Many large tech firms like to talk about their great company culture, but what kind of elements actually make a company a nice place to work?
When you say you have a great company culture, what do you really mean? Is it just a buzzword you say when you mean you like working there? What does a good company culture require?
Last week, new research highlighted the importance of good communication within companies in order to make employees feel valued and appreciated. Additionally, with the future of work upon us, upskilling has never been more important, so a company that cares about its employees’ growth enough to invest time into it is another key to a positive culture.
One example where these two major traits are in place is Dropbox. Earlier this year Siliconrepublic.com headed down to Dropbox’s Dublin office, which is the company’s EMEA HQ. We wanted to find out more about Dropbox’s company culture and learn about how it actually implements good communication and upskilling of its staff.
Lukas Borsboom is a business development representative (BDR) at Dropbox. He said the company has helped him progress in his career by giving him a growth mindset. “It’s OK to make mistakes, to learn from them of course, and keep moving forward,” he said.
“Dropbox provided me with the BR University. It’s a programme set up for BDRs to walk through certain criteria. Once the criteria are met, you can move to the next gate. The good thing about this is that it provides you with a clear structure and vision of how to move forward into your next career step.”
Through steps such as the BR University, Dropbox clearly invests time and resources into ensuring its employees can upskill and develop their career. But what about the communication side of things?
Dropbox’s international head of HR, Maeve O’Meara, said the communication in the company is a little different. “Everybody is encouraged to share their ideas and that’s from the junior level upwards, especially with leadership,” she said.
“We really want [the employees] to have that environment where they feel comfortable and they can bring their best selves to work.”
She added that the company’s culture is special mainly because of the people who work there.
