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Workers On Autism Spectrum Finding Careers In Software Testing
rjmarvin writes According to Autism Speaks, about 85% of people who have autism in the United States are currently unemployed or underemployed, but a social enterprise organization called Meticulon is training autistic individuals for highly skilled jobs in software testing. According to Meticulon, autistic people often possess sharp memory and pattern matching skills as well as attention to detail, making them ideal candidates for software testing jobs. Each year's crop of autistic students or Meticulon Consultants is tested and evaluated to develop their MindMap, a unique profile of skills and ideal work environment ultimately used to find these trained software testers an ideal job.
Referring to the following article, SAP has done this since April of 2014. My understanding is the program has been successful for both the company and the employees.
I have close friends who have an autistic child, and programs like these give them hope. I admire companies that follow Sun Tzu's philosophy that all people can be useful if you look for their strengths.
"Who are you?" "No one of consequence." "I must know." "Get used to disappointment."
When you have people on the board of directors that have actually seriously contemplated commiting Filicide-Suicide
I'd be more surprised if none of them had contemplated it. I've seen what severe forms of autism can do to a family. Is it really at all a stretch that having a child with special needs, and the pain, frustration, stress, pressure, and emotional drain that puts on everyone would result in people thinking along those lines.
Sure autism spectrum is often present in geniuses and eccentrics and other people who no doubt the world is richer for having. And it is such broad spectrum that arguably everyone is somewhere on it. But at the other end of the spectrum there is a lot of real misery, and people trapped in unbearable situations, that cannot lead normal lives, that require round the clock care, and assistance with even basic rudimentary functions, even that get violent, creating a financial and emotional drain on caregivers who rarely get adequate support.
I'd probably contemplate it too.