In late June, Travis Kalanick resigned as CEO of Uber following pressure from investors due to numerous controversies and PR blunders. The ride-sharing company wasn’t enjoying a good look after a sexual harassment scandal in addition to a #DeleteUber campaign due to backlash over surge pricing on multiple unsavory occasions. After two months, Uber has selected a Kalanick replacement — Dara Khosrowshahi — to move beyond their era of turbulence.
According to the New York Times, Khosrowshahi (who’s been the CEO of online travel-booking company Expedia since 2005) beat out two other finalists to steer Uber back on the road to wellness. He also sits on the New York Times board, and the NY Times hints that perhaps he will be less likely to greenlight surge pricing (as Kalanick did) in response to an event similar to Trump’s first Muslim ban, which led to the Uber boycott catching fire:
At Expedia, Mr. Khosrowshahi has been an outspoken chief executive. His family emigrated to the United States from Iran because of the revolution in that country in the late 1970s, so Mr. Khosrowshahi had a personal perspective on the executive order that President Trump signed restricting travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries this year.
Still, the NY Times warns that Khosrowshahi’s future effect on Uber remains “uncertain” due to the taint left by Kalanick, who sent out a flippant 2013 memo about sex between employees (which resurfaced with the company’s recent sexual discrimination and harassment scandal). Kalanick also came under fire for lashing out at a driver, for which he apologized, but his reputation was solidified. The fact that 500,000 users deleted the Uber app this year, of course, was the final nail in his career. Perhaps Khosrowshahi really can turn Uber around, but he’s taken on quite the challenge.
(Via New York Times)