Former Uber chief brand officer Bozoma Saint John on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt in September 2017.
(Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch. This photo has been altered.)
One year after joining Uber as its chief brand officer, Bozoma Saint John has left the company to become chief marketing officer at SoftBank-backed Hollywood talent agency Endeavor, per an internal memo obtained by Recode. The embattled ridehailing company hired Saint John last June, with hopes her marketing chops could help shine a much-needed positive light on Uber. She is the latest in a flurry of exits since Dara Khosrowshahi's takeover as CEO.
In her new gig at Endeavor, Saint John will oversee a large portfolio of companies and brands across the entertainment, fashion and sports sectors. Endeavor is the parent company of WME-IMG, where famed agent and founding partner Ari Emanuel is co-CEO.
Saint John joined Uber from Apple, where she was head of global consumer marketing at Apple Music. She was hired under former CEO Travis Kalanick, who at the time was under fire for leadership that had led to a toxic culture emboldened by a company-wide lack of accountability. Kalanick was ousted as CEO just weeks after the company announced Saint John's hire, and Khosrowshahi claimed the position two months later.
Saint John isn't the only high-level employee to take off since Khosrowshahi took over. Here's a quick round-up of some of the other significant departures:
Frances Frei, the Harvard Business School professor who was brought on at the tail-end of Kalanick's reign, left Uber in February. As SVP of leadership and strategy, she was charged with transforming Uber's culture. She was followed out the door in March by Lior Ron, a co-founder of self-driving tech startup Otto and the former head of Uber Freight. His departure came less than two weeks after a self-driving Uber struck and killed a pedestrian, calling the safety of autonomous vehicles into question .
Don Burnette, the last co-founder of Otto who remained at Uber after the startup's acquisition, left his role as a software lead in April. Last month, David Richter stepped down as global head of business and corporate development; he'd reportedly expressed frustration over the number of departures from his unit. And Jeff Holden, the chief product officer who oversaw Uber Elevate, the company's flying car department, also resigned last month.
In September, Saint John talked about Uber and inclusivity at TechCrunch Disrupt.
Here's a roundup of last year's departures from Uber.