5 ms·

I'm having trouble believing a high-flying company could really come crashing down over accusations that they are sexist assholes. "They're a really high-press

I'm having trouble believing a high-flying company could really come crashing down over accusations that they are sexist assholes. "They're a really high-pressure place, there's a lot of vicious corporate politics, and they sometimes treat women badly," could describe a whole lot of companies and institutions.

ktta 10y ago
Well, not to forget the legal case with Waymo, which might put a stop to all of Uber's self-driving efforts.
jacques_chester 10y ago
> I'm having trouble believing a high-flying company could really come crashing down over accusations that they are sexist assholes. There's a nostrum in politics that mud often doesn't stick; until it all sticks at once. Bad publicity sets a narrative that other journalists follow. Whether because it fits their own thinking, or simply to follow the herd to a higher readership, a run of bad news has a way of reinforcing itself. Especially if there's a rich vein of old bad news to dig up and recycle.
auganov 10y ago
Uber's lock-in is so soft that they ought to be paranoid about any attack on their image.
- jfoster 10y ago
  If that were true, they would be swamped with competitors. In most markets, they only have one significant competitor; Lyft, Grab, previously Didi. (let's not count taxis)
  - BinaryIdiot 10y ago
    > If that were true, they would be swamped with competitors Are they not? I hear of tons of ride sharing companies every week almost always in very local areas. Seems like they have a ton of competition everywhere. At least anecdotally that's how it looks to me.
    - jfoster 10y ago
      Are there any examples of cities where Uber operates with multiple viable competitors? I'm aware of cities where it's Uber v Lyft or Uber v Grab, but have yet to hear of any 3-way races. Groupon is an example of a business that truly had very little competitive barriers. As a result, every second startup was working on a deals site. Even so, in the end, it wasn't even the competitors that brought Groupon down. Groupon brought Groupon down.
      - BinaryIdiot 10y ago
        > Are there any examples of cities where Uber operates with multiple viable competitors? Viable? Not sure. Honestly I just see the signs for various services I've never heard of at or near airports and I rarely remember any of their names nor see them elsewhere.
treme 10y ago
It doesn't matter if such descriptions can describe a whole lot of companies and institutions. The fact that they can become the P.R-lightning rod for "everything bad about SV-VC culture" means they will have to actively campaign harder to recruit top notch talents. HR is arguably the most important asset a company has to continuously acquire & grow, and it'd be highly disadvantageous to have to fight such an active & growing negative reputation in an already fierce market for talent.
ucaetano 10y ago
Uber has picked fights with local, regional and federal governments around the world, as well as reporters, other companies, etc. Many of those could potentially lead to litigation but so far haven't, and if anyone has been waiting to sue Uber, this is the optimal time for it. With the Waymo lawsuit, the internal investigations, cash burning, leaks, disgruntled employees and drivers, a wave of new lawsuits around the country and the world could quickly overwhelm the company, preventing it from doing an IPO or even securing more funding. With the IPO delayed and valuation damaged, more of the best employees will quit, as the long hours and low salaries won't translate into post-IPO fortunes.
- ucaetano 10y ago
  And it seems to be happening already: https://www.ft.com/content/c6bc4b2c-0012-11e7-8d8e-a5e3738f9ae4 https://www.ft.com/content/c6bc4b2c-0012-11e7-8d8e-a5e3738f9...

ktta 10y ago

Well, not to forget the legal case with Waymo, which might put a stop to all of Uber's self-driving efforts.

jacques_chester 10y ago

> I'm having trouble believing a high-flying company could really come crashing down over accusations that they are sexist assholes. There's a nostrum in politics that mud often doesn't stick; until it all sticks at once. Bad publicity sets a narrative that other journalists follow. Whether because it fits their own thinking, or simply to follow the herd to a higher readership, a run of bad news has a way of reinforcing itself. Especially if there's a rich vein of old bad news to dig up and recycle.

auganov 10y ago

Uber's lock-in is so soft that they ought to be paranoid about any attack on their image.

jfoster 10y ago
If that were true, they would be swamped with competitors. In most markets, they only have one significant competitor; Lyft, Grab, previously Didi. (let's not count taxis)
- BinaryIdiot 10y ago
  > If that were true, they would be swamped with competitors Are they not? I hear of tons of ride sharing companies every week almost always in very local areas. Seems like they have a ton of competition everywhere. At least anecdotally that's how it looks to me.
  - jfoster 10y ago
    Are there any examples of cities where Uber operates with multiple viable competitors? I'm aware of cities where it's Uber v Lyft or Uber v Grab, but have yet to hear of any 3-way races. Groupon is an example of a business that truly had very little competitive barriers. As a result, every second startup was working on a deals site. Even so, in the end, it wasn't even the competitors that brought Groupon down. Groupon brought Groupon down.
    - BinaryIdiot 10y ago
      > Are there any examples of cities where Uber operates with multiple viable competitors? Viable? Not sure. Honestly I just see the signs for various services I've never heard of at or near airports and I rarely remember any of their names nor see them elsewhere.

treme 10y ago

It doesn't matter if such descriptions can describe a whole lot of companies and institutions. The fact that they can become the P.R-lightning rod for "everything bad about SV-VC culture" means they will have to actively campaign harder to recruit top notch talents. HR is arguably the most important asset a company has to continuously acquire & grow, and it'd be highly disadvantageous to have to fight such an active & growing negative reputation in an already fierce market for talent.

ucaetano 10y ago

Uber has picked fights with local, regional and federal governments around the world, as well as reporters, other companies, etc. Many of those could potentially lead to litigation but so far haven't, and if anyone has been waiting to sue Uber, this is the optimal time for it. With the Waymo lawsuit, the internal investigations, cash burning, leaks, disgruntled employees and drivers, a wave of new lawsuits around the country and the world could quickly overwhelm the company, preventing it from doing an IPO or even securing more funding. With the IPO delayed and valuation damaged, more of the best employees will quit, as the long hours and low salaries won't translate into post-IPO fortunes.

ucaetano 10y ago
And it seems to be happening already: https://www.ft.com/content/c6bc4b2c-0012-11e7-8d8e-a5e3738f9ae4 https://www.ft.com/content/c6bc4b2c-0012-11e7-8d8e-a5e3738f9...