In a crucial meeting of Uber’s board members on Sunday, rumours were swirling around the net that Travis Kalanick, the CEO of Uber, would take a leave of absence amidst PR issues and scandals hitting the ride-hailing tech company. Instead, Emil Michael, Senior Vice President of Business, is leaving the firm.
Emil, known to be one of Travis’ top lieutenant and confidant, had spent 4 years at the firm and his roles will be taken over by David Richter, vice president of strategic initiatives.
The company has been thrown into turmoil with sexual harassment claims from employees, short changing Uber drivers in New York, a lawsuit from Waymo and much more that drastic measures needed to be taken. Board members are eager to fix the corporate turmoil in which we saw Travis Kalanick admitted that he needed leadership help and has since been looking for a COO for Uber.
Also in the report by the Washington Post, the board has reached out to Nestle executive, Wan Ling Martello, to fill an empty position on the board as well. The $70 billion investor valued firm is going through a major turning point as it fights off rivals such as Lyft in the US and Grab in South East Asia.
