Posted by Matt Thorne, Head of IT, Pinterest

Editor's note: Today’s post comes from Matt Thorne, Head of IT at Pinterest, the discovery and inspiration tool that has attracted 70 million users worldwide. To learn more about this story live, join Thorne in an upcoming Hangout on Air to talk about infusing startup innovation into any culture by reimagining the way we meet.

As we approach our fifth year, we continue to embrace our startup culture — the fast-paced, dynamic work environment that keeps us innovating. Staying agile means prioritizing face-to-face collaboration between our employees, which was easy when we first launched and worked from a single building. As our workforce has grown to 400+ employees, we’ve spread beyond our headquarters in San Francisco and opened offices worldwide. We had been using a mix of conference bridges and mobile phones for meetings but needed a better way for people to connect with one another.

We’re always using technology to work more creatively, so when I was invited to take part in a beta test for Chromebox for meetings, I jumped on it. The price was right, which is important for a young company. While legacy video conferencing systems can cost millions, we’ve spent a small fraction of that with Chromeboxes. Setting up our 60 devices was easy and people can use them without constant IT hand-holding. They’re now in nearly all of our San Francisco conference rooms, as well as smaller all-hands spaces and in every remote office that has a conference room.

One of our core company values is “knitting,” which translates to working across disciplines for the best possible outcome. Chromebox for meetings has enabled us to knit and maintain important parts of our company culture by helping people in remote offices feel connected to us in San Francisco. We erase the distance between offices (and desks) and empower people to make an impact when they come to meetings.

Our employees have found ways to use Chromebox for meetings beyond our internal meetings, including interviewing job candidates with Hangouts and conducting new-hire orientations via video calls. It’s an easier way for everyone – even remote employees or those in another building – to get the training they need.

At Pinterest, we’ve come so far so fast because we help people save and discover their favorite things online. To keep our users engaged, we also need to keep that spark of creativity alive in our employees. Chromebox for meetings helps us engage with our colleagues near and far, so the marathon runner pinning tips to train for the big race or the DIYer remodeling his bathroom — and everyone who loves to discover new ideas — continue to get inspired every day.