The company had been thinking deeply about remote working, even prior to the pandemic. We didn't want to run the risk of having any issues around equality or inclusion.”ĭropbox was well positioned to come up with a solution. “That, for us, was very much a red line issue. “What we discovered in talking with other companies is that you end up having issues arising with inclusion, promotion, career growth, cliques and different norms forming within different teams,” says Laura Ryan, Dropbox’s director of international human resources. The approach tended to create different employee experiences, depending on whether you stayed at home more frequently, or came into the office. The risks of hybrid working became apparent. When Dropbox was settling on a strategy for its own workforce, it conducted extensive research into various working models. Truth is, this model can be problematic when it comes to inclusion and career progression. That might seem like it’s embracing the best of both worlds. Many organisations are thus opting for a "hybrid" model, allowing staff to choose whether to show up in person or work from home. And as we emerge, blinking into the post-pandemic era, companies are all too aware that the genie is out of the bottle – telecommuting is part of the here and now. Sure, cloud collaboration companies such as Dropbox had been making remote work increasingly possible, but for most businesses, there was still a premium on workers being present at the office – and it was hard to see what it would take to change that. When technology pundits speculate about the world of tomorrow, there are some predictions that have been part of the repertoire for decades: food pills! Space elevators! Flying cars! For a long time, "telecommuting" was one such forecast. Sometimes, the future never seems to arrive. From meetings in VR to carving out time for collaboration, concentration and wellbeing, Dropbox's Virtual First plan can help work more impactful
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