If you've recently discovered that an employee has ADHD, you might be wondering what you're supposed to do next.
The good news is that you don't need to become an expert in ADHD overnight; but you do need to have an understanding of your responsibilities as an employer and the confidence to have the right conversations.
A recent employment tribunal involving a former Lidl deputy store manager is a timely reminder of why this matters. The employee was awarded more than £45,000 after the tribunal found that his employer had failed to make appropriate reasonable adjustments and had not properly considered how his ADHD affected his behaviour during disciplinary proceedings.
It's a situation that many organisations could find themselves in, often without intending to.
ADHD is context
One of the biggest mistakes employers make is assuming that everyone communicates, organises themselves or responds to pressure in the same way.
For example, someone with ADHD may:
struggle with organisation or prioritising tasks
communicate differently under stress
appear unemotional or show little facial expression
become overwhelmed in busy or noisy environments
need information presented in a different way.
None of these automatically prevent someone from doing their job well. They may simply mean they need adjustments to help them perform at their best.
Reasonable adjustments don't have to be expensive
Many managers worry that supporting an employee with ADHD will involve costly changes or setting different standards.
In reality, many reasonable adjustments cost little or nothing at all. They just need some thought and collaboration.
Reasonable adjustments might include:
providing written instructions after meetings
allowing short movement or wellbeing breaks
reducing unnecessary distractions
agreeing clearer priorities
allowing extra processing time before important meetings
adapting the way feedback or disciplinary meetings are carried out.
Every individual is different. What helps one person may not help another, which is why collaboration with the staff member who has ADHD is always more valuable than assumption.
You don't always need a formal diagnosis
A common misconception is that an employee must provide a diagnosis before an employer has any responsibilities and that isn't necessarily the case.
Under the Equality Act 2010, the legal protection is based on the impact a condition has on day-to-day activities, not simply whether someone has a diagnostic report. Waiting for paperwork before considering support can leave employers exposed to unnecessary risk.
Good management prevents problems
Most employment tribunal cases aren't caused by employers trying to discriminate. Not many of us actually want to discriminate against our staff!
They're usually the result of managers who genuinely want to do the right thing but haven't been given the knowledge, confidence or tools to have supportive conversations.
That's why neurodiversity awareness shouldn't just sit with HR or People and Culture. Every manager who carries out supervision, performance reviews, return-to-work meetings or disciplinary investigations needs to understand how neurodiversity may influence behaviour and communication.
Supporting people is good for business
When employees feel understood and supported, organisations benefit from better engagement, improved retention, stronger performance and healthier workplace cultures.
Sometimes a small adjustment can make a significant difference.
Want to give your managers more confidence?
Our Neurodiversity in the Workplace workshop helps managers understand ADHD, autism and other forms of neurodiversity in practical, real-world terms.
We explore how to recognise when support may be needed, have better conversations, make appropriate reasonable adjustments and create workplaces where people can thrive.
Good managers don't need all the answers: they just need the confidence to ask the right questions.
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