World of Work

What Nobody Tells You About Getting a Job - Guests: Sarah Ballard & Jack Palit

Episode 5: What Nobody Tells You About Getting a Job Guests: Sarah Ballard & Jack Palit Job seeking is hard. For autistic people, it can feel like navigating a system designed to exclude you. Career practitioner Sarah Ballard and Community Admin Manager Jack Palit bring their complementary perspectives — one supporting NDIS clients through complex employment barriers, the other with lived experience in the disability and allied health space — to unpack the unspoken realities of finding work as an autistic person. Practical, warm and full of the kind of advice you won't find in a standard careers guide.

The Hidden Cost of Fitting In at Work - Guest: Xavier Gunn

Episode 4: The Hidden Cost of Fitting In at Work Guest: Xavier Gunn Masking at work has a price — and for many autistic people, that price is steep. Data scientist and disability sector volunteer Xavier Gunn opens up about the toll of hiding who you are in professional environments, and what it really means to work in a place that aligns with your values. A raw and honest conversation about authenticity, burnout, and what workplaces need to change.

You're More Capable Than Your CV Shows - Guest: Sandra Thom-Jones

Episode 3: You're More Capable Than Your CV Shows Guest: Sandra Thom-Jones A CV can only tell part of the story — and for many autistic people, it tells very little of it. Proudly autistic academic, advocate and author Sandra Thom-Jones joins host Jacob to explore the gap between what autistic people can do and how they're perceived on paper. Drawing on her own experience as a former Pro Vice-Chancellor and her books Autistics at Work and Autistics in Academia, Sandra makes a powerful case for rethinking how we recognise capability in the workplace.

Rethinking Recruitment - Guests: Jennifer Spoor & Lyndel Kennedy

Episode 2: Rethinking Recruitment Guests: Jennifer Spoor & Lyndel Kennedy Hiring processes weren't designed with autistic people in mind — but they can be. In this episode, we're joined by two leading researchers from the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre at La Trobe University. Associate Professor Jennifer Spoor and PhD candidate Lyndel Kennedy share what the evidence tells us about barriers in recruitment for neurodivergent candidates, and what employers can do differently to attract and retain autistic talent. Essential listening for anyone involved in hiring.

The Productivity Debate - Guest: Jeremy Nagel

Episode 1: The Productivity Debate Guest: Jeremy Nagel What does productivity actually mean for autistic people — and is the way we measure it at work fundamentally broken? Jeremy Nagel, neurospicy software developer turned startup founder and PhD researcher, joins host Jacob for a candid conversation about autism and productivity, challenging the assumptions that too often leave autistic workers feeling like they're falling short. Thought-provoking, practical and deeply relatable.