Back in 2018 I wrote a short blog post about my trip to the 2018 British F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone. At the time I was just months into running TRACK which is a social enterprise supporting autistic adults to access employment.
Since then (5 Years!) a lot has happened with many things changing (Check out the different Shirts in the Photos!), but some things have stayed the same, both in F1 and in our work.
Different names on the World Championship trophies, but this weekend will see 100,000+ people visit Silverstone from across the globe. If you are attending, have a fantastic time. One of the things I love about the event is the passion/ interest for F1, this is all that matters! People from lots of different backgrounds (individuals) will share a common interest in the action on the Track.
Across sporting venues we are now seeing more places making their venues more accepting of the needs of individuals. If you would like to find out more about this for your venue, please do get in touch (thomas@track.org.uk)
Change the Environment and not the person
Back in 2018 I wrote
“We believe that with small changes the workplace can become so much more accessible to people who want to work”
And this is still very much true in 2023. Our message is clear...
“Change the Environment not the person”
But what do I mean by this?
In Formula 1, the difference between 1st place and 2nd may be as little as 1/100th of a second. So attention to detail is of incredible importance. But F1 teams are missing out on talented individuals, who could make a difference. If you are doing things because "Thats the way we do things around here!" then it isn't working.
What could these reasons be?
Job Adverts – which include phrases like “excellent communication skills”. I have yet to find someone who can tell me what this means, or to show me a job which requires “excellent communication skills”. Yet I have worked with talented individuals who will not apply for jobs, because they feel they do not meet these criteria, so they do not apply.
Interviews – Are people telling us the truth in interviews? What is the correct answer to “Why do you want to work here?”? There are better ways to select candidates, and we have shown this across a variety of business settings.
We would love the opportunity to talk more about this, so please do get in contact via thomas@track.org.uk