Why Is Uber President Jeff Jones Quitting? Another Executive Exits Amid Sexism, Sexual Harassment Scandals

Jeff Jones, the president of Uber, has stepped down from his position after just six months with the ride sharing company. The report surfaced Sunday following which Uber released a statement confirming the news.

Jones' tenure with Uber came to an end amid the embattling company's issues around sexism and sexual harassment, which many believe could be a reason for the former Target executive's departure. Jones was in charge of Uber’s branding, customer support and operations divisions.

“We want to thank Jeff for his six months at the company and wish him all the best,” Matt Kallman, an Uber spokesman confirmed the news in an email statement to Recode, which first reported the departure. This was followed by a note to staff from Uber CEO Travis Kalanick: “After we announced our intention to hire a COO, Jeff came to the tough decision that he doesn’t see his future at Uber. It is unfortunate that this was announced through the press but I thought it was important to send all of you an email before providing comment publicly."

After being filmed arguing with a driver over falling fares on the service and the general business model of the company, Kalanick admitted he needed "leadership help." Earlier this month, he announced that the company was looking for a chief operating officer.

Read: What Are Uber Drivers Making?

Over the past few months, major executives have departed from Uber as the company suffered a spate of controversies in 2017.

Raffi Krikorian, the director in Uber’s self-driving division, left the company last week, while Gary Marcus, who joined Uber just three months ago after Uber acquired his company, left in early March. Amit Singhal, a top Google engineer, was asked to resign in consequence of failing to disclose a sexual harassment claim against him at his previous employer before joining Uber.

An increasing list of troubles that plagued Uber in recent months, also included a former software engineer for Uber's allegations earlier this month that she was subjected to sexual harassment while working at the company, including being propositioned for sex by her manager.