STEM Needs Flexible Not Hybrid
Life-science and STEM employers rely heavily on neurodivergent talent. But fixed hybrid work patterns and mandated office days risk excluding the very people who drive innovation.
Life-science and STEM organisations depend on people who can analyse complex systems, tolerate deep cognitive load, and identify subtle patterns that others may overlook. These are the very abilities that fuel discovery – from unpicking molecular pathways to engineering predictive algorithms. What’s less openly acknowledged, however, is that these same cognitive traits often correlate with neurodivergent profiles, especially autism and related conditions.
A growing body of research shows that life-sciences and STEM fields are disproportionately attractive to neurodivergent people, particularly those with higher systemising tendencies. A landmark study published in PLOS ONE found significantly higher Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores among STEM professionals compared with those in humanities or social sciences. Similarly, research from the Autism Research Centre and work published in Nature shows a consistent link between autistic cognitive styles – such as rule-based thinking, precision, and pattern recognition – and STEM career paths.
This means something crucial: by definition of the skills required and valued, life-science and STEM companies statistically employ more neurodivergent people than the average organisation. Understanding that reality is essential – because many employers are simultaneously pushing for increased office attendance under rigid, one-size-fits-all hybrid arrangements.
And this is where the friction begins.
The return-to-office push is colliding with neurodivergent needs
Many organisations, including those in biotech, pharma, healthcare tech and engineering, are reinstating office-first cultures. “Hybrid” is often presented as the compromise – but crucially, in most companies, hybrid does not mean flexibility. It means dictated office days, fixed schedules, and compliance monitoring.
For neurodivergent employees, this is often unworkable.
Government and independent reports consistently show that flexible and remote working are among the most effective adjustments for autistic and neurodivergent workers. A major UK government review into autism and employment recommended flexible working as a core foundation of inclusion, noting that sensory environments, commuting demands, and unpredictable social interactions can impose barriers that reduce performance.
Academic research reinforces this. Studies on autistic adults working remotely report improved focus, reduced sensory overload and better health outcomes when they can structure their environment and schedule around cognitive energy levels.
The key point is this:
Hybrid only works when workers can choose which days, not when those days are mandated.
Mandated office days erase the benefits of hybrid working
Fixed hybrid schedules – for example, “everyone in Wednesday and Thursday” – assume that presence is synonymous with productivity. But for many neurodivergent people, the ability to self-regulate sensory input, plan around quiet periods, or avoid peak-time commuting is essential to performing at their full capability.
Here’s what dictated days remove:
- Sensory self-management
Noise levels, lighting, office populations, and social activity fluctuate day-to-day. Being forced in on a day when the environment is overwhelming can dramatically reduce focus and increase anxiety. Flexibility allows workers to attend office days that best match their sensory profile.
- Control over deep-work and cognitive load
Many STEM roles require long, uninterrupted blocks of concentration – something often easier at home. Mandated days often turn into high-distraction collaboration blocks, leading to lower output and cognitive fatigue.
- Ability to manage health, energy and routines
Neurodivergent people frequently rely on predictable routines and energy management strategies. Fixed hybrid patterns disrupt these rhythms and often collide with medical, therapeutic or wellbeing needs.
- Equal access to opportunity
When attendance becomes a performance signal, neurodivergent employees can appear “less committed” simply because their sensory or cognitive needs differ. This creates bias, not equity.
Put simply: “hybrid” is not a meaningful accommodation if the choice element is removed.
The business risk: losing the people who give STEM its competitive edge
Neurodivergent workers often bring specialist strengths highly relevant to STEM innovation: exceptional attention to detail, pattern recognition, sustained concentration, honesty in data reporting, and non-linear problem-solving.
Yet these same workers are overrepresented among those who struggle with enforced office attendance. Reports from disability research show that return-to-office mandates disproportionately disadvantage disabled and neurodivergent staff, increasing absenteeism and turnover.
In industries already grappling with skills shortages – bioinformatics, regulatory affairs, clinical data, AI engineering, analytical chemistry, computational biology – this poses a serious strategic risk.
Flexible working isn’t a perk. It’s a retention strategy and a competitive advantage.
What employers should do: from fixed hybrid to flexible, trust-based work
If life-science and STEM organisations want to preserve their neurodivergent talent base, they need to rethink hybrid work in three key ways:
- Replace mandated office days with flexible attendance windows
Teams can agree collaboration rhythms, but employees should choose which days work for their sensory, cognitive or health needs. Trust is the baseline.
- Introduce simple Individual Working Agreements
Short, documented agreements between an employee and manager outlining:
- Preferred workspace locations
- Sensory needs
- Communication preferences
- Typical days they may choose to be in the office
- Reasonable adjustments
These are lightweight, human and highly effective.
- Train managers in output-based management
Managers should measure results, not physical presence.
This reduces bias, increases fairness, and creates the conditions where neurodivergent talent can thrive.
- Design sensory-considerate office environments
Offer quiet zones, low-stimulus areas, and bookable focus rooms. Provide clear information on busy times, noise levels, or desk availability.
- Model flexibility from the top
Leaders who visibly use flexible working themselves normalise it for the entire organisation.
Why this matters now
Life-science and STEM employers are moving into an era where innovation depends on cognitive diversity more than ever – from AI-augmented drug discovery to increasingly complex regulatory frameworks.
If the workforce in these sectors is more likely to include neurodivergent people – and the evidence says it is – then rigid attendance policies directly undermine organisational capability.
The smartest companies will recognise that the question is not “How do we get everyone back into the office?”
It is “How do we ensure our people can do their best work?”
And for many neurodivergent workers – the ones who drive so much of STEM’s unique problem-solving capacity – the answer is clear: flexible work, not fixed hybrid.
By Mike Johnson, VP Talent Solutions, Skills Alliance Enterprise
