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Add Ability to Add Out-of-Account Dropbox Users To A Group and/or Team Folder for Cross-Biz Collab

Add Ability to Add Out-of-Account Dropbox Users To A Group and/or Team Folder for Cross-Biz Collab

Speez
Helpful | Level 6

Hope this is the right spot, but this is a feature we could use a lot and I imagine others could too.

Team folders/groups give nice powerful admin control features, but you currently cannot add a 3rd party or parties to a group or team folder, only people who are under your paid account. In our industry (construction) we have a lot of joint venture projects among multiple companies, and each company already operates and pays for their own dropbox business account. The issue is that we need a shared collaborative storage space, but a typical shared folder does not off the level of admin control that a team folder does.

The request would be to all admins to add users of other dropbox accounts to a team or group (provided they accept the invite) so that users across companies working on the same project can operate in the same team folder with all the controls that come with that. We are currently on a large 2-company and another large 3-company project, and all 5 companies run their own paid dropbox business accounts. The only way we can share on the projects is to use a shared folder, but it would be great if the managing company of each project could just create a group for that project and then invite employees of the other company to join that group and thus then be given access to the team folder for Project #1, Project #2, etc.

Please add this ASAP, this is a big deal.

Latest Update
Ross_S
Dropbox Staff
 
Status changed to: Investigating
10 Comments
Ross_S
Dropbox Staff
 
Status changed to: Investigating
olitronic
Explorer | Level 4

At the moment we have to create a new shared user for each partner buiness we share with, so they can access a cross buisness shared folder..... but a pain for them as you can only have one personel + one buiness account logged in. May also work if account could be linked to 1 peronal + multiple buisness accounts 

Jean_Francois Kleinfinger
Helpful | Level 6

Hello,

My post is about collaborating securely with other organisations using dropbox.

 

Today I can  :

- organize my team in groups, and define permissions at group level, which is essential for it to be manageable.

- invite individuals outside my team to share on a folder by folder basis.

 

Today I CANT add external accounts in my groups, even if they have a Dropbox Business account in their organization.

==> This is a mess to handle as I have to duplicate my group permission on each new individual allowed to see some of my files. For instance, if I want to add my accountant assistant or new employee, I have to do the work again and again, when he joins or when he leaves, WHICH IS NOT MANAGEABLE.

 

I suggest that dropbox allow the INCLUSION OF EXTERNAL ACCOUNTS in my groups, so I can be consistent in the definition and managment of my permissions.

 

Thanks for considering this feature, as I beleive it would enhance and secure cross-business use of the product.

 

Regards

JFK

Indigo Star
Explorer | Level 3

It would be interesting to have external groups to the team, it is to facilitate the administration when sharing content, and thus allow the management of permissions from the group this facilitates assigning many users to an item more easily.

 

Jean_Francois Kleinfinger
Helpful | Level 6

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one needing this feature.

I guess it's essential for cross business collaboration.

That might be a reason for me to quit dropbox, as my business grows, I will need to industrialize thoses collaborations, and I dont want to deal with individual permission on my file system.

Hope dropbox will do something soon ...

Emmet
Community Manager

Our team is looking into this and would want more information about the level of detail you would like from this feature? Any additional info you could provide would be greatly appreciated. 

Jean_Francois Kleinfinger
Helpful | Level 6

Hi Emmet,

 

I think everything is said in the various posts but feel free to contact me directly (mail or phone) to have a live exchange if you need.

 

Maybe we could add a reflexion on the way it will handled on both sides :

- On a person by person basis : Compagny 1 define a group, including some individuals that do not belong to compagny but have an dropbox account

- On a group basis : Compagny 1 define a group, including some groups that do not belong to compagny but are definied in another dropbox account

rohiniv
Dropbox Product Manager

Hi there! I am a product lead here at Dropbox. Thank you for taking the time to submit these feature requests and all the detail around why it's important to you. It's super helpful for our team. And, some good news—we are actively exploring a few of the ideas mentioned here. 

 

On the topic of working with people or organizations outside of your company, I recognize that Dropbox is limiting today, and I understand this is frustrating. We are committed to making it easier for you to collaborate with whoever you work with, whether they work at your company or not. We’ve noted the ideas in this thread as we explore new possible features. @Jean_Francois Kleinfinger, if you're still up for a live conversation, our team would love to sit down with you to share some early ideas and get your feedback. Just let me know in a comment and we will make it happen!

 

@olitronic, we are in the early stages of building a feature that will allow you to link multiple business accounts. If you or members of your team would be interested in getting early access to test and provide feedback, please leave a comment below and we will send you more information on how to join!

Jean_Francois Kleinfinger
Helpful | Level 6

Hi@rohiniv 

Pleased to meet you and to see your post.

I'm quite busy but I'd gladly spend some time to discuss your ideas on that feature with you.

Let me know how you see that, I live in Paris.

Regards

rohiniv
Dropbox Product Manager

Hi @Jean_Francois Kleinfinger! Thank you for getting back to me. I understand you are quite busy, and we don't want to take up much of your time! Is it okay for us to reach out to you via the email address you have connected to your Dropbox account? My team will reach out you over the next several weeks with the ideas they are exploring. Thank you so much!

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