September 2017 Summaries

BoxWorks 2017 focuses on cloud content management and its role in gaining a competitive advantage in the ever-evolving business landscape, emphasizing collaboration, improved security, and cost efficiency. The event brings together industry leaders, visionaries, and technologists to discuss strategies for effectively managing and optimizing content in organizations. Attendees can participate in sessions that cover building content management strategies, transitioning to paperless operations, and creating agile digital processes. Notable speakers include Cheryl McKinnon from Forrester Research, Joshua Feliciano from S&P Global, and Robert J. Burkhart from Nationwide Insurance, who will share insights on shaping the future of work through innovative content management approaches.

Box has announced the opening of applications for its Diversity Scholarship, aimed at supporting individuals from historically underrepresented groups with a passion for technology. The scholarship is designed to foster diversity and inclusion by providing opportunities for students pursuing STEAM majors, beyond just computer science and engineering, to thrive in the tech industry. Five scholarships will be awarded: one grand prize of $20,000 and four additional awards of $4,000 each. Applicants must be enrolled in or transferring to a 4-year accredited degree program by Spring 2018 and should demonstrate creativity, leadership, and community involvement. The application deadline is October 2, and the selection process will culminate in finalist interviews at Box Headquarters in Redwood City, California, in December 2017. Box is seeking assistance in promoting the scholarship across university campuses, particularly those using Box for cloud content management.

BoxWorks 2017, taking place from October 10-12 at Moscone West in San Francisco, offers attendees insights into cloud content management and the future of work, with a special emphasis on a diverse range of topics including a keynote on astrophysics by Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson. The event features various keynotes, including a fireside chat with Aaron Levie and Airbnb's Co-Founder and CEO Brian Chesky on the first day, followed by discussions led by Box's Chief Product Officer Jeetu Patel and Microsoft's CTO Kevin Scott on the second day. The Free Expo Pass provides access to the BoxWorks Opening Reception, keynotes, and the Partner Pavilion, where attendees can interact with top Box customers, executives, and partners. Participants are encouraged to register early for the Free Expo Pass due to limited availability.

"Bring Your _______ Self to Work" is a core aspect of Box's diverse culture, allowing employees to bring their unique backgrounds and values to the workplace. In a feature highlighting Box employees, Parker McCorkle, an Outbound Business Representative in Austin, Texas, shares his journey from Anchorage, Alaska, to his current role at Box. After graduating with a Finance degree and a brief stint in the auto industry, Parker joined Box, where he quickly advanced to Team Lead. In his role, Parker is instrumental in developing business opportunities within large enterprise accounts across various industries, emphasizing the importance of pipeline and revenue for Box's growth. He takes pride in the versatile applications of Box's services, which facilitate collaboration and communication in sectors ranging from healthcare to education and non-profits. A notable achievement includes sourcing a deal with a Texas university that enhances student collaboration. The job's challenges include managing relationships across different time zones and industries, requiring adaptability and continuous learning. Despite the complexity, Parker finds fulfillment in knowing his work has a tangible impact, underscored by Box's extensive customer base of over 70,000.

Colleen Carreiro, an Account Executive at Box based in Austin, Texas, shares her journey from starting as a Sales Development Representative to her current role on the Emerging Business team, highlighting her contributions to the company's success through strategic planning and adaptability. She recounts a significant win involving a major Canadian bank, which marked a milestone for the company's expansion in the Canadian Financial Services sector. Carreiro appreciates Box's versatility and industry-agnostic nature, which appeals to a wide range of organizations from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, and attributes its success to innovation and customer-centric development. Despite challenges like rapid team growth and the complexities of remote work, she values the supportive and collaborative work environment at Box, which motivates her daily.

Images have become a significant and rapidly expanding content type in Box, prompting the introduction of image recognition to enhance business value by simplifying the discovery, organization, and extraction of actionable insights from image content. This is achieved through the integration of Google Cloud Vision, a sophisticated machine learning tool that categorizes images and detects objects and text. The Google API Client Library for Java aids in authenticating with Google Cloud Platform and utilizing the Vision API, though configuring it to work behind a proxy, especially one needing authentication, presents challenges. To address these, various proxy connection methods are explored, highlighting the advantages and limitations of each. While the ApacheHttpTransport offers a highly configurable proxy setup, including credential requirements, it also addresses issues like using closed connections by enabling stale connection checks, ensuring a more reliable integration for specific API requests over HTTPS.

The Metropolitan Police Service of London (the Met), the largest police force in the UK, is transitioning to Box to enhance its digital policing efforts for the Greater London area, which serves 8.6 million residents. By adopting Box, the Met aims to empower its workforce to work more efficiently and effectively, particularly in fighting crime, by providing up to 50,000 cloud-based seats for content management. The use of Box facilitates central online storage of important data such as CCTV footage, streamlining the process of searching and sharing evidence without the need for physical media, thereby supporting digital transformation and improving the service and response to crime in London.