Ali Dasdan
DROPBOXAbout Ali Dasdan
Ali Dasdan, age 55, was appointed Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Dropbox in March 2025 after senior engineering leadership roles at ZoomInfo and Atlassian. He holds a PhD in Computer Science (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), an MSc in Computer Engineering (Bilkent University), and a BSc in Computer Engineering (Bogazici University) . As CTO, his tenure is ~8 months as of November 2025; the 2024 and 2025 company performance context shows revenue growth and margin expansion, with FY 2024 revenue at $2.548B, non‑GAAP operating margin at 36.4%, and free cash flow at $871.6M . In Q3 2025, revenue was $634.4M, GAAP operating margin 27.5%, and non‑GAAP operating margin 41.1%, with operating cash flow of $302.1M .
Company performance context:
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($USD Millions) | $2,501.6 | $2,548.2 |
| Non-GAAP Operating Margin (%) | 32.8% | 36.4% |
| Free Cash Flow ($USD Millions) | $759.4 | $871.6 |
Q3 performance:
| Metric | Q3 2024 | Q3 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($USD Millions) | $638.8 | $634.4 |
| GAAP Operating Margin (%) | 20.0% | 27.5% |
| Non-GAAP Operating Margin (%) | 36.2% | 41.1% |
| Net Cash From Operating Activities ($USD Millions) | $274.2 | $302.1 |
| Free Cash Flow ($USD Millions) | $270.1 | $293.7 |
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZoomInfo Technologies, Inc. | EVP & CTO | 2023–2025 | Led technology strategy and platform operations at a SaaS sales/marketing intelligence leader |
| Atlassian Corporation Plc | Head of Engineering, Confluence Cloud; later Head of Engineering, Work Management for All | 2019–2023 | Scaled cloud engineering and expanded work management product portfolio |
| Poynt LLC | Head of Engineering and Product | 2018–2019 | Led engineering/product for payments platform |
| Tesco PLC | Head of Engineering, Data & Marketing Automation | 2016–2018 | Built data and marketing automation capabilities for a global retailer |
| Turn Inc.; eBay Inc.; Yahoo! Inc.; Synopsys, Inc. | Various engineering/product leadership roles | Prior to 2016 | Senior leadership across adtech, e‑commerce, web, and EDA firms |
External Roles
No public company directorships or external board roles disclosed for Ali Dasdan .
Fixed Compensation
Dropbox’s executive compensation program uses a pay‑for‑performance design (base salary plus annual cash bonus), overseen by an independent Talent & Compensation Committee advised by Compensia; specific 2025 pay elements for Ali Dasdan have not been disclosed in SEC filings to date . Stock ownership guidelines require executive officers (other than CEO) to hold company stock equal to 2× base salary within 5 years; compliance is monitored and executives are prohibited from hedging/pledging Dropbox securities .
Key program features:
- Independent committee; independent consultant (Compensia)
- At‑risk pay emphasis; annual cash bonus plus long‑term equity (primarily RSUs)
- Stock ownership guidelines: CEO 5× salary; other execs 2× salary
- No executive retirement plans; no tax gross‑ups; clawback policy compliant with Nasdaq/SEC
Performance Compensation
Dropbox’s 2024 Annual Cash Bonus Plan (preceding Ali’s appointment) illustrates the current framework, with revenue and non‑GAAP operating margin metrics, corporate funding curves, and discretion.
| Metric | Weight | Target (FY 2024) | Actual (FY 2024) | Corporate funding / notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($USD Millions) | 67% | $2,565 | $2,545 | Funding curve up to 125%; combined corporate factor capped at 100% via committee discretion |
| Non-GAAP Operating Margin (%) | 33% | 33.1% | 36.1% | Funding curve up to 125%; combined corporate factor capped at 100% |
Plan structure:
- Individual bonus payout range 0–187.5% of target (corporate and individual performance)
- Committee exercised discretion to cap corporate funding at 100% due to workforce reduction cost savings impact
- RSU vesting for executives: typical new awards vest over 4 years in equal quarterly installments
Named executive officer payout outcomes (context for plan calibration):
| Executive | Target ($) | Paid ($) | % of target |
|---|---|---|---|
| CEO (Houston) | 756,489 | 551,480 | 73% |
| CFO (Regan) | 476,000 | 623,000 | 131% |
| Chief Legal Officer (Volkmer) | 390,000 | 284,000 | 73% |
| Chief Customer Officer (Cox) | 500,000 | 365,000 | 73% |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Stock ownership guidelines: 2× base salary for executive officers; 5× for CEO; measured excluding unvested/unexercised awards; 5‑year compliance window .
- Hedging and pledging prohibited for all employees, executive officers, and directors; no holding of stock in margin accounts .
- Clawback policy adopted August 2023 (effective for compensation received after Oct 2, 2023): recovers excess incentive‑based compensation following a restatement due to material non‑compliance with financial reporting requirements .
- Beneficial ownership details for Ali Dasdan are not separately disclosed in the 2025 proxy (he was appointed CTO in March 2025 and was not a 2024 NEO); security ownership tables in the proxy focus on directors/NEOs and 5% holders .
Typical executive RSU vesting:
- Time‑based RSUs vest over 4 years in equal quarterly installments; executives did not receive stock options or SARs in 2024 .
Employment Terms
Dropbox maintains standardized severance and change‑in‑control protections for executive officers (double‑trigger), which are applicable to executives including (but not limited to) the NEOs.
| Scenario | Cash severance | Bonus | Benefits | Equity vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Involuntary termination outside CIC (“basic severance”) | 50% of annual base salary (lump sum) | — | COBRA premiums up to 6 months (or taxable equivalent) | Program‑specific; in 2024 NEO agreements included limited accelerated vesting (e.g., 3 months for certain execs) |
| Termination in CIC period (within 3 months pre/post CIC and 12 months after) | 100% of annual base salary (lump sum) | 100% of target annual bonus | COBRA premiums up to 12 months (or taxable equivalent) | 100% accelerated vesting; performance equity deemed at 100% of target unless award agreements specify otherwise |
| Structure | Double‑trigger required for CIC benefits | — | — | — |
Additional terms:
- Employment letters are “at‑will”; executives are prohibited from competing during employment, diverting customers, disclosing confidential information, and soliciting employees post‑employment for a period .
- No excise tax gross‑ups; “better after‑tax” provision applies if parachute payments under Section 280G would trigger excise tax, optimizing after‑tax outcomes for the executive .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Executive ownership guidelines (2× salary), clawback, and prohibitions on hedging/pledging support shareholder alignment and reduce governance risk .
- Incentives tied to operating performance: Annual bonus metrics focus on revenue and non‑GAAP operating margin, reinforcing profitable growth; discretionary cap usage in 2024 reduced windfall risk from cost actions .
- Retention dynamics: RSUs vest quarterly over 4 years, promoting retention while potentially creating periodic sellable supply as awards settle; Dropbox’s aggressive share repurchase programs offset float increases at the company level .
- Change‑of‑control economics: Double‑trigger structure with 1× base and 1× target bonus, 12 months COBRA, and full equity vesting is market‑standard and avoids single‑trigger windfalls .
- Track record and execution: Ali’s deep cloud engineering leadership (Atlassian Confluence Cloud; Work Management) and prior CTO experience at ZoomInfo align with Dropbox’s AI and work‑management ambitions; recent quarterly margins and cash flow trends support the operational discipline underpinning incentive frameworks .
Note: Specific 2025 compensation grant details for Ali Dasdan (e.g., base salary, target bonus, initial RSU grant size/vesting dates) have not been disclosed in SEC filings available to date; such details are typically provided in subsequent proxy statements or Item 5.02 8‑K filings. Current analysis reflects Dropbox’s executive compensation structure and policy disclosures and the 2024 plan outcomes .