September 2020 Summaries

Box is dedicated to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace culture that reflects the broad spectrum of its global clientele, emphasizing the importance of diverse gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and perspectives. The company highlights its commitment through the active engagement of its Employee Resource Communities (ERCs), such as the Latinx ERC, which plays a significant role in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month and providing a sense of belonging and support for its members. Employees like Karla Ortiz, Ashley Fernandez, and Melina Cortez share their experiences within these communities, noting how ERCs offer opportunities for connection, support, and professional growth. The involvement of executive leadership in ERCs at Box is noted as a distinguishing factor, with leaders like CCO Jon Herstein actively participating and supporting the communities, which enhances the sense of inclusion and belonging. The ERCs also collaborate across different groups to organize events and initiatives, further reinforcing Box's commitment to diversity, inclusion, and community engagement, which ultimately contributes to a thriving workplace environment.

In the context of unprecedented stressors such as COVID-19, social injustices, and political polarization, Box emphasizes the need for leadership to support employees through sustainable work-from-home schedules, creating a sense of certainty, and fostering meaningful connections. Dr. David Rock from the NeuroLeadership Institute highlights the importance of reducing uncertainty's cognitive impact by providing clear timelines and allowing flexibility in work schedules. At Box, leaders are encouraged to engage in deep listening, unite teams, and act boldly, promoting inclusion and mitigating biases to enhance decision-making and employee retention. By adopting a human-centered approach to leadership, organizations can ensure the well-being and productivity of their teams, while also advancing business objectives.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is enhancing its mission to provide world-class benefits and services to Veterans by adopting modern technology and cloud-based solutions, exemplified by its recent approval of Box with an Authority to Operate (ATO). This strategic move is part of the VA's digital-first approach to reimagining its organizational systems, APIs, and data management, enabling secure sharing and management of critical healthcare processes and content. The application of Box allows VA staff, doctors, and Veterans to collaborate efficiently on various projects, from sharing COVID-19 research data with academic institutions to managing construction project files and treatment plans, thereby improving the cost-effectiveness of care. With FedRAMP compliance and Department of Defense SRG Impact Level 4 Authorization, Box ensures the privacy and security of sensitive data, positioning the VA at the forefront of government agencies leveraging technology to enhance stakeholder engagement and mission outcomes. The VA's adoption of Box aligns it with other federal organizations like the USDA, FDA, and Department of Justice, who have also embraced this platform to foster efficiency and agility in their operations.

Box, a cloud content management company, leveraged its annual BoxWorks conference and internal fundraising efforts to address the digital divide exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on supporting digital transformation for nonprofits and their beneficiaries. Recognizing the lack of access to technology for millions of Americans, Box partnered with human-I-T to raise funds and awareness, aiming to provide connectivity and devices to underserved students. The company creatively engaged employees through campaigns like Tags for Good, exclusive Zoom backgrounds, and a fireside chat with human-I-T, while also involving executives in fundraising activities. During BoxWorks Digital, partnerships with Cisco and Okta were highlighted, and a Tweet for Good campaign on social media further amplified the initiative. The conference featured interactive elements such as a DJ event and a fireside chat with Magic Johnson, all contributing to the successful raising of over $100K, surpassing their target and ensuring that more than 800 students would receive the necessary technology to continue their education.

The Box Connector for Microsoft Graph, announced at Microsoft Ignite, is set to enhance the integration between Box and Microsoft platforms, providing users with a seamless and interoperable experience. This connector allows content stored in Box to be accessible across Microsoft's ecosystem, including Office 365, Office Online, and SharePoint, thereby improving content discovery and navigation. The integration aims to reduce friction for users managing content across multiple platforms by ensuring accessibility, interoperability, and maintaining Box's enterprise-grade security standards. The Box Connector for Microsoft Graph will be available to Box and Microsoft customers in early 2021, offering a streamlined method to connect Box content with Microsoft Search and Microsoft 365.

The year 2020 has posed significant challenges for government agencies, with increased demands from citizens, employees shifting to remote work, and the need for digital transformation amidst political changes. Agencies are compelled to enhance productivity, provide comprehensive digital citizen support, and prioritize data security, all while reducing compliance risks. At BoxWorks Digital, leaders from organizations like NASA and the Idaho National Lab emphasized the critical role of cloud services in modernizing operations and improving communication. The adoption of cloud technologies is essential for driving operational efficiency, securing content sharing, and fostering collaborative environments. This shift not only accelerates processes and reduces costs but also ensures resilient and efficient public sector operations. As citizens increasingly rely on digital interactions, agencies must redefine their problem-solving approaches and leverage intuitive cloud solutions to enhance citizen satisfaction and engagement, thereby maintaining high service standards in a regulated environment.

Box has introduced Annotations, a feature designed to improve collaboration and streamline the review process by centralizing feedback directly within document previews, eliminating the need for specific software to view or comment on files. This tool enhances the work-from-anywhere model by allowing users to annotate various file types such as slide decks, PDFs, and images, thereby facilitating accurate communication, efficient workflow, and quicker decision-making. Senior Product Designer Matt Hewes describes using Annotations to manage feedback from multiple stakeholders on complex projects, while Director of Product Marketing Caroline Shieh uses it for dynamic note-taking during meetings, allowing for collaborative review and editing. Principal Customer Success Manager Scott Juster highlights key points in shared documents with customers, providing context and saving time during discussions. Annotations is available to all Box users and aims to foster increased collaboration, transparency, and faster decision-making.

In 2020, the Life Sciences industry faced significant challenges due to the pandemic, necessitating a shift towards digital solutions to maintain operations such as clinical trials and regulatory compliance. As organizations like PRA Health Sciences adapted, the focus was on digitizing and streamlining processes such as the handling of Informed Consent Forms (ICFs) using cloud platforms like Box. This transition addressed issues like content silos and audit trail deficiencies, facilitating real-time collaboration and enhanced security. The shift towards automation and cloud-based solutions is expected to continue, providing competitive advantages by reducing overhead and accelerating time to market while paving the way for more advanced intelligent automation solutions. As the industry progresses in its digital transformation, leveraging these technologies will be crucial for future success, with the potential to extend automation benefits beyond clinical operations to areas like pharmacovigilance.

In 2020, digital disruption became a central focus for businesses across all industries, particularly in financial services, where companies faced unprecedented challenges in adapting to remote work while maintaining security and providing new digital experiences for clients. Box has played a pivotal role in facilitating secure, efficient file sharing and collaboration for financial institutions, as highlighted in discussions at BoxWorks Digital with technology leaders from organizations like BlackRock, USAA, Associated Bank, and ATB Financial. These discussions emphasized the need to adapt to clients' growing expectations for digital-first experiences, ensure robust security measures, and provide high-quality work environments for employees. Box's integration with over 1400 systems and its focus on security and personalization has enabled companies like Associated Bank and USAA to manage new initiatives such as the paycheck protection program efficiently. As financial services continue to evolve digitally, Box encourages firms to prepare for future work style shifts by building a comprehensive cloud stack that integrates content across business applications.

Box has adapted to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by enhancing its security solutions to support the increasing shift to remote work and digital transformation. With the rise in sensitive data being stored and shared in the cloud, Box Shield, a key security tool, integrates advanced machine learning to prevent data breaches by restricting accidental data sharing and alerting IT teams to potential security threats. Recent enhancements to Box Shield include malware detection, automated classification, and integrations with platforms like Splunk, Microsoft Office Online, and Apple iWork to provide comprehensive content protection. Additionally, Box has bolstered its zero trust architecture with features like two-factor authentication, Device Trust, and Application Controls to secure data access. In compliance, Box aims to meet industry-specific standards, supporting certifications such as FedRamp High and expanding GxP validation. The company is also enhancing its content lifecycle management with event-based retention, allowing organizations to manage data retention schedules flexibly. Through these advancements, Box continues to enable organizations to safely and efficiently handle their digital transformation and compliance needs.

In the evolving work-from-anywhere landscape, Box is enhancing its collaboration tools to better support remote productivity by introducing features like Annotations, mobile device integration, and Box Notes improvements. During BoxWorks Digital 2020, Box unveiled updates such as intuitive feedback Annotations, which centralize review processes and are compatible with various document types, including images and PDFs, and support for Apple Pencil and Apple Scribble for mobile devices. These enhancements aim to streamline collaboration and decision-making by offering precise text annotation, flexible modification options, and comprehensive mobile functionality. Additionally, the company is focusing on boosting mobile productivity with a new user experience for iPads, improved search results, and enhanced photo handling. As part of its ongoing innovation, Box plans to further develop Box Notes to facilitate efficient collaboration both internally and externally, while the newly launched "What's New" message center will keep users informed about the latest updates and educational resources.

As companies transition from ensuring business continuity to optimizing operations, the demand for efficient content collaboration tools has increased, prompting Box to enhance its Box Relay features for better automation. This includes the introduction of pre-built and customizable workflow templates, which allow organizations to standardize processes while accommodating unique workflow variations across different business units. The flexibility of these templates aids process owners in maintaining consistency and reducing risks, while allowing business users to quickly build workflows adhering to company guidelines. Additionally, Box Relay's new APIs, such as the Manual Start API and the File Request API, facilitate the integration of workflows with external systems, enhancing the extensibility of Box's automation capabilities. As Box continues to innovate with customization and API enhancements, these improvements promise a future of more intuitive, collaborative, and automated workflows, ultimately leading to increased efficiency and reduced business risks.

Box is transforming remote work by enhancing its cloud content management platform with innovations aimed at improving security, compliance, and collaboration. At BoxWorks Digital, the company highlighted its Box Shield solution, which uses advanced machine learning to prevent accidental data leaks and detect threats, restricting around 400,000 accidental shares daily. New integrations with Microsoft Information Protection and IBM's QRadar enhance security operations and compliance capabilities, including FedRamp High certification and GxP validation for specific industries. Box is also advancing collaboration features with support for Annotations on mobile devices and Apple Pencil, while Box Relay offers no-code workflow automation with custom templates and API integrations. The company supports a "best-of-breed" approach by integrating with over 1,500 applications, including Microsoft Teams, and is launching a redesigned App Gallery to streamline app management and integration. Box is expanding its developer tools to facilitate integration and app development, all part of its efforts to centralize content and make work more intuitive and automated.

BoxWorks is hosting its first fully digital event, welcoming the nonprofit community for sessions and interactions aimed at fostering engagement, sharing, and learning. The event features over 25 sessions across 9 tracks, including a Nonprofit Track where industry leaders discuss securing critical nonprofit solutions and navigating the challenges posed by COVID-19. Keynotes and conversations include notable speakers such as IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins, and sports icon Earvin "Magic" Johnson, who will share insights on business and community success. The event also highlights a fundraiser for human I-T, an organization providing technology and internet access to low-income individuals and nonprofits, with donations tied to social media engagement using the hashtag #BoxWorks. Participants are encouraged to visit the BoxWorks website for the full schedule and to engage with the Box.org team throughout the event.

Caroline Caselli's journey at Box illustrates a dynamic career path marked by growth and adaptability within the company. Starting as a Sales Development Representative in 2013, she navigated through various roles, eventually becoming a Small & Medium Business Manager in 2020. Her transition to management was both challenging and rewarding, particularly during the tumultuous year of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic forced significant changes, including a shift to remote work. Caroline emphasizes the importance of empathy, problem-solving, and personal development in her management style, focusing on understanding individual team members' motivations and fostering a culture of best practice sharing. She attributes her career success to the supportive culture at Box and aims to help her team members grow by drawing on her own experiences and providing credible feedback. Caroline's story highlights how a supportive environment and a willingness to embrace new challenges can lead to personal and professional fulfillment.

In 2020, a significant number of Americans, approximately 82 million, lack access to a home computer with internet, highlighting the critical importance of digital connectivity as schools close due to the pandemic. In response, BoxWorks has partnered with the nonprofit organization human-I-T to address this issue by providing low-income individuals and nonprofits with technology, internet, and digital training. Human-I-T transforms electronic waste into opportunities by collaborating with corporations, government entities, nonprofits, and the public. To support their efforts, BoxWorks launched a "Tweet for Good" campaign, pledging $5 for every tweet using the hashtag #BoxWorks, with a total donation of up to $15,000. Funds raised will help provide hotspots and refurbished laptops to students and families, aiming to bridge the digital divide and equip students with the necessary resources for education. Participants are encouraged to engage in the campaign on September 17th and consider further contributions to support human-I-T's mission.

Box AI Agents is a tool designed to optimize the use of unstructured data, offering capabilities that can enhance enterprise workflows. It is positioned alongside related products and articles, such as Claude Opus 5, which is applied to real enterprise work, and guidance for government agencies on evaluating content management platforms in the context of AI advancements. The emphasis is on staying informed about the latest developments in AI, suggesting a focus on innovation and adaptability in data management solutions.

The recent Box Partner Summit, held digitally for the first time, gathered over 100 partners, including resellers, system integrators, and technology firms, to discuss Box's strategic vision and partner ecosystem's role in advancing their objectives. CEO Aaron Levie and CRO Mark Wayland emphasized the importance of partnerships in addressing CIOs' priorities, such as business resiliency, productivity, data security, and cost optimization. With the accelerated digital transformation necessitated by remote work, Box is positioning itself as a leading cloud content management platform that integrates seamlessly with enterprise IT systems. The summit highlighted updates to Box's Partner Strategy, including refining the Technology Partner Program, launching initiatives for emerging SaaS companies, and maximizing partner impact through the Box app gallery. The company plans to simplify partner onboarding, enhance technical enablement, and extend partner reach to the sales team while focusing on new SaaS companies to foster integration and innovation. This approach aims to strengthen Box's position in the market and support joint ventures that benefit both partners and customers.

Equal Opportunity Schools (EOS) is dedicated to ensuring that students of color and low-income students gain equitable access to high-level academic programs like Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate, driven by the belief in their inherent talents and potential. Founded by Reid Saaris, whose experiences highlighted educational disparities, EOS has evolved to use technology, such as web-based applications and real-time data analytics, to support its mission while adapting content to online formats amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite challenges like balancing scale with transformative depth and competing for innovation resources, EOS has maintained high client retention, expanded its impact, and continued to provide significant value to school districts. The organization is proud of its adaptability and resilience during a turbulent year, highlighting the importance of addressing systemic inequities beyond technical solutions and fostering engagement to create equitable learning environments.