Benchmark's Uber Suit Signals End of Era for Imperious Founders

Benchmark's Uber Suit Signals End of Era for Imperious Founders

7 years ago
Anonymous $Gu9VYqcl-R

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-11/benchmark-signals-era-of-imperious-startup-founder-is-coming-to-an-end

Going back years, venture firms have given Kalanick and his peers outsize control and influence over their companies. Critics say this has led founders to take a freewheeling approach to running their companies, loading up on shares for themselves and their friends and presiding over toxic workplaces.

At the heart of the Benchmark lawsuit is a provision that venture capitalists say stands out for its deference to Kalanick, and is highly unusual. It allowed the Uber founder to personally appoint three new members to Uber’s eight-seat board, effectively letting him slant the board his way after he resigned. 

Benchmark's Uber Suit Signals End of Era for Imperious Founders

Aug 11, 2017, 8:11pm UTC
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-11/benchmark-signals-era-of-imperious-startup-founder-is-coming-to-an-end >Going back years, venture firms have given Kalanick and his peers outsize control and influence over their companies. Critics say this has led founders to take a freewheeling approach to running their companies, loading up on shares for themselves and their friends and presiding over toxic workplaces. >At the heart of the Benchmark lawsuit is a provision that venture capitalists say stands out for its deference to Kalanick, and is highly unusual. It allowed the Uber founder to personally appoint three new members to Uber’s eight-seat board, effectively letting him slant the board his way after he resigned.