Dropbox thinks outside the box on diversity

Like other major technology companies, Dropbox employed mostly white and Asian men. It was working to attract more women and minorities, but the departure of key women had exposed the company to sharp criticism.

Job interview questions about a zombie apocalypse, and conference rooms named the "Bromance Chamber" and "The Breakup Room" didn't help the company's reputation for being a boy's club. Which is why Dropbox's 31-year-old CEO, Drew Houston, resolved to hack the culture of his own company much the way, seven years ago, he hacked a better way to transport files. Even with 1,000 employees, Dropbox is still young and agile enough to make profound changes to how it recruits and treats employees, Houston said.

Company executives consulted leading experts in diversity including Joan Williams from the Clayman Institute. They also spoke with prominent women in tech who are passionate about the issue, notably Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg and Megan Smith, the former Google executive who is now the chief technology officer of the United States. In less than 10 months, Dropbox doubled the percentage of women working in engineering, product and design and tripled the percentage of women in design, said Dropbox general counsel Ramsey Homsany, who also oversees public policy and people operations. Today diversity is part of everyday business at Dropbox, from all-hands meetings to hackathons, executives say.