Why Dropbox Is Avoiding The Hybrid Work Model

As society slowly emerged into the post-pandemic era, businesses are considering how to incorporate remote working into their operations without completely letting go of the office.

That’s where the hybrid work model seems to be the best option by allowing employees to choose between coming into the office or working from home depending on their individual needs.

While this could be viewed as embracing the perks of both arrangements, there may be issues with this model in terms of inclusion and career progression as it highlights that different workplace experiences between employees.

“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,” said Laura Ryan, director of international human resources at Dropbox. “That, for us, was very much a red line issue. We didn’t want to run the risk of having any issues around equality or inclusion.”

That is why the company developed their new “Virtual First” model. This approach will allow employees to have access to all the benefits of remote working, while also offering them an option for physical workspace coined Dropbox Studios.

The office will serve as a home for collaboration, which can be hard to accomplish when working from home. But the company has made one thing clear — the space is not meant for independent work so issues of presenteeism and inclusivity do not arise.