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Tag: Travis Kalanick

  • Sexual harassment: another top tech exec resigns

    A top executive and cofounder of Binary Capital has admitted to using his “position of power in exchange for sexual gains,” forcing him into resignation, according to media reports.

    The Information reported on Thursday that six women had accused Justin Caldbeck, a prominent venture capitalist of “unwanted and inappropriate advances”, with several saying the misconduct occurred when they sought funding or guidance while trying to start businesses.

    According to The Guardian, three of the women went public with their claims. Among them are Niniane Wang, who co-created Google Desktop; Susan Ho, co-founder of Journy and Leiti Hsu, another co-founder of Journy.

    While Wang alleged that Caldbeck tried to sleep with her while informally recruiting her for a job, Ho said the venture capitalist sent her text messages in the middle of the night suggesting they meet up while they were in the process of discussing investing in her startup.

    Hsu said Caldbeck groped her under a table at a bar.

    The three other women who preferred anonymity shared stories with The Information about sexually explicit text messages and advances from Caldbeck despite their professional relationships.

    Caldbeck had earlier denied the allegations before admitting them.

    Denying the allegations, he said: “I strongly deny the Information’s attacks on my character. The fact is, I have always enjoyed respectful relationships with female founders, business partners, and investors”.

    Admitting the allegations and resigning, Caldbeck said in a statement on Friday that “The power dynamic that exists in venture capital is despicably unfair,” adding: “The gap of influence between male venture capitalists and female entrepreneurs is frightening and I hate that my behavior played a role in perpetrating a gender-hostile environment”.

    This is the latest discrimination and misconduct scandal to rock Silicon Valley.

    Uber chief executive officer, Travis Kalanick was forced into resignation in the course of the past week for a major sexual harassment scandal as well.

     

  • Employees petition Uber for Kalanick to return as Travis 2.0

    Employees at Uber have signed a petition demanding Travis Kalanick be recalled as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company.

    Kalanick recently resigned his CEO position at Uber this week after pressure from major investors following the release of a report on Uber’s internal culture and a seemingly endless series of scandals.

    More than 1,000 current Uber employees signed the petition demanding the board reinstate Kalanick despite the overwhelming evidence that he needed to go.

    According to screenshots obtained by BuzzFeed, the petition says employees “need to revolt this” and that Kalanick was an “inspiration” who can “come back strong as Travis 2.0”.

    Recode reports that the petition says the board must “hear from Uber employees that it’s made the wrong decision in pressuring Travis to leave and that he should be reinstated in an operational role”.

    Since Kalanick’s resignation, there has been a predictable outpouring of support from Kalanick’s allies, essentially arguing that Kalanick’s “hard work” made up for the whole “allowing a culture of sexual harassment to flourish” accusations.

     

  • Uber Chief Executive, Travis Kalanick resigns

    Embattled Uber’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Travis Kalanick resigns from the ride-sharing company he helped found in 2009, according to reports.

    This is following a “shareholder revolt” led by some of Uber’s most prominent investors, the New York Times reports.

    An Uber spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch that Kalanick has actually stepped down.

    The report states that five of Uber’s most prominent investors, including Benchmark, wrote a letter titled “Moving Uber Forward,” which recommended that the CEO step aside immediately.

    After hours of discussion, Kalanick agreed to resign.

    “I love Uber more than anything in the world and at this difficult moment in my personal life, I have accepted the investors request to step aside so that Uber can go back to building rather than be distracted with another fight,” Kalanick said in a statement given to the Times.

    However, Kalanick will continue to hold a position on Uber’s board of directors, according to a statement from the board given to TechCrunch.

    “Travis has always put Uber first. This is a bold decision and a sign of his devotion and love for Uber.

    “By stepping away, he’s taking the time to heal from his personal tragedy while giving the company room to fully embrace this new chapter in Uber’s history.

    “We look forward to continuing to serve with him on the board,” the statement read.

    Kalanick announced just last week that he was taking a leave of absence from the company following the release of a report into Uber’s toxic company culture by former Attorney General Eric Holder.

    Kalanick cited a recent family tragedy and internal issues at the company as reasons for the leave, saying in a letter to Uber employees, “…I need to take some time off of the day-to-day to grieve my mother, whom I buried on Friday, to reflect, to work on myself, and to focus on building out a world-class leadership team”.

     

  • Uber in crisis amid unrelenting chaos as CEO steps down indefinitely

    The chief executive officer of ride-sharing business Uber will step down indefinitely as a damning report exposes the company’s toxic culture.

    Travis Kalanick sent a company-wide email on Tuesday announcing he would take an “unspecified” leave of absence from the company, conceding he needed to improve his leadership skills.

    “Recent events have brought home for me that people are more important than work, and that I need to take some time off of the day-to-day to grieve my mother, whom I buried on Friday, to reflect, to work on myself, and to focus on building out a world-class leadership team,” Mr Kalanick said in the memo.

    His mother died in a boating accident last month.

    The San Francisco company has been in meltdown this year, crippled by complaints that it condones sexual harassment, bullying and retaliation against those who make complaints.

    It has lost nine executives, and its global program to outwit local authorities trying to shut it down has been exposed.

    The 13-page report criticises how the company’s “hustlin” culture had encouraged “poor behaviour”, how illicit drugs and alcohol were being used at work events and how the company needed clear policies to combat discrimination and harassment.

    The company review was sparked by former Uber engineer Susan Fowler, who published a blog post in February that detailed allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation within the company.

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