We Are All Uber

Uber is getting a lot of well-deserved criticism for the culture of massive growth partnered with executive leadership who eschewed best practices when it came to communication, equity, and inclusion. Something about the negative press makes this leadership coach uneasy.

Let me be clear--this is not an apologist critique of Uber. I believe the company has earned every piece of negative press they have received.

The company has rightly had to take full stock of where they have been, what they have done, how they will change, and where they are going. It is so easy to look at Uber and think, ‘I’m so glad my business or organization does not have those problems. We may be a small or mid-sized operation, but our leadership and work culture couldn’t be better.’

The truth is, we are all Uber.

Hold on. Stay with me.

Take a moment to think sincerely about the following questions:

—Are there managers who work in your business or organization whom have lost their temper and yelled at a staff member or who have engaged in behavior that could be viewed as overly aggressive or intimidating toward staff?

----Do you have a clear, transparent system for receiving and evaluating management feedback from your staff?

—Have the struggles associated with growth been acknowledged and mitigated by leadership?

—Have you ever put profits before people?

-----Have you provided too much alcohol for your staff at work events?

—Do you tolerate inappropriate humor in an attempt to avoid conflict?

—Does your team engage in ongoing professional learning about equity and inclusion?

—Do you provide your leaders with management training and coaching?

The truth is. We could all do better. We might not have the scale of problems that Uber has, but we certainly ALL have room for improvement when it comes to investing in our leadership and work culture.

Here are steps the Uber is taking to do better and be better:

'The company has the opportunity to rebuild its image and culture, and has already made two strategic hires: Frances Frei, a Harvard Business School professor, as the senior vice-president of leadership and strategy, and Bozoma Saint John, a well-regarded marketing executive at Apple Music, as the chief brand officer. The report that came out of the sexual-harassment investigation offers some further suggestions, among them installing an independent chairperson of the board and creating an oversight committee; revamping the process by which employees are evaluated on their performance and moved around at the company; establishing a formal complaint channel; limiting alcohol and controlled substances at company events; and “reformatting” Uber’s fourteen cultural values, replacing tenets such as “Always Be Hustlin’ ” and “Meritocracy and Toe-Stepping” with a renewed emphasis on diversity and inclusion.' The New Yorker, June 23 2017

I believe Uber is on the right track. The Board took serious and immediate action to identify the problems and take thoughtful, ongoing action. If they commit to the plan of improvement outlined in the report, I believe they have the opportunity to show us what transformative leadership looks and feels like.

I am rooting for Uber because I see all of us in Uber. If Uber can transform their leadership and work culture for the better--WE can certainly make shifts in our own practice to ensure we create and maintain nurturing and rewarding work environments for our teams.

If you or a manager you know would like leadership coaching, please contact Jess Thompson at jess@thomkeconsulting.com