Uber Technologies Inc. have had a tough year due to a range of controversies that have dogged the Company. The trend continues unabated, as their finance chief has now decided to quit the start up. The company had yesterday reported quarter one losses of $708 million but they have categorically denied that it had anything to do with the departure.
Gautam Gupta's crucial departure
Uber seems to be in a bit of a churn as far as top management is concerned. Earlier this week, the company terminated Anthony Lewandowski, who had been the research and development chief of its self driving vehicle division.
However, the departure of the Gautam Gupta, the vice president of finance at Uber, comes as a major surprise for everyone concerned. He had been at the organisation for four years and had overseen the growth of the growth of the company over that period.
This is a particularly delicate time for the company as it chases growth while being bogged down by controversies starting from a lawsuit with Google to allegations of malpractice at the work place. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick released a statement in which he said, “Gautam is a world-class financial talent.Over the last four years he has been indispensable in helping build Uber from an idea into the business it is today.
We couldn’t have done it without him, and I will miss his energy, focus and infectious enthusiasm.”
Uber's big corporate restructuring beckons
The transportation network company has been in the eye of a storm for quite some time and an extensive corporate restructuring is on the cards, as the company tries to put its house in order.
Uber would not only be looking to hire an executive to fill the shoes of Gautam Gupta, but are also in the lookout for a Chief Operating Officer, who would be able to oversee the corporate restructuring about to commence. Uber has started hunting for a replacement for Gupta and according to the company, they want someone who has served as the CFO of a public company.
The company also believes that an experience in taking a company public would also be a huge bonus for anyone who might interested in the position. It should be noted that Gupta was the vice president of finance at Uber and not the CFO. The company would want the replacement to come in quickly as it grapples with their quest to reduce losses. The latest figures show that the company had successfully reduced the losses by $283 million in the current quarter.
