Gadfly's Shira Ovide: We All Created The Uber Monster

A new day, a new senior member of Uber Technologies leaving the company.

On Tuesday, the billionaire co-founder of private equity giant TPG Capital and member of Uber's board David Bonderman announced his resignation after cracking a sexist joke -- during a meeting intended to crack down on sexism.

Arianna Huffington, a member of Uber's board, said during a meeting that once a company has at least one woman on the board it's easier to attract and retain a second and third woman to serve. Bonderman reportedly said that adding more women to the board will result in "more talking."

Uber and TPG both confirmed Bonderman's resignation from the board after his comment drew gasps and blank stares.

Ovide: We All Created This Monster

Who is to blame for Uber transforming from a bright startup to a modern day "monster"? Everyone.

The press, Uber's investors and workers, and users are all responsible, Gadfly's Shira Ovide argued. The press is particularly guilty for "glorifying" CEOs like Uber's Travis Kalanick who "push the envelope" and end up on the cover of magazines.

"I don't know where the line is between companies that break all the rules and grow up to become successful, healthy members of society, and the companies that break all the rules and simply break everything and everyone in their path," Ovide wrote. "I don't even know which one Uber will turn out to be. But we have all created this monster."

Keep The Party Going

Investors are also guilty for handing over capital to Uber knowing that Kalanick has almost unchecked power. Investors may be overlooking this fact in the hopes of a small investment by Silicon Valley's standards could yield a massive return if Uber becomes the next Google.

Uber's employees are also to blame as there is a desire for all employers to keep the "party going." Finally, the general public is also to blame because users of the platform are in some form rewarding bad behavior going on behind the scenes.

"Uber may move past the latest of its many crises without much of a scar," Ovide concluded. "Or it might not. But let's remember that what happened at Uber isn't an accident. We allowed it to happen."

Related Link:

Is Uber's Faith In Travis Kalanick Faltering?

Uber's New Hires Could Help End PR Nightmares

Image Credit: By Dllu - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons