Uber – the $66 billion ride-sharing conglomerate that left the transport and technology industries shaken – has recently undergone a major HR change. The shake-ups and replacements usher in a series of new opportunities, but also raise a new set of questions about the culture of the company and its plans for the future.
On Tuesday, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick announced that he would take a leave of absence from his role. While the duration of his leave remains under wraps, we have seen 7 of his key executives also leave the company and some have joined rival companies. At a point where the massive startup is facing multiple challenges to expansion and growth, the CEO’s leave comes as no surprise.
Attempting to take a step in the right direction, Uber recently hired 14 new executives who will run the company in Kalanick’s absence.
Here’s what you need to know about them:
Jill Hazelbaker – SVP, Policy and Communications
Former Googler, Hazelbaker joined the Uber team in April replacing Rachel Whetstone. She also has experience in politics, working with Michael Bloomberg’s mayoral campaign in 2009 and John McCain’s 2008 run for president.
Salle Yoo – Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary
Uber has seen a host of legal actions taken against it. To handle those sticky issues, Yoo is the perfect choice. Apart from being a legal genius, Yoo is also extremely passionate about equal pay for men and women.
Eric Meyhofer – Head, Advance Technologies Group
Eric Meyhofer heads the Advance Technologies Group that works on self-driving cars and trucks. He was also the co-founder of Carnegie Robotics.
Frances Frei – SVP, Leadership and Strategy
Frances Frei is a Harvard Business School professor who will focus on training managers and executives, along with assisting the HR department.
Jeff Holden – Chief Product Officer
Amazon veteran Jeff Holden is now all set to help shape Uber’s crazy futuristic projects. His most recent project is Uber Elevate – a network of flying taxis Uber hopes to launch in Dubai in 2020.
Daniel Graf – VP, Product Management
Former Googler who was responsible for bringing Google Maps to the iPhone and Silicon Valley veteran, Daniel Graf took over the Product Team after Ed Baker quit.
Joe Sullivan – Chief Security Officer
Joe Sullivan will oversee everything related to security and safety at the company, from tracking driver’s phones to monitoring speeding.
Liane Hornsey – Chief Human Resource Officer
Hornsey is, according to Kalanick “one of the most sought after ‘people people’ in the world” and stands to be one of Ubers best hires.
Pierre-Dmitro Gore-Coty – RGM, EMEA
Europe has been a hotly contested market for Uber. Gore-Coty has been charged with transforming it into a successful one.
Andrew Macdonald – RGM, Latin America and APAC Markets
Macdonald has been with Uber since its early days and has risen through the ranks to get to this position.
Rachel Holt – RGM, US and Canada
Rachel Holt oversees some of the company’s biggest metro markets, including Washington, D.C., where she is based. She is responsible for over 200 cities.
Ryan Graves – SVP, Operations
Graves served as Uber’s first CEO and general manager. Kalanick succeeded him as CEO and he is now the head of operations.
David Richter – SVP, Business
Prior to joining Uber, David Richter was the chief strategy officer at Say Media for three years. With Kalanick on leave, David is going to have a handful of responsibilities.
Thuan Pham – Chief Technology Officer
Thuan Pham has been leading Uber’s engineering team since 2013 and it has grown from 40 engineers to over 1200.
With a completely new set of executives and still a company overflowing with good ideas, it will be exciting to see how these minds combine forces to combat existing issues and develop new plans and strategies for growth and expansion.
Megha Shah for TechFunnel.com
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