July 2020 Summaries

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation due to the shift to remote work, driven by the need for secure, digital-first infrastructures and cloud-based technologies. This transition, discussed by technology leaders from Texas Capital Bank, AllianceBernstein, and TPG Global, highlights the importance of having a robust digital infrastructure, which enables seamless remote operations and secure file sharing. The pandemic has accelerated changes in digital strategies, emphasizing the critical role of employees and leaders in adapting to new technologies and processes, as exemplified by Texas Capital Bank's agile response in delivering PPP loans. The way customers interact with financial services is evolving as well, with digital platforms like Box providing opportunities for real-time, on-demand client experiences, which are expected to become more prevalent as clients and firms recognize the benefits of digital engagement.

Box has launched a new integration for Microsoft Teams, enhancing remote work collaboration by allowing users to map existing Box folders to Teams channels or use automatically mapped folders for quick setup. This integration positions Box as a central content management layer across various applications, enabling seamless content sharing and management within Teams while maintaining robust security and governance aligned with organizational policies. The integration supports content from major third-party applications like Microsoft Office, G Suite, and Salesforce, promoting efficient and secure collaboration. Box is committed to ongoing improvements and invites user feedback to refine the experience further. Users can access the integration via Microsoft AppSource or the Box Support page for additional information and updates.

Enterprise content creation is rapidly increasing, with 41 zettabytes produced in 2019 alone, prompting the need for companies to identify and protect sensitive data to avoid breaches. To address this, Box Shield introduces an automated classification feature that leverages machine learning to classify data in real-time based on admin-defined policies. This feature can recognize various types of personal identifiable information (PII) and custom terms within files, reducing false positives and eliminating the need for complex third-party tools. Once classified, Shield employs security controls to prevent data leaks, bolstering compliance with standards like HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR, while supporting secure remote work. The new capabilities are integrated into Box, enhancing data integrity and security, and will be available to eligible customers starting today, with a comprehensive webinar scheduled for August 6, 2020, to demonstrate the feature.

In a discussion with Anisha Vaswani, Corporate CIO of Box, Souheil Badran, COO of Northwestern Mutual, elaborates on the company's strategic shift towards becoming a TechFin organization, emphasizing how technology plays a critical role in driving their strategy forward. Despite originating outside the digital-first environment, Northwestern Mutual has made significant strides in integrating technology to enhance customer and employee experiences, particularly through the use of cloud-based tools like Box. With nearly half of its workforce comprising technical talent, the company has dismantled operational silos and fostered cross-organizational collaboration, enabling a rapid response to challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Badran highlights the importance of digital access and literacy for citizens, noting that Northwestern Mutual has been actively working with clients and advisors to navigate financial difficulties during the pandemic by extending grace periods and offering financial education. He underscores the importance of maintaining the health and wellness of the workforce as paramount to the company's success and advocates for adaptive leadership that listens closely to team needs while ensuring alignment at the executive level.

Box has introduced a revamped user interface designed to enhance productivity and creativity in the digital workspace by minimizing clutter and disorganization. The new Box UI focuses on simplicity and usability, incorporating changes based on user workflows to provide distraction-free access to essential tools. Key improvements include a streamlined action bar, refreshed visuals, faster page load times, and innovative organizational features like Collections, which allow users to personalize and logically group their content. This feature aims to accommodate various work styles, enabling users to quickly find and organize files without affecting collaborators’ access, ultimately reducing stress and saving time. The updates are available to all Box customers, with administrators encouraged to enable them to boost user productivity.

Google Cloud and Box have announced an expanded strategic partnership aimed at enhancing digital transformation and secure remote work capabilities for global enterprises. As businesses increasingly shift to remote work, Box will leverage Google Cloud's infrastructure for data storage, integrate Google Cloud's Document AI into its Box Skills Kit, and enhance identity management features such as single sign-on and two-factor authentication using Google Authenticator. The collaboration also focuses on improving the integration between Box and G Suite, with enhancements including seamless sharing of Google files stored in Box, reciprocal file transfers between Box and Google Drive, and a new G Suite Add-on for saving documents directly to Box. This partnership seeks to provide enterprises with innovative tools for secure and efficient collaboration, supporting the evolving needs of remote work environments.

The rapid increase in unstructured data poses significant risks for organizations, particularly as remote work environments become more prevalent, necessitating a shift toward an architectural approach to information management and security. This challenge is underscored by the fact that, in 2019, 41 zettabytes of data were created globally, with unstructured data often left unmanaged, leading to security vulnerabilities. Organizations typically utilize numerous cloud applications, which can result in data fragments being improperly shared and accessible to unauthorized individuals, increasing the risk of data breaches. The absence of robust information governance contributes to these risks, as evidenced by the 4 billion personally identifiable information records breached in 2019, often due to employee negligence. The financial impact of data breaches is substantial, with average costs reaching $3.9 million, alongside long-term business and reputational damage. To mitigate these risks, a built-in approach to content management is recommended, integrating security directly into collaboration tools to maintain a balance between user flexibility and security. The Box Cloud Content Management platform exemplifies this strategy by offering sophisticated security features, such as automated content classification and contextual awareness, to protect sensitive information without disrupting user experience.

Box Shuttle is a content migration service offered by Box Consulting, designed to centralize fragmented business content into Box's cloud platform, improving efficiency by consolidating data from diverse sources such as on-premises drives and legacy ECMs. Since 2016, Box Shuttle has facilitated the migration of over 1.3 petabytes of data for more than 7,000 customers, emphasizing a methodology that includes change management and training to ensure successful adoption of new digital systems. The service is enhancing its capabilities to streamline system consolidation, reduce migration time, and support the transition from paper processes to digital formats using OCR and metadata tagging, making content smarter and more secure. Additionally, Box Shuttle aims to ease the shift from outdated, costly ECMs to cloud solutions by handling technical migrations and advising on business process frameworks without the need for custom coding. The proactive approach to change management ensures organizations are engaged in the migration process, driving excitement and better adoption of the new platform to meet the growing need for centralized content management in the modern business landscape.

On July 16, 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidated the EU-US/Swiss-US Privacy Shield Framework in the Schrems II case, while affirming that Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) remain a valid mechanism for data transfers outside the European Economic Area (EEA). As a consequence, organizations previously relying on Privacy Shield must adopt alternative mechanisms like SCCs to lawfully transfer personal data to the United States. Box, a cloud content management company, is proactively updating its Data Processing Addendum (DPA) to include SCCs, ensuring compliance with EU and UK data privacy laws amid the Privacy Shield's invalidation and potential Brexit impacts on data transfers post-December 31, 2020. Box is notifying affected customers through in-app alerts and emails to review and execute the necessary agreements, thereby maintaining lawful data transfer mechanisms without additional costs.

Box Consulting offers strategic and tactical support to organizations aiming to enhance their cloud content management with Box's platform. By focusing on implementation, technology integration, and user adoption, Box Consulting helps transform businesses across various industries. Their services include establishing a secure and scalable information architecture, eliminating content silos, and promoting organizational change through education and training programs. With experience from over 12,000 projects, Box Consulting aids in increasing user engagement and demand for cloud tools, thereby driving efficiency and innovation. Clients benefit from higher return on investment and are encouraged to leverage Box Consulting to realize their business goals and optimize their technological infrastructure.

Box offers a platform for secure and efficient collaboration by allowing users to organize, share, and manage their files and content. Upon logging in, users can see available content, create new content, and upload files, with private and shared content distinguished by folder colors. Users can organize their workspace by creating folders, marking favorites, and setting up private collections, which are exclusive to the user. The search tool facilitates easy file retrieval by searching titles and document content, with filter options available to narrow down results. Box enables users to preview, edit, and save changes to files directly within the platform, recording modifications and allowing users to revert to previous versions if necessary. Files and folders can be easily shared via links, with options to control access and security, eliminating the need for large email attachments. Additional resources and tutorials are available through Box Education and their online community.

In a virtual event co-hosted by Okta, CEOs from leading tech companies like Zoom, Slack, and Box discussed the opportunities and challenges of leadership during multiple global crises, such as COVID-19 and racial injustice, and the transition to distributed work. The executives, including Okta's Todd McKinnon, Zoom's Eric Yuan, Slack's Stewart Butterfield, and Box's Aaron Levie, highlighted the necessity of adapting leadership roles to support employee and customer well-being, emphasizing gratitude, proactive engagement, and flexibility in work practices. They explored the evolution of remote work, user happiness, and dynamic work environments, advocating for leveraging technology to facilitate inclusive and resilient business operations. The discussion also touched on the importance of defining company values and taking a conscious stand on social issues, suggesting that these adaptations and reflections offer a unique chance to redefine work and leadership in the face of ongoing global changes.

Mariner Wealth Advisors, a relatively young but rapidly growing company in the traditional finance industry, has effectively navigated the transition to digital work, driven by a customer-first philosophy and a strategic focus on cloud-based solutions. Led by Chris Cook, the SVP of IT, the company has embraced a "mobile-first advisor" approach, utilizing platforms like Box for cloud content management and integrating with essential apps such as Salesforce and Office 365. This digital shift enabled Mariner to swiftly adapt to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining performance and client support amidst market uncertainties. Cook's leadership emphasizes avoiding legacy constraints, promoting a unified digital vision, and leveraging the cloud for competitive advantage, which has allowed the firm to continue thriving despite the challenges of remote work and volatile financial markets.

Box Shield, an advanced security offering by Box, addresses the complexities of protecting sensitive data in a fast-paced and distributed work environment by reducing risk and preventing data leaks without hindering business operations. Internally, Box adopted a "customer zero" mindset, deploying Box Shield before its general release to refine the product and gather feedback. The internal rollout involved defining a simplified classification system, ultimately narrowing down to five categories to facilitate ease of use and prevent misclassification. Integration with applications like Splunk allows for real-time monitoring and alerts, enhancing the ability to act swiftly on potential threats. The deployment of Box Shield internally not only helped Box protect its sensitive data but also reinforced its commitment to integrating security into its operations and products, ensuring a frictionless yet secure user experience.

Dubai International Airport (DXB), the world's busiest international airport, has been at the forefront of innovative aviation management, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the leadership of EVP Michael Ibbitson, the airport has leveraged cloud-based technologies and platforms like Box and Okta to maintain operations despite reduced passenger traffic. The airport's infrastructure allowed a seamless transition to remote work for 35% of its workforce, while the remaining 65% continued onsite to maintain essential services. This period accelerated the airport's digitization efforts, reducing paper usage by up to 90% and enabling projects that were previously challenging due to 24/7 operations. Ibbitson emphasizes that the pandemic highlighted the importance of a robust cloud strategy, which has enhanced DXB's resilience and flexibility, paving the way for a hybrid work model and cross-border collaboration in the future.

Box is committed to making a positive impact through its core value of 'Make Mom Proud,' highlighting the efforts of organizations like CASA of San Mateo County. CASA, which stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates, pairs community volunteers with abused and neglected children under court protection to provide consistent support and advocacy. Originating in 1976 by Seattle Superior Court Judge David Soukup, CASA addresses the gap in representation for children in foster care, ensuring their voices are heard in court. The organization has adapted to the digital age by using tools like Zoom and Box for communication and document sharing, with volunteer training now online. The pandemic has posed challenges, including reduced child abuse reports and a potential increase in foster system entries, leading to a need for more volunteers, especially from diverse backgrounds. Despite fundraising difficulties due to event cancellations, CASA continues to receive community support through donations and resources. The organization is proud of its significant impact on children's lives, emphasizing the importance of human connection and the broader positive effects on families and future generations. CASA encourages volunteerism and donations to continue its mission, offering direct contact through their website and email for further engagement.

Seamless collaboration among dispersed teams has become essential, prompting organizations to equip their workers with tools that enhance productivity and reduce friction. To facilitate this, Atlassian's Confluence and Box have introduced a Smart Links integration that enriches the collaboration experience by embedding Box content within Confluence. This integration allows users to insert Box content with added context through Inline View, Card View, and an upcoming Embed View, which enable file name, type, source visibility, previews, and downloads without leaving Confluence. Security remains a priority, as Box’s enterprise-grade security features remain intact; content owners maintain control over who can access and interact with their files. This new feature is designed to simplify teamwork and enhance the collaborative capabilities of joint customers, and details are available on the Atlassian Support Page.

Feedback and review processes in today's digital work environment can be complicated and inefficient due to dispersed feedback across various platforms, unclear comment references, and the necessity for specific applications to leave comments. This complexity is exacerbated by remote work and asynchronous schedules, leading to confusion and delays in deliverables. Box addresses these challenges with a new annotation feature that allows users to highlight and comment directly within file previews on the web, facilitating clear and efficient collaboration. This feature supports multiple file types, including PowerPoint, Word, PDF, AutoCAD, JPEG, PNG, AI, and PSD, and enhances productivity by reducing miscommunication and streamlining workflows, all while maintaining Box's enterprise-grade security. The annotation tool is now available for all Box customers, with future updates to include mobile support and expanded file type compatibility.