Saying that Uber’s internal operations are a complete mess right now would be the understatement of the century. With Uber on track to burn billions of dollars this year despite the fact that they won’t have a CEO, COO, CFO, President, General Counsel or SVP of Engineering, it’s safe to wonder whether or not the company that was once the reigning king of Silicon Valley will survive. In the midst of all this drama, many stories have popped up pointing the finger of blame at Uber’s business model rather than its toxic culture, but I disagree. As this article from Fortune points out, almost all of Uber’s 2017 disasters can be traced back to its culture. The dirty competitive tricks, the medical record incident, the sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation and subsequent ignoring of complaints about it, the inappropriate parties. Some of these have legal ramifications beyond the bad headlines. None of them are a result of Uber’s lack of profits.
There are a lot of factors that made Uber so successful. According to Forbes, the company’s phenomenal growth can be attributed to multiple innovations, which include that they put vehicles to use that might otherwise be parked and idle, their drivers can work when they want and for as little or as much as they want, and ultimately how it mobilized resources in a way that the traditional taxi market could not match. However, the single most important driver of growth and customer loyalty is Uber’s almost magical customer experience. No doubt they are utilising the many benefits of crm and they are certainly reaping the rewards from it. From the ease of hailing the ride to the lack of any checkout process, Uber has removed just about all friction from the traditional taxi experience. It’s unfortunate that extensive leadership failures could potentially destroy such an innovative company with immense potential from the inside out. After all, they have many exciting new technological ideas in hand, with systems similar to those seen on this site helping people track their journeys amongst others being brought in to help drivers and riders alike.
Scandals hitting Silicon Valley is nothing new. Young, inexperienced founders who are incapable of handling their sudden success start many of these companies and lead to their untimely failures. However, there are shining examples of outstanding leadership in the midst of the messes, one of which being Tesla’s famed CEO Elon Musk. Tesla has struggled mightily with safety over the past few years. California nonprofit Worksafe, a worker safety advocacy group, recently made headlines when it reported that the injury rate at Tesla’s Fremont, California, plant was more than 30 percent higher than the industry average in 2014 and 2015. Musk chose to address these issues head-on, sending a company-wide email to his staff to indicate how seriously he’s taking it, which read in part:
No words can express how much I care about your safety and wellbeing. It breaks my heart when someone is injured building cars and trying their best to make Tesla successful. Going forward, I’ve asked that every injury be reported directly to me, without exception. I’m meeting with the safety team every week and would like to meet every injured person as soon as they are well, so that I can understand from them exactly what we need to do to make it better. I will then go down to the production line and perform the same task that they perform. This is what all managers at Tesla should do as a matter of course. At Tesla, we lead from the front line, not from some safe and comfortable ivory tower. Managers must always put their team’s safety above their own.
As Inc. stated in this article, if Musk proves true to his word, it will be a remarkable example of a company leader who’s willing to do what it takes to affect change–and show that he isn’t afraid to get down in the trenches. While Musk’s opening words will prove touching to some, it’s his promise to take action that is most powerful. To personally meet every injured employee and actually learn how to perform the task that caused that person’s injury is remarkable for the CEO of any company. Truly effective leaders know that to inspire their followers, they must practice what they preach and set the example. They aren’t afraid to delegate, but they also know when they need to take matters into their own hands. When a serious problem lingers, they increase their involvement and work tirelessly to make things better.
Ultimately, had Uber’s executive team taken a page out of Musk’s book, there is a chance they wouldn’t be in the mess they are in today. A leader who showcases his willingness to invest time and energy in making things better for his employees is a leader who will earn their trust and respect.
