Masters of Scale

Uber’s Dara Khosrowshahi — Bringing a culture back from the brink

May 2, 2023

Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, shares his journey of transforming Uber from a notorious pirate culture into a disciplined navy. He discusses the balance between rebellious startup spirit and the need for structure as companies scale. Dara emphasizes the power of truth-telling in leadership and the importance of building trust during turbulent times. He also highlights initiatives aimed at fostering better relationships with drivers and regulators, showcasing how ethical behavior and inclusivity are central to Uber's cultural renaissance.

43:47

Episode guests

Dara Khosrowshahi

Highlights

AI Chapters

Episode notes

How Dara Khosrowshahi Turned Around Expedia

01:19

Truth-telling by and to the CEO

01:16

Intro

2min

Pirates at a Crossroad

6min

The Pirate versus the Navy: Navigating Startup Culture

3min

From Pirates to Navy: Transforming Startup Culture

10min

Building Trust and Navigating Challenges at Uber

5min

Transforming Uber's Culture

19min

The Power of Truth-Telling in Leadership

4min

Early-stage startups are a lot like pirate ships — they need a buccaneering spirit to survive. But every startup needs to shed its pirate nature at some point, and evolve into something more akin to a navy — no less heroic, but more disciplined. Dara Khosrowshahi, as Uber CEO, took on the most extreme pirate-to-navy transition in startup history. Though Uber blitzscaled to become the most valuable startup in the world, it was also notorious for its toxic culture — and Dara turned the company around. His method? Truth-telling and doing the right thing

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