Kathryn Parsons of Havas' Neuroverse on Making Neuro-Inclusion a Natural Part of Good Business

Serving as a catalyst to help industries evolve

Kathryn Parsons is VP of content strategy at Havas Health Network. Havas launched its Neuroverse consultancy in March. Parsons says it was born from a realization that “the way we design and communicate simply doesn’t work for every mind.” Havas wanted to change that. What began as a “thought experiment” evolved into a new business model that applies universal design to communication itself. 

“We help brands create experiences that are accessible, intuitive, and relevant to the neurodivergent experience, not just the statistical average,” says Parsons.

Muse caught up with her to discuss the endeavor in-depth.

Muse: Now that you are close to eight months in, what has ensued?

Havas has seen strong engagement from clients across healthcare, beauty, and consumer sectors. Many of them are discovering that universal design is not just about accessibility. It is a way to create stronger, clearer and more emotionally resonant experiences for everyone.

Our Havas teams are learning how to design and communicate with a neuro-inclusive mindset. We are developing new frameworks, building partnerships with neurodivergent advisors and embedding lived experience into our strategy and creative processes.

We have already seen the industry conversation change—shifting from awareness to action—with our clients asking how to make their systems work better for every kind of mind.

What is your main goal with the consultancy—what does it mean that you are “set to reshape the marketplace?”

Havas’ goal is to make neuro-inclusion a natural part of how good business works. When we talk about reshaping the marketplace, we mean creating an adaptive model for how communication connects. Neuroverse is about rebuilding our ways of working to reflect how people think, feel and understand information. We work with neurodivergent people to uncover unmet needs and hidden barriers. Havas has designed messaging that reflects the lived experience of this community, making our communication more inclusive and effective.

Why is now a good time to launch it?

Because culture, technology and business are finally aligned. Gen Z has grown up with the language of neurodiversity—valuing accessibility, authenticity and representation. Many identify as neurodivergent and want to see that reality built into how companies communicate. Additionally, AI is giving us the tools to make inclusion scalable. Through adaptive design, Havas has been able to meet people where they are and create personal experiences that respond to different ways of thinking and engaging.

As other brands converge toward sameness, Neuroverse sees AI as a creative ally—allowing us to use technology with intention, pairing human empathy with intelligent systems designed to communicate with more minds.

Can you discuss one or two projects?

One example is “Beyond the Brief,” launched at Cannes Lions on Neurodiversity Pride Day. The initiative was designed to celebrate neurodivergent talent as a creative advantage. We used AI tools to analyze feedback in real time and adjust sensory and communication elements of the activations to make them more accessible. Neurodivergent professionals led those sessions, turning inclusion from an abstract idea into a tangible experience.

Why is this so important to you personally?

For me, Neuroverse is personal as well as professional. I’m autistic, and know what it feels like to navigate systems that were not designed with people like me. That experience taught me that inclusion cannot be retrofitted. It has to be built into the foundation. I have spent my career in technology and digital strategy, studying how systems work and where they fail. Neuroverse allows me to use that same curiosity to redesign how communication itself functions with different audiences. Working with other neurodivergent professionals gives me hope. Every conversation reveals new insights into how design, research and storytelling can evolve. This is not about speaking for a community. It is about creating space so that all of us can speak for ourselves and shape the solutions together.

What have been some main challenges?

The biggest challenge is turning awareness into practice. Neuro-inclusion is not a campaign. It is a process that touches every part of how a brand operates. Traditional research and creative methods often miss the lived experience of neuro-divergents. Co-creation takes adaptivity, and it requires teams to unlearn habits built for speed for efficiency over depth of experiences.

Another challenge is reframing how people see neurodiversity. It is still too often treated as a medical or niche issue. But these challenges don’t just impact neuro-divergents. For instance, it can impact anyone who’s moving quickly to the next task. By solving for those of us who feel it more keenly, we can help everyone. We are also working to show that cognitive diversity is a source of innovation and creativity, and ultimately an accelerator that can drive business growth. 

Biggest rewards so far?

The most rewarding part has been hearing from neurodivergent people who feel represented in new ways and to see major clients embrace co-creation as a standard practice. They are inviting neurodivergent advisors as partners in research, strategy, and creative sessions. Inside Havas, we have seen teams grow more confident in applying adaptive design principles. Neuroverse has sparked genuine curiosity and a shift in mindset across the network.

What would you like to see happen as a type of knock-on effect in the industry?

I would like to see neuro-inclusion become standard practice by embedding it into every brief, research plan and creative process from the start. The next step is moving from awareness to action. Real inclusion happens when organizations redesign their systems: how they recruit talent, build teams, test ideas, co-create and measure success. The neurodivergent lived experience should be represented in campaigns and in shaping them. In doing so, the ripple effect of creative and innovative thinking could redefine performance and what effective communication looks like.

Can you speak to any future plans?

We are developing adaptive design toolkits that will help clients, agencies and partners embed neuro-inclusive principles into their own systems. These toolkits will be practical and tested with neurodivergent collaborators to reflect real needs.

We are also expanding into sensory-inclusive experiences, exploring how events, conferences, and brand activations can be re-engineered to feel comfortable and engaging for everyone.

Finally, we are building a global advisory network of neurodivergent professionals who will guide our work through lived experience. Long-term, Neuroverse is meant to be a catalyst that helps industries evolve, from awareness to design, from inclusion to innovation and from speaking to people to create with them.