Uber Founder Resigns as CEO

Travis Kalanick, the founder of Uber officially stepped down from his position as CEO of the company on June 20. The technology company that was started in 2009 offers car transportation as well as food delivery services.

Considered to be one of the most successful companies in the world, revolt by the shareholder made it untenable for Kalanick to stay on in the company. Reportedly, Mr. Kalanick stepped down in the face of pressure from five of Uber’s largest investors. While he will no longer function as CEO, he will remain on the company’s board.

“I love Uber more than anything in the world and at this difficult moment in my personal life I have accepted the investors request to step aside so that Uber can go back to building rather than be distracted with another fight,” Kalanick said.

Due to ongoing strife from within the company,  Kalanick  had taken an indefinite leave of absence on June 13, 2017 which ultimately culminated into his stepping down permanently. His responsibilities would be assumed by those reporting under him in the organization.

Travis Kalanick

Travis Cordell Kalanick (born August 6, 1976) is an American computer programmer and businessman. He is the co-founder of the peer-to-peer file sharing company Red Swoosh and ex-CEO of transportation network company Uber

In 2014, he entered the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans at position 190, with an estimated net worth of US$6.3 billion.Uber (2009–2017)

Uber

In 2009, Kalanick joined Garrett Camp co-founder of StumbleUpon to start Uber, a mobile app that connects passengers with drivers of vehicles for hire and ridesharing services. It operates in 66 countries and in more than 570 cities around the world. Last year Uber alone raised more money than the entire UK start-up industry.

Analysis

The most dramatic fall from grace the start-up world has ever seen

What started as a PR inconvenience has left the company without a Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Technology Officer and Chief Financial Officer among others. Uber is in currently in deep crisis.

A group of investors, particularly Bill Gurley of venture capitalist firm Benchmark, had put pressure on Mr Kalanick to resign as a result of this.

What's riskier for the investors? Removing the man who made Uber what it is, or keeping him on?

The firm has been searching for a Chief Operating Officer, but now can seek out Fortune 500 chief executives to take over the top spot.

Here are some of the controversies that have plagued Uber in the recent times

• The medical records of an India woman who was raped by an Uber driver in 2014 was reportedly obtained.
• Board member David Bonderman made a sexist remark at a meeting about workplace practice recommendations last week and then resigned as a Director.
• In February, Uber said it was investigating "abhorrent" sexual harassment claims made by former employee Susan Fowler, who wrote an explosive essay detailing those claims. publicly.
• This month Uber it had fired more than 20 staff and had taken action against others following a review of more than 200 HR complaints that included harassment and bullying.
• There has also been a lawsuit from Google's parent company, Alphabet, over alleged theft of trade secrets related to driverless cars.

Assessment

Kalanick pushed the boundaries when it came to running Uber. His mantra of trying to achieve success at all costs led to multiple missteps that ultimately caught up to him. By not always playing fair, the company has been accused of deceiving local regulators, neglecting the well-being of its employees, mistreatment of its drivers, and of generally being amoral. This has led to massive public backlash and loss in reputation. This has led to a public relations disaster which the organization may or may not recover from. Our assessment is that in this day and age where reputations are made and broken within seconds, companies ought to make a conscious effort to cultivate a humane environment for its employees, clients and customers in order to succeed.