Neurodiversity: The key to smarter cyber and social value

As the UK moves toward a more inclusive and resilient digital future, the conversation around social value in tech is becoming more impactful than ever - particularly in cyber security.

At e2e-assure, we believe social value isn’t something you bolt on to meet policy requirements, but instead it’s something you build into your business from day one. For us, that means focusing on neurodiversity, not only as a diversity initiative but as a strategic imperative to innovate faster than threat actors and solve challenges in ways that conventional thinking can’t.

Why Neurodiversity Matters in Cyber Security

With the rise of AI-driven attacks, persistent threats, and increasingly complex digital environments, the skills needed to keep organisations secure are changing just as fast.

We know the industry faces a long-standing cyber skills shortage, and we’re not going to close that gap by hiring the same kind of people with the same kind of thinking. That’s where neurodiverse talent comes in — offering different ways of thinking, unique problem-solving approaches, and critical skills like hyperfocus, pattern recognition, and creative logic.

We’ve frequently found that neurodivergent professionals ultimately excel in cyber security roles — from threat analysis and vulnerability scanning to red-teaming and SOC operations. These roles demand the kind of attention to detail and lateral thinking that our neurodiverse team members naturally bring to the table.

Meet the Team

Introducing James Sinclair, one of our dedicated SOC analysts. His ADHD gives him the ability to hyperfocus on complex issues which is something that’s proved essential in identifying subtle malware threats.

Within our commercial team, we also have Damian Scully, our Business Development Manager, whose neurodivergent perspective helps connect the dots across departments, ensuring our services aren’t just technically effective but truly align with customer needs.

Yes, neurodiverse professionals bring “diversity”, but more fundamentally they bring business-critical value. At the end of the day, it’s on us as employers and tech providers to ensure our hiring practices, environments, and leadership pipelines support them to excel.

Building Inclusion into the Model

At e2e-assure, we’ve built neurodiversity inclusion into our hiring and workplace practices — and it’s paying off. Currently, 10% of our team identifies as neurodiverse, and we’re continuing to grow that number through deliberate and mission-led hiring.

We’ve partnered up with organisations like Autism Plus and IASME Consortium to make cyber careers more accessible. This includes offering part-time and flexible roles, adapting interview formats, and creating psychologically safe environments where all minds can thrive.

We’ve also developed mentoring programmes, neurodiversity resource groups, and flexible training pathways that support a variety of learning styles which are especially important in a field where constant upskilling is required to keep up with threats.

Aligning With Government’s Social Value Priorities

Our approach directly supports the Government’s goals around inclusive economic growth, tackling workforce inequality, and delivering long-term resilience in public sector supply chains (learn more about our Public Sector focus, here.)

Through our central government contracts, we don’t just “talk” about social value. We demonstrate it by embedding diverse talent into real frontline cyber defense roles and by improving the long-term employment prospects of people who are too often overlooked in traditional hiring pipelines.

Social Value as a Strategic Advantage

There’s a tendency to view social value as a “nice to have” or a tick-box exercise to win bids. We see it differently.

Cyber security demands innovation, creativity, and unconventional thinking - exactly the traits many neurodiverse individuals offer. By investing in this talent pool, we’re not just creating opportunities; we’re building stronger defenses, smarter teams, and a more resilient future for the organisations we protect.

What’s Next?

We believe the tech industry needs to go further in embedding inclusion into how we build solutions, structure teams, and define success. That means:

And most of all, recognising that social value and cyber resilience are not mutually exclusive — they’re tightly intertwined.

Central Government Programme activities

The techUK Central Government Programme provides a forum for government to engage with tech suppliers. We advocate for the govtech sector, evangelise tech as a solution to public sector challenges, facilitate market engagement, and help make the public sector an easier market to operate in. Visit the programme page here.