Uber CEO Travis Kalanick will be taking some time away from the company to grieve his mother, according to a company-wide email he just sent out.
“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,” he wrote.
Bonnie Kalanick was killed in a boating accident just weeks ago and her husband — Travis Kalanick’s father — remains in critical condition.
But Kalanick’s decision was also clearly related to what has been revealed in recent months about widespread mismanagement and toxic culture of the car-hailing company under Kalanick’s watch. That he has been able to hold onto power this long is a testament to the power of a charismatic founder in Silicon Valley.
Kalanick was still deciding whether to take the leave or not as late as this morning, a chaotic management style that has caused much consternation within the top ranks and also with employees caught in an unfortunate cycle of unnecessary drama.
His decision comes as Uber finally unveiled the recommendations of an investigation law firm Covington and Burling conducted into the company’s culture and management to the staff. The investigation was prompted by a former female engineer’s brutal account of sexism and sexual harassment at the company.
The report that Uber’s directors released to employees today at an all-hands meeting now taking place, including changes in everything from its human resources systems to stopping its incessant party culture.
Also among the recommendations that Uber’s board has unanimously voted to accept is a reallocation of Kalanick’s responsibilities, which many felt was a critical part of the turnaround of the company.
“The Board should evaluate the extent to which some of the responsibilities that Mr. Kalanick has historically possessed should be shared or given outright to other members of senior management,” the report reads. “The search for a Chief Operating Officer should address this concern to some extent.”
Uber has yet to name a COO and Kalanick did not put a timeline on how long the leave of absence will last.
In the meantime, Kalanick wrote, his direct reports will be running the company.
According to Uber, the long list of Uber’s direct reports will act as a team, even if it sounds a bit of a mess.
“During this interim period, the leadership team, my directs, will be running the company. I will be available as needed for the most strategic decisions, but I will be empowering them to be bold and decisive in order to move the company forward swiftly,” he wrote. “It’s hard to put a timeline on this – it may be shorter or longer than we might expect. Tragically losing a loved one has been difficult for me and I need to properly say my goodbyes.”