One in six people is neurodivergent. In any given meeting, people in it are thinking, processing, and problem-solving in ways that look and feel completely different from one another. The question isn't whether neurodiversity exists in your workplace; it's whether your workplace knows how to make space for it.
We brought together four people from across DoubleVerify to talk about what that looks like in practice. Lily Oda, Sr. HR Generalist and co-chair of the DVersability employee resource group (ERG), joins us from Tokyo. Christina Lomax, VP of Talent Management & HR Technology & Operations, is DVersability's Executive Sponsor. And from our London office, Workplace Experience Specialist Martha Ross and Manager of Account Management Giles Westgarth both live with dyslexia. Together, they give us four very different windows into what neurodiversity at DV really means.
When we asked Lily what drew her to co-chair DVersability, her answer was immediate and personal.
"At the very moment I was considering which ERG to join, I was quietly navigating one of the most challenging chapters of my life. My son had been diagnosed with severe bilateral hearing loss and underwent cochlear implant surgery at just three years old. What made it so difficult wasn't just the journey itself, it was the isolation. I had no one around me who truly understood what it felt like to be a caregiver in that situation. There was no safe space to talk about it openly. That's exactly what I wanted DVersability to be."
Christina Lomax, recognizes something deeply familiar in that. Her connection to this work isn't strategic, it's personal. "Growing up with a father who became disabled as a teenager shaped everything about how I approach leadership. He set his own rules, he lived life to the fullest, and he never settled." That upbringing is what drives her commitment to DVersability as Executive Sponsor of the ERG. "Having the opportunity to help create a culture that celebrates difference and empowers people to bring their superpowers to the table is deeply personal for me."
For Martha and Giles, the conversation about neurodiversity is daily.
Martha was diagnosed with dyslexia at four years old. "In many ways, that early diagnosis was a gift," she says. "It gave me something that has stayed with me ever since: understanding that I think differently, that I process the world in my own way." But being open about it at work is a different challenge entirely. "Having an invisible disability means you have to really talk about it and then sit with the vulnerability of hoping people won't assume you're making it up. It takes courage every single time."
Giles knows that feeling well. For years at DV, he didn't disclose. The feedback kept coming: improve your spelling. Pay more attention to detail. "I was embarrassed for a good few years, until I finally worked up the courage to admit that I have dyslexia." He also has ADHD, which compounds the experience in its own specific ways. Once he disclosed, the shift was significant. "It really opened the door to personal progress, and career progress at DV. It allowed my manager to focus on what could actually be done, and to look beyond surface-level feedback."
Martha puts it simply: "The moment I stopped hiding it and started owning it, everything changed. I'd love that for every single person sitting on the fence right now."
Christina is clear-eyed about the business case too. Research from Harvard Business Review found that cognitively diverse teams solve complex problems up to three times faster. Deloitte's data shows neuroinclusive organisations are 87% more likely to report better decision-making. And 51% of neurodivergent workers have considered quitting when they don't feel supported. "The cost of inaction isn't just missed upside," Christina says. "It's an active talent loss."
At DV, support is practical and ongoing. DVersability hosts organization-wide learning sessions on inclusive communication, accessible meeting structures, and responding to disclosure. DV's Manager Blueprint training makes psychological safety a core leadership expectation, not an optional extra. And tools like Helperbird, Logickeyboard, and DV's internal AI platform mean employees can put their energy where it matters most.
For Lily, the proudest moments as Co-Chair aren't the number of events or the size of the membership. "It's the moments where someone walks away feeling a little less alone."
Martha agrees: "Dyslexia is my superpower. It always has been. But it also means there are parts of my job that take me longer and that's okay, because my manager knows. And because they know, they can help."
We're proud to be having these conversations openly, and proud of the people who had the courage to start them. At DV, it's about your final impact, not having the smoothest road to it.