Greenhouse Open: Interview with Neil Frye of Dropbox

4 mins, 22 secs read time

We are excited to announce Neil Frye, Global Head of Operations & Technology (People) at Dropbox, as a speaker at Greenhouse Open, our annual summit and networking event for those in the Talent Acquisition, People Ops, and HR space, taking place next month in San Francisco! (For more information, click here).

Meet Neil

Neil Frye is Global Head of Operations & Technology on the People team at Dropbox. He helps to lead teams that are developing and executing amazing People processes and technology for the company, whose mission is to simplify the way people work together. Neil was a part of the effort to implement Greenhouse, supporting 300+ hires and 61,000 applications.

Prior to Dropbox, Neil spent more than two years at Google, leading teams of business analysts, program managers, and engineers who developed world class compensation, payroll, benefits, and sales incentive technology. In addition, Neil was responsible for people data security programs including access, authentication, audit, and transmission.

Prior to Google, Neil spent more than 10 years with Accenture's HR & Talent Management practice. During this time he helped design and implement HR-shared services and technology.

Q&A;

We recently chatted with Neil to get to know him better. Neil has worked at several top talent companies and has a unique perspective on the industry. Here’s what he had to say:

1. What drove your passion to enter the People space?

My internships in college were both in HR. First, with Enterprise Rent-A-Car, I worked alongside a recruiter. Second, with Walmart, I worked for the Head of HR for an import distribution center. In one summer, we hired 300 people! I loved meeting new people, helping to determine if they were a fit, going through the process, and finally watching them get hired. That excitement and fulfillment is pretty powerful.

2. Which professional accomplishment are you most proud of?

In the last 11 months, the team at Dropbox has grown and developed a lot. The team has documented all of our processes (25+) and started measuring key outcomes like customer satisfaction, process efficiency, and program effectiveness. We have started using our technology investments much more, and we are building on the amazing foundation the team laid out before I arrived.

3. You have worked for some of the world's top companies. What has most intrigued you about the focus on "People" at these companies, compared to smaller/newer companies?

When companies first start out, while they recognize the importance of people, they don't always have the background or bandwidth to develop an experience around the process of becoming and growing as an employee. A lot of the growth happens organically and as a company grows larger, talent growth needs real attention and no longer just “happens.” It is also more complex, especially as new countries, business models, etc. emerge.

4. Complete this sentence: If employers want to get the best talent through the door (and keep them), they better make sure they’re focusing on ______.

...constantly evolving the employee value proposition through an amazing candidate, employee, and alumni experience.

5. What are you most excited about for Greenhouse Open?

I am most looking forward to hearing from other organizations that are using Greenhouse to optimize the candidate experience and support hiring managers and teams. We are at a very unique time in our profession; it’s a tipping point where a new breed of technological solutions and our teams are at their best!

6. Can you give us a taste of what you will be speaking about at Greenhouse Open?

I will be talking about how we have built a world-class People team at Dropbox and what makes what we are doing different and special. I will also touch on how we are looking to develop the Dropboxer experience both in technology and day-to-day life.

7. What are your go-to resources for staying on top of People/HR tech/talent news? How do you continue your learning and make sure you continue to evolve as a professional in this space?

I like to look at LinkedIn postings from colleagues and scroll through postings in LinkedIn groups. I also enjoy gathering and sharing information with others when I attend conferences. I like to listen to their challenges and then open up myself about what has and hasn't worked in my experiences. This encourages others to open up even more, and a great conversation comes out of it. We all learn something!

8. What is one prediction you have for how the People/HR tech/talent space will change in the next year?

Gosh, prediction. I'm no Nostradamus but as I mentioned before, I think we are in a pretty unique place. It’s time that we, as talent and HR professionals, stop solely optimizing for our processes and instead take a more design-based approach and execute following agile methods to deliver a delightful experience to our teams—and faster!

Engage with Neil and other professionals in the talent and HR space by checking out Greenhouse Open, May 25-27th in San Francisco.