Dropbox slashing employee benefits is a symptom of VC funding drying up in Silicon Valley

Dropbox has taken measures to streamline the organisation by cutting down on the generous employee benefits. The move cuts down $25,000 worth of perks per employee per year, or almost $40 million in total per year for all the employees. A free shuttle service to San Fransisco is cancelled. Free guests are limited to five a month, which used to be an unlimited number of people. Considering the open bar on Fridays, this was a major perk. Its gym washing service also stands cancelled. These measures are a sign of funding drying up in Silicon Valley, and pressure on startups to start performing and earning profits after years of spending, according to a report in the Business Insider. The company sent out an email to its employees explaining the changes, as well as put a note on a Panda Statue at the entrance to its office. This chrome Panda statue reportedly costed the company $1,00,000. The note explained that a healthy and sustainable business would not have spent on that statue. Included in the message is an email address that employees can use to mail the company new ideas and methods to cut costs. Such opulent statues are a common fixtures in Silicon Valley offices. Dropbox is only one of the many companies to take measures to streamline the company. Tango and Evernote are other unicorn startups that have had to take cost cutting measures. Even smaller companies are doing everything they can to turn into a profitable business. All these point to an environment in Silicon Valley, where startup funding is drying up.