and Wannes for their ongoing commitment and support of this venture.
International Conference Our second annual international neurowrx conference in Antwerp, Belgium covered a wide range of topics and lead to interesting and productive discussions among those in attendance. Here is some of what we learned and shared during our time together: We learned: language continues to change when it comes to how we speak about autism and those with the diagnosis. In promoting a better understanding of how autism spectrum comprises a wide range of individuals and fits within the inherent neurodiversity of humanity, we need to adjust our language and become more focused on meeting emerging needs of those whom we serve: when in doubt ask and don’t assume one level of support need as level of need varies with many internal and external factors. We learned: there are marked gender differences in job interview and employment supports enabling success on the job: provide a range of strategies to support autistic job seekers and employees. We learned about LAVA, in Belgium, and how it presents a unique collaboration between government and other funders, academia, and community to identify, develop and execute research projects. We learned how Job seeker recruitment can be supported in a variety of ways including the use of apps like Autiquest to practice answering common interview questions, job interview augmented reality experiences like those developed at the Frist Center for Autism (Vanderbilt University), and recruitment platforms like Mentra which match skills and aptitudes of candidates to those identified in need. We learned about the development and use of professional portfolios. They are becoming more accepted and expected in a wider range of positions within STEAM and provide an opportunity for those with gaps in their employment history or a lack of professional experience to showcase their skills and abilities to potential employers. ·
We learned about a wide range of assistive technologies available to support various aspects of successful employment including Life Sherpa, a virtual life coach app, to Valence Vibration which learns and communicates social/emotional information between individuals, helping to alleviate and address the mismatch that sometimes happens between what is being said, how it is being said, and how that is being interpreted by others. We heard from Microsoft and Dell and how both have developed recruitment structures and on the job supports to support greater neurodiversity in their workforces. There are a number of employer roundtables where Neurowrx’s presence and input would be valued and valuable. We learned how mental health in the workplace is recognized as fundamental to employee productivity and retention. One Mind at Work provides awareness and training in this area and also stresses the importance of company leadership having a better understanding of how to support their employees mental health in the workplace and eliminate negative stigmas. We discussed how Neurowrx provides an important platform for bringing together likeminded individuals and organizations. While our initial focus was the technology sector, there is a growing recognition of the wide range of employment outcomes for our skilled candidates which includes the Arts. Neurowrx is broadening our reach from STEM to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Math). We shared the strengths of Neurowx as a global alliance and while our current structure and function limits our effectiveness in terms of the time and energy dedicated to promoting what Neurowrx is and what it stands for, there are amazing opportunities for us when it comes to participating in and informing research, and linking to others working on similar missions and goals. We heard of our value to our members rests in the expertise, knowledge and tools we share with each other. Our focus moving forward will include: Reviving, reviewing and moderating a “tools” library/data bank for our members. Providing networking opportunities that may be less frequent but more targeted to emerging hot topics, professional education, and strengthening our alliance. Recruiting dedicated staff to take on the work of expanding our network and impact around the world.
Please note session recordings will be made available later in 2022. Stay tuned to our website and social media channels for further updates.
17
Total members
$50,668.68 neurowrx balance as of October 2022
Readers appreciate accurate information
We thank you for your ongoing support of neurowrx!
With Gratitude Our thanks to Passwerk for sponsoring and hosting our gathering and their ongoing support for neurowrx! Our thanks go to Gray Benoist, Treasurer Changsin Lee and Anne Kresta (soon-to-be cochair) for continuing in their roles with the Board of Directors. Thank you to Anne Kresta for writing this annual report and her hard work as co-chair of neurowrx.
neurowrx www.neurowrx.org