Uber fires 20 employees, hires Harvard professor to fix leadership crisis

Harvard's Frances Frei has been brought in to fix organisational culture, reports Tech in Asia

Uber has dismissed more than 20 employees after an internal investigation into workplace harassment and misconduct.

The ongoing probe, conducted by an outside law firm, reviewed 215 human resources claims that relate to discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, among other matters.

Aside from the 20-plus dismissals, Uber has also put 31 employees into counselling or training as a result of the investigation, while 7 have received written warnings. A second probe led by a former US attorney general is expected to announce its findings next week.

Uber hires Harvard Business School professor to help fix its leadership woes

Uber has hired a well-regarded management academic, Frances Frei, as its first SVP of leadership and strategy to help fix what many consider as a broken company culture.

A Harvard Business School (HBS) professor, Frei will report to CEO Travis Kalanick, work with chief human resources officer Liane Hornsey, and serve as an executive coach for Uber’s leadership team. Her HBS bio states her research “examines how leaders create the context for organisations and individuals to thrive,” among others.

One of the world’s most respected authorities on organisational transformation, “she is uniquely qualified for the role – and we know we all have a lot to learn from her,” Uber said in a blogpost.

The move signals Uber’s desire for change amid a series of controversies – apart from sexual harassment, the ride-hailing company has been blasted for its supposed poor treatment of its own drivers, whom the company shortchanged for more than two years; its “Greyball” program used for evading government authorities; and a lawsuit filed by Google’s Waymo for trade secret theft.

This is an excerpt from two separate articles published on Tech In Asia. You can read the full articles here and here