Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 344) reports that investors Benchmark, Fidelity, First Round, Lowercase Capital, Menlo Ventures, and others insisted that Travis Kalanick step down — or else they would go public with their request for his resignation, including giving the New York Times their letter requesting his resignation.
Investors’ letter to Kalanick:
Dear Travis:
On behalf of Benchmark, First Round, Lowercase Capital, Menlo Ventures, and others—which collectively owns more than 26% of Uber’s economic stock, and over 39% of Uber’s voting shares—we are writing to express our profound concerns about Uber’s direction and to propose a way forward.
Please know that we are deeply grateful for your vision and tireless efforts over the last eight years, which have created a company and an industry of which no one could have dreamed. Unfortunately, however, [the] series of recent revelations have deeply affected us. . . . [A]ll of these issues are causing tremendous damage to Uber’s brand and threaten to destroy Uber’s value for its shareholders and stakeholders. We believe the issues stem from deep–seated cultural and governance problems at Uber and from the tone at the top. . . .
We must take concrete steps to address these issues and strengthen Uber’s brand and governance. If we do not adequately address these issues now, Uber’s brand and market share will continue to erode, to the detriment of the company and all of its shareholders, including you.
. . . With these changes we firmly believe Uber can regain its place as one of the most important companies Silicon Valley has ever produced. We hope you will agree to move forward with us on this path.
“Moving Uber Forward”: Investor Demands
First, you must immediately and permanently resign as CEO. We strongly believe a change in leadership—coupled with effective Board oversight, governance improvements, and other immediate actions—is necessary for Uber to move forward. We need a trusted, experienced, and energetic new CEO who can help Uber navigate through its many current issues, and achieve its full potential.
Second, Uber’s current governance structures, including the composition and structure of the Board of Directors, are no longer appropriate for a $68 billion company with over 14,000 employees. The new CEO must report to an independent Board that will exercise appropriate oversight. . . . Further, as you know, the Holder Report calls for the appointment of additional independent Board members. To that end, you should fill two of the three Board seats you control (retaining one for yourself) with truly independent directors who comply with the Holder Report’s recommendations for qualification for service. . . .
Third, . . . [y]ou should support a board led CEO search committee, with an independent chairperson, and the inclusion of a representative of senior management and a representative of the driver community. . . .
Fourth, the company should immediately hire an adequately experienced interim or full–time Chief Financial Officer. The company has intentionally operated without a properly qualified executive in the top finance [role] for over two years. The investor group broadly believes that this specific executive hire needs to be addressed urgently.
We hope you will agree to move forward with us on this path, and look forward to your response.
Isaac reports Kalanick’s response:
“If this is the path you want to go down, things are gonna get ugly for you,” Kalanick said. “I mean it.”
In response, Kalanick called investors and Uber executives, seeking their support for a shareholder vote. Finding limited support, Kalanick ultimately resigned.