‘This is not philanthropy’: How EY in Nashville is turning to those with autism and neurodiversity to boost innovation

When Joel Rhodes was growing up, he didn’t hear people talk about autism. When he learned three years ago he was on the high end of the spectrum, he was working at a factory job in Virginia and taking accounting classes, and he wondered what career limitations he might face as a result of his diagnosis.

Now, as an account support associate in an EY office on Music Row, Rhodes, 28, is finding ways to automate business processes for clients through computer system coding. He typically works alongside 12 other neurodiverse individuals in a role that would have seem well out of reach even a year ago.

“This has been the best opportunity I have had careerwise. I am being challenged, which is what I have always wanted from a job,” Rhodes said.

The Nashville EY Neurodiversity Center for Excellence opened in September. It is the fifth such center that global firm EY, also known as Ernst & Young, has launched since 2016, when the concept began in Philadelphia with four individuals. The company, focused on professional services, hires candidates with neurological differences, such as ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, chronic depression or autism, to boost the company’s technology offerings.

While the jobs provide a source of employment for neurodiverse professionals, that is only an added benefit. The program is entirely business-driven, said Emily Edwards, who leads the Nashville Neurodiversity Center of Excellence. The centers were created to gain access to talented individuals that might see tech problems in a different way.

“This is not a philanthropy,” Edwards said. “We want to innovate and be at the forefront of technology.”

EY’s focus on neurodiverse individuals began when a company executive attended a global summit and heard a discussion about neurodiversity in the workplace. Seeing success with its first office, they expanded San Jose, Chicago and Dallas, as well as Nashville, together employing 80 people.

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A search for talent

EY, which has two Nashville locations employing nearly 550 people, has designated Nashville as one of the tech hubs for the company. The work being done in the Music Row office includes coding, producing new tools, automation, software development and data visualization. EY clients submit projects they need help with and the EY team seeks new solutions for those clients.

Like Rhodes, most of the new hires moved to Nashville from other cities. Some have high school degrees and others have masters in engineering. Each hire is expected to know at least two or three computer programming languages.

For many, finding employment has been challenging. Some have been underemployed, taking jobs that they are overqualified for, while others have had a hard time getting through an interview process that can often highlight social skills more than job skills, Edwards said.

Instead of a traditional job interview with face-to-face interaction, EY interviews are conducted by phone to make applicants more comfortable. Skill tests, in which applicants have two days to complete, are the main focus. If they make it that far in the process, they attend a four-day event where they perform technical assessments and write code. 

“We are truly assessing skill set,” Edwards said.

Social interactions had often been a challenge for Rhodes. Eye contact can be difficult and he often keeps his body still as he talks, he said. He just considered himself more reserved, introverted.

As an undergraduate at Virginia Commonwealth University studying broadcast journalism, Rhodes said he met deadlines, enjoyed researching for stories and thrived with the more technical aspects of broadcast reporting — the production, editing and recording. But pitching stories in front of his class and speaking on camera was more difficult.

As an employee, he showed up on time and worked hard to complete his tasks. But the social hurdles that he faced in his personal life were also present professionally and in some job interviews, he struggled with face-to-face conversations. 

Rhodes said he remembers hearing the word autism just once before meeting a coding professional involved in film work who opened up about his own late-in-life diagnosis. They shared similar traits and the conversation prompted Rhodes, then 25, to see if he may also be on the spectrum.

Once his high-functioning autism was confirmed, Rhodes said he had a better understanding of himself and actions he could take going forward, he said. But he also became worried about what that meant for his job prospects.

“Most places, if they know you have a disability or condition, they don’t really understand what you are capable of doing,” Rhodes said. 

Rhodes was working for a manufacturing plant that built display cases, a job he knew he did not want to stay in. He left for an office job at a Richmond nonprofit where he reviewed and organized client information. There he began to experiment with computer coding. Then, last year, he applied to EY.

Rhodes describes the EY interview week as one of the best professional experiences he’s ever had because of the level of coding, the people he met and the environment the company had created. 

With other job candidates, he shared stories about past school and work experiences and adapting to those environments. It was a whole new level of empathy that Rhodes was unaccustomed to, especially in a professional setting.

“I had never been around so many other people who had the same thing I had in my life,” he said. “I really felt like I was able to be myself and not feel ashamed for who I was and what I had. That makes a huge difference for anybody.”

EY has begun collaborating with other large companies, including JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft and SAP, on how to support neurodiversity in the workplace.  

Edwards is careful to emphasize that just like in every workplace, each person works differently and has different needs and strengths. But, the centers are helping “extremely brilliant” employees reach their potential while solving tough problems for their clients.

“It is a huge opportunity for Nashville and Tennessee,” Edwards said. 

Nashville has become a leader in supporting those with autism in the workplace. In 2017, Billy and Jennifer Frist launched a local initiative focused on employing adults with autism along with Denmark-born nonprofit Specialisterne, Vanderbilt University and The Precisionists, a Delaware-based social enterprise, and area businesses. That evolved into the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, located on Vanderbilt’s campus, that focuses on neurodiversity within the workplace and is funded with a $10 million grant. 

Rhodes said he has reaped the benefit of having so many resources in Nashville. He has begun volunteering with the Country Music Hall of Fame and has worked with Include Me Advocacy Group in Nashville. He said his eye contact has improved and his overall self-confidence has increased.

“I never thought I’d be able to assimilate in a profession where I would be able to self-actualize as an employee and also make a meaningful contribution to the work environment,” Rhodes said. “Our employers know not only what we have, but also what we are capable of doing. … I feel like I have a community of people for the first time in my life and that’s a great thing to have.”