Uber shake-up continues as policy chief departs
SAN FRANCISCO — Uber's global policy and communications chief Rachel Whetstone is the latest executive to leave amid a series of controversies including an investigation into sexism and sexual harassment that have bashed the public image of the ride-hailing company.
Whetstone joined Uber in 2015 from Google. Her deputy, Jill Hazelbaker, will take over leading the 300-person policy and communications team as senior vice president of policy and communications, according to a memo sent to employees by CEO Travis Kalanick and first obtained by technology news outlet Recode.
Sources close to company told Recode tensions had flared with Kalanick, with some investors blaming bad press for Uber's troubles that include a lawsuit by Google parent Alphabet that alleges Uber stole driverless car technology.
In a statement, Whetstone said: "I am incredibly proud of the team that we’ve built –– and that just as when I left Google, a strong and brilliant woman will be taking my place."
Kalanick's at times frat-like behavior over the company's eight-year history has come into sharper focus in recent months, as Uber battles public relations gaffes.
An internal probe looking into ex-engineer Susan Fowler's accusations of discrimination against female employees will be made public when it concludes in late April. The probe, led by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, is relying in part on tip-lines where employees can relate their tales anonymously.
Uproar about alleged systemic sexism in its engineering ranks followed closely on the heels of a customer and driver backlash over the company's initial response to President Trump's immigration ban, which led many users to delete the app. To make matters worse, a dashcam video surfaced showing Kalanick berating a driver who was unhappy with pay changes. Kalanick, who apologized and promised to get "leadership help," is on the hunt for a chief operating officer to help run the nearly $70 billion-valuation company.
Here is the full text of Kalanick's memo about Whetstone:
Team,
I wanted to let you know that Rachel Whetstone, who heads up policy
and communications globally, has decided to leave Uber.
Since joining in 2015, Rachel has blown us all away with her ability
to get stuff done. She is a force of nature, an extraordinary talent
and an amazing player-coach who has built a first-class organization.
Importantly, Rachel was way ahead of the game when it came to many of
the changes we needed to make as a company to ensure our future
success — from promoting cross-functional teamwork to improving
diversity and inclusion. Her commitment to excellence in every way is
inspiring and I am looking forward to having her as an advisor for
years to come, with many more long hikes along the Skyline Trail
(attached is picture of my hike with Rach the weekend before last).
Rachel is passing the reins over to her longtime right hand Jill
Hazelbaker, our newly minted Senior Vice President of Global Policy
and Communications. For those of you who haven’t met Jill, her
background is in politics and she brings deep experience in policy,
communications and tech. She’s a great team player, terrific at
setting priorities and brilliant at seeing around corners. The policy
and communications function is incredibly strategic at Uber and I
could not be more excited about partnering with Jill to help write the
next chapter.
Please join me in thanking Rachel and wishing Jill all the best.
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