Uber chief tightens grip with top execs’ departures

Uber chief Dara Khosrowshahi put out word Friday that he is tightening his grip on the wheel at the ride-share firm in the wake of a bumpy stock market debut. The company’s chief operating officer and head of marketing will leave in a leadership shake-up that will result in Uber’s shared rides and food delivery platforms reporting directly to Khosrowshahi, according to a copy of an internal email provided.

Khosrowshahi credited the maturing of operations at the San Francisco-based company and the completion of its initial public offering last month with enabling him to make the management moves. “I now have the ability to be even more involved in the day-to-day operations of our biggest businesses, the core platform of Rides and Eats, and have decided they should report directly to me,” Khosrowshahi said in his message to employees.

“This will allow me to be more hands on and help our leaders problem-solve in real time, while also ensuring that we make our platform vision a reality.” He cited a need for a clear and consistent “narrative” at Uber when it comes to how the company is seen by consumers, partners, policymakers and the press as a factor in his decision to consolidate the marketing, communications and policy teams. “There’s never really a right time to announce departures or changes like this, but with the IPO behind us, I felt this was a good moment to simplify our (organization) and set us up for the future,” Khosrowshahi said.