Uber CEO on resignation of HR chief and investigation into COO: 'Sometimes it takes a punch in the face'
- Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi confessed that during his first year he was mostly focused on Uber fixing its reputation "externally," addressing issues with cities, drivers and the public.
- But he said he dropped the ball on making sure Uber's internal culture was cleaned up.
- last week, Uber's chief HR person, Liane Hornsey resigned followed an investigation into how she handled racial-discrimination concerns.
- And Khosrowshahi confirmed that Uber's COO, hired by him, is under fire for alleged remarks he made about race and gender.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was not pulling any punches while on stage at the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen on Monday. When he was asked about cleaning up Uber's infamous culture, he was both optimistic and contrite.
He said he was proud of the work his team has done cleaning up its reputation "externally" in places like London, where Uber had been kicked out right when Khosrowshahi took over as CEO. It is now back in London's good graces.
But when asked about the high-profile resignation of its head of HR, Liane Hornsey, last week, following an investigation into how she handled concerns about racial-discrimination, he said, "In hindsight, I didn't work as much as I had to internally. Sometimes it takes a punch in the face. This was a rough week."
Will more heads roll as he Khosrowshahi turns his attention to internal matters? Possibly. When asked by Fortune's Adam Lashinsky if Uber's COO, Barney Harford, who was hired late last year by Khosrowshahi himself, was safe, Khosrowshahi walked the line. Harford, has allegedly made "insensitive" remarks about race and gender.
Khosrowshahi said, "allegations were made there" and that he takes any allegations "very seriously" about anyone, but "especially senior officers." He indicated that Uber was currently investigating the situation and "we will run the process right way."