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UBER CORPORATE REPUTATION REPORT

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Uber’s Reputation 2 Introduction The current world we live in has become hectic with people pursuing quality, efficacy, and suitable prices. Technological innovation has increased in the 21st century as businesses embrace cost-effective smartphones apps such as Uber Technologies Inc. Uber is a reliable alternative to the use of cabs with other benefits derived. However, recently, there has been a downside to the use of Uber services as it has been affiliated with several scandals majorly sexual harassment and other embarrassing situations that have affected its PR system as well as its reputation. As a result, the Inc. has lost customers as its brand has been tarnished. The strength of a corporate brand acts as the focal point of attention, activity and the interest that stakeholders bring to a corporation. Uber as a web-based transportation network company operates in various countries and like any other e-business, it needs to maintain its brand name, and develop an outstanding corporate reputation. The current report transcends to discuss the various issues affecting Uber’s public relations based on the case examples provided and recommending ways through which the Inc. can restore its corporate image. 1. Importance of Corporate Reputation The recent events experienced in various corporations have made it clear that the reputation of an organization is of paramount importance as far as its success and survival is concerned. Any misconduct in the corporation leaves its reputation at stake along with increased level of mistrust from the public. As a result, it becomes difficult to retain customers and to some extent the employees (Regester and Larkin 2010: 79). This is the case currently affecting the Uber Inc. and therefore it is essential to employ the strategies that can restore the faith of the public such as aiming to build a reputation. The reputation of a corporation is manifested in various factors that revolve around the product quality it offers, its earnings, performance, integrity level in handling business practices, fairness of the employer, community involvedness as well as the magnitude of openness and honesty. Uber Inc. seems to lack some of these components. For example, the CEO yelled at one of the drivers after the employee complained of low wages (Levin 2017: Para 13). Despite the notion that the CEO later apologized, the scenario showed an example of lack of fairness to the employer. Along with this is the integrity level that has been disoriented due to the customers being sexually harassed. Today, most companies need to realize that their success is at the mercies of the customers they handle. There is a growing concern about the need of fostering good reputation through embracing a good relationship with the customers. The PR is always concerned with the role of maintaining the business reputation. Therefore, it is important to listen to what the community says about the business and learn how to protect the brand through them.

Uber’s Reputation 3 While being something of critical importance, most companies fail to give a second thought regarding the need for corporate reputation. Reputation is an intangible concept. However, good reputation notably heightens the worthiness of the corporate and enables the company to gain a competitive advantage universally. According to Schwaiger (2004: 63) good reputation among the stakeholders, a company can easily achieve its goals basing in mind that the largest stakeholders of a company are its customers, potential employees, suppliers, and opinion leaders in the business arena. If a company does its best to manage how customers perceive them then customers will always prefer them to others. Good reputation increases the level of trust from and loyalty to the business from vendors and customers. Along with this, a good reputation is advantageous for the recruitment of the employees, their development, and retention. There are other studies that have showed that good corporate reputation and superior financial performance relate in one way or the other (Iwu-Egwuonwu 2011). Good corporate reputation increases the market value of an organization. In fact, almost a quarter of the market value of a corporation is directly due to its reputation. Moreover, it has been established that investors make abnormal returns of profit from the purchase of organization stocks whose reputation history is appealing (Brammer et al 2004). Another importance of good corporate reputation is in marketing. In the marketing corporate, reputation is crucial in creating entry barriers and enabling customer loyalty and retention. Moreover, corporate reputation empowers an organization to gain a market drive rather than the market driving the organization. As a result, organizations with high reputation tend to hike the prices of their products as compared to companies with low reputation. This only affirms that there is a positive relationship between the reputation of an organization and the premium price it charges for its products (Quagrainie et al 2003). The good reputation influences customer’s satisfaction and loyalty as well as the brand preference. As a matter of fact, most customers perceive the reputation of the organization as the criteria they use for conducting purchases. This is attributed to the notion that reputation is a factor represented in the mind and causes some effects on the attitude which in turn influence behavior. Therefore, the reputation of an organization is fundamental to the survival of the business and its sustainability as far as marketing is concerned. Moving on, from the perception of risk management, it has been established that an organization that is conscious of its reputation is more likely to have robust strategies for risk management. Reputation is a factor of other business risks such as integrity and ethics, health, security, and environment (Deloitte 2014). This, therefore, implies that managing reputation

Uber’s Reputation 4 directly translates to automatically managing the risks associated. A risk to reputation occurs occasionally and only when the organization fails to meet the needs of particular stakeholders. Investors perceive organizations with a good reputation as being less risky in comparison to other companies with great financial performances but with undesirable reputation. Thus, corporate reputation forms the principal risk to any business and is worth considering it as a companies’ top priority (Adeosun and Ganiyu 2013). Corporate reputation has close ties with the triple bottom line and if not well managed, it ends up threatening the sustainability of the business. Additionally, perceiving the management of reputation as a risk protects the organization from ruining its reputation and even indulging in other events that can damage the various aspects of the business from customer opinion to stock value (Deloitte 2014). Poor reputation holds back the projects of the company that should be used to steer it towards national development and organizational success. Taking the focus to Uber, it is worth noting that just like any other company, Uber has its own values that govern them in managing their reputation. However, their values have come to include ‘toe-stepping’ and much hustling. In fact, is can be deduced that some of its principles have been used in the justification of poor behavior. So it is important for Uber to eliminate these values, streamline the rest and make them more positive in a way that they show inclusiveness. 2. Forces Influencing Uber’s Corporate Reputation Uber has encountered a series of scandals as displayed in the case study. Some of the scandals trace back to the CEO of Uber by then, Travis Kalanick in one way or the other in the form of his character or the choices he pursued for the business or to some extent as a result of the toxic culture he allegedly helped inculcate as the founder of Uber. So, as he was pushed out, it was thought that the negative perception people had concerning Uber would decline and Uber remain attractive once again. However, recreating the brand image of a corporation does not only involve pushing its leader out. The reputation of a company is influenced by a number of forces which normally revolve around its political, economic, social, technology, environment, and legal factors (PESTEL). Uber is regarded as a fast growing app taxi-sharing company helping many people to reach their destinations. However, the journey towards its success has not been easy particularly with various controversies of all kinds that have lately ruined its reputation. PESTEL analysis evaluates the forces that influence Uber’s business globally which in turn determine its reputation (Pratap 2017) Political

Uber’s Reputation 5 Uber has been experiencing endless controversies, particularly during its initial development when the company never had regulations. It was hard to pinpoint insurance lie in in case of an accident and questions would arise regarding who was at fault, the driver or the company? With this in mind, the company has also been scrutinized in various ways. They have been banned in Asian countries, France filed charges following an advert from this company and so forth. Above all, the company has faced lawsuits in the US regarding how it is treating its drivers. For instance, Alphabet of Google parent corporation filed a lawsuit against Uber claiming that the latter had stolen his technology. It was alleged that Uber was sold for the technology by a former waymo employee who Uber later fired (Levin, 2017). With these and other political challenges, it is quite evident the reputation of Uber has been at stake. Economic Uber has managed to grow very fast despite stiff competition from Lyft. The company has a shared economy that has created employment for various people. Along with this, it has benefitted most of the people through reduced costs of searching for taxi rides. Despite the rapid growth of this company since its launch, it is unfortunate that some countries have banned its services claiming that it has an unfair competition against the normal taxis such as the fake thousand rides it booked in 2014 (Levin 2017: Para 4). Nevertheless, the company still remains a focal point to many due to the stiff competition it has given traditional taxis. A major reason for its swift growth besides its cheap services could the good reputation it had earned overtime before the scandals. Social The social aspect of a business is another crucial component that determines the reputation of an organization. Uber has an easy accessibility as customers get to choose the appointments and time for pick up by themselves using their smartphone app. No communication is required except a few presses. The quality of customer services and its prices has seen the company gain an exponential popularity. The word of mouth has also assisted in spreading quick awareness as consumers post their experiences on social media sites. However, the quick growth has seen Uber deviate from its norms in one way or the other. For instance, in major cities, prices for their services have increased to a level that some customers never feel comfortable using the services again. Also, there are other controversies that have faced the company particularly arising from competition, human resources, laws, and the background checks for its drivers. An example has been provided in the case study regarding the #DeleteUber campaign which went viral after the company hiked prices in New York during

Uber’s Reputation 6 taxi protests (Levin 2017). Based on these, it has become important for Uber to manage a respectable image that is socially accepted. Technology In the 21st century, technology seems to be a crucial concept that every company must strive to keep abreast with. The growth of companies in this century greatly relies on technology. Uber has an excellent technology that provides great experiences and smooth access to both their drivers and customers. Their app also has other integrated features that provide extraordinary experiences such as push notifications, directions, and locations, payment info among others. The company has adopted 4G networks to ensure the smooth running of the app as it is critical in the dissemination of their services. For the 21st century, Uber successfully managed to differentiate itself from its counterparts through embracing technology to meet the needs and wants of their customers. Besides the app, Uber has greatly relied on the social media sites to market their activities. People explain their riding experiences to others online as they share stories. The company also encourages new users to do the same. Consumers always look for cheaper alternatives with the qualities they expect and Uber could be the solution. Nevertheless, by adopting the best technology, it is still crucial for Uber to maintain its reputation to attract more customers. In 2014, Uber adopted another technology known as ‘God view’ which allowed it to track the location of its customers thereby raising privacy concerns. In fact, one manager accessed the profile of a reporter during that time without proper permission from the reporter (Levin 2017: Para 5). It is therefore crucial for the Uber company to be cautious of how it uses technology to maintain its reputation. Legal Complying with the legal authorities has presented a major challenge for Uber. The rise of this company has come with various challenges for legal authorities. As a company operating much differently compared to its counterparts, the authorities have been in a fix as to whether the laws applying to other companies also apply to it or not. As a result, Uber is being faced with several legal problems related to taxes and human resources issues. For instance, there has been a case brought forward with a claim that Uber was underpaying its drivers for almost two years. Although the company agreed to compensate that drivers for the periods it never paid well, already it had been exposed and some damage done to its reputation for mistreating its drivers. The company continues to face much criticism across the globe and even bans. Therefore, it is much crucial for the company for the company to follow the technical usage laws and other laws pertaining to copyright and employee safety if it has to keep a good reputation.

Uber’s Reputation 7 Environment In the 21st century, it has become crucial to enhance sustainability in most businesses. Uber’s effect on the environment has been shifting. It is believed that it increased fuel usage and traffic congestion. However, studies have managed to show that Uber has not increased traffic congestion (Frue, 2017). With the need to compare its environmental friendliness, Uber began a pilot project referred to as Uber Green where customers could request a green ride. However, and despite all these, it still remains unclear as to whether Uber has lost reputation due to environmental mishandling. Recommendations to restore and rebuild the corporate image of Uber It is quite inescapable that Uber has an outstanding model for conducting business. Furthermore, it has been leading to successful disruption of the declining taxicab industry. However, all of these efforts will appear meaningless if the company continues to experience the controversies indicated in the case study. For good reasons presented in the case study, the name Uber seems to have a synonymous feature with bad PR. Sex scandals have caught up with various drivers in the US and India leading to the need for the company to enhance its safety background checks to enhance safety. Nevertheless, the much controversies Uber has faced have ruined their reputation in one way or the other despite still remaining the top company preferred by customers. A major reason that has made people perceive Uber as a damaged company in terms of reputation is the gradual speed at which Uber responds to arising issues. From a critical point of view, being a leader while still facing controversies puts Uber at the best target for its detractors. Therefore, the company should avoid giving fuel to its critics to add to the already lit fire. If Uber is eager to restore and rebuild its corporate image, then it will need to pursue concerted efforts that involve the following: Focusing on goodwill marketing This is important at the time of crisis within a country such as the one which occurred in Sydney where Uber offered free rides to the victims (Zhuo 2015). So, the next action would be for the company to make this a policy that drivers should offer free services to customers at the time of crisis to help people in moving to safety. This would move the company a step further towards rehabilitating its image. Show some value for the drivers Uber needs to treat its drivers better than its competitors in order to attract more employees. More particularly it should focus on employee relations and commissions. For employee relations, the company could enhance its communication with its employees and

Uber’s Reputation 8 even help them to secure low insurance premium and other forms of motivation. This would improve employee engagement and subsequently lead to improved performance which eventually would lead to a better reputation. Still, in the same line but in regards to the commission, Uber should lower its commission and offer a tiered system that permits drivers to take more rides. Allow riders to control their data The company should explain to its consumers that they (users) have complete control over their data and guarantee them a particular level of privacy. Along with this, the company should give users permission to see what they keep and allow them (users) to withhold data under particular circumstances. Recommendation for Uber managers There are several things that anyone aspiring to become Uber’s CEO in future can learn and implement in order to maintain the public image of the company. Firstly, it is crucial for leaders to implement particular practices that align with measuring the strength of the brand in the perception of the public. Mostly, consumers anthropomorphize brands through endowing them with traits of personality and marketers reinforce such perceptions by positioning their brand at a particular level (Rajogopal, 2007). Personality traits arising from brand provide symbolic meaning that make the customers prefer the brand and endure more while being attached to it. To position a brand successfully requires the use of particular models of measurement with capabilities of disentangling the unique personality traits of a brand from the other traits that are common to all the other brand in the similar product category. So, efficiency in the brand management delivers the advantage of new ways of advocating for loyalty. Based on the other advantages that come with the brand, it becomes crucial to measure brand from time to time to determine the impact it has generated on consumers, stimulating demand, and exploring opportunities for proliferation. So managers should apply different ways of measuring brand particularly the brand metrics method which is often regarded as effective in measuring the qualitative parameters constituting the performance of a brand in a particular market (Rajogopal, 2007: 3). It can also lead to a quantitative assessment of the customer perception. This means that managers can call for programs that monitor the sentiment scores of the customers through public polls or even net promoter scores. In other words, this could be regarded as conducting surveys which can be conducted also through emails, telephones, or through their website. This can help in knowing the number of people familiar with your brand and what needs to be done if any to improve the number. Other methods that can be used instead of the survey include; looking at

Uber’s Reputation 9 the website traffic, looking at the data volume from search, and practicing social listening. During this process, the manager can look at the volume of mentions, the level of reach, and engagement (Smith 2015). Apart from measuring b...