Uber plans to reward execs for progress on D & I targets

Uber plans to reward its most senior executives for progress on measurable diversity and inclusion targets for senior leadership, according to its 2019 Diversity Report.

Uber has a 2022 target to grow the percentage of women in senior positions to 35% and grow the percentage of underrepresented employees in managerial positions and above to 14%.

The report outlines the progress the company has made on diversity and inclusion in the last year. The company, which includes Uber Eats and UberPOOL, has over 22,000 employees worldwide who do not include its millions of drivers. These have been at the centre of court cases with regard to whether they are independent contractors or workers.

It says that over the last year the percentage of women in the company grew up 42.3%, with the number of women in tech roles growing by 47.9% and the number of female tech leaders increasing by 35.3%.

However, it admits that, while the overall number of women in tech leadership has grown, the proportion compared to men has fallen and it says it will be increasing sponsorship and mentoring programmes as a result.

Uber says culture is fundamental to improving diversity, from recruitment up. It trains hiring managers to be objective in hiring decisions, giving them sessions on inclusive interviewing skills, and says it provides career development and mentorship for entry-level hires to build the pipeline.

Uber has been piloting several models of sponsorship within Tech and Ops businesses in partnership with HR partners and leaders. As a result, it will be expanding sponsorship to all parts of the business, “ensuring that historically underrepresented talent is supported and that our leaders are learning new skills to become better champions for diversity”.

Over the last year Uber has run a Global Self-ID survey, asking employees about issues relating to gender identity, veteran status, disability and caregiver status in order to improve what any support it provides. The company offers 18 weeks of parental leave, fully paid to all full-time employees globally.

Uber also offers its managers online learning in culture, leadership and inclusion through a partnership with Harvard Business School Online and in the UK, it has joined forces with OpenClassrooms to launch Level Up, which it says is the first education programme solely dedicated to developing job skills for those working in the gig economy. The partnership provides all Uber Eats delivery partners with free access to more than 300 online courses, plus 30 degree-level scholarships.

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