Uber has taken more than 70 days to replace its outgoing CEO, Travis Kalanick. But finally, they’ve announced that Dara Khosrowshahi, from Expedia, will take over the reigns.
The delay in replacing Kalanick is largely blamed on their first set of candidates unwilling to take guard of a brand embroiled in varied controversies.
Also Read: Embattled Uber Picks Expedia’s Dara Khosrowshahi as New CEO
But looks like Dara is more than keen on taking up the challenge, of changing the way Uber functions as a brand. Here are some of the tasks at hand for Dara, once he takes up his post at the cab-hailing firm from next week.
Change of Culture, Pronto
This company has to change. What got us here is not what’s going to get us to the next level.
First words communicated by Dara has been about change, and rightly so.
The downfall of Kalanick started of when an anonymous post from an ex-employee highlighted the sexist bias that exists within Uber. Various high-profile executives were fired because of these developments, and Kalanick was seen as a big part of the influence.
Now with Dara coming on board, Uber and its shareholders will be hoping that the change needed at the company will bring an upheaval with good effect.
That’s a big transformation, but the job of CEO at Uber was never going to be a child’s play in the first place.
Confront Legal Battles
Uber’s name must be a regular sighting for lawyers and judges, in and outside courts across the world.
Dara and Co have to cut down on the number of cases that’s got Uber’s name all over it, and ensure the stock value of Uber and all the money invested in the company is finally worth its reputation.
Make Uber Profitable, Soon
Other than the internal issues, boardroom pressure, Dara also has to contend with the business side of affairs, ie help Uber turn into a profitable company.
Uber reported losses to the tune of $708 million in the earlier part of 2017.
But the investor sentiment has been relaxed, with growing revenues, and the mood expected to become better, now that Uber has a CEO on board after 70 days since Kalanick’s ouster.
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Their focus on markets like India has been well-documented, and their recent measures have been encouraging to say the least. They’ve even voiced their support for PM Modi’s digital payment revolution with UPI, now available for Uber riders in the country.
But with its failure to capture mind share in markets like China and Russia, Dara’s got to ensure that the revenue streams open up for Uber multifold and the company’s order is restored.
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