UBER Strategic Management Case Project
Executive Overview
The purpose of this report is to prepare a Uber Technologies strategic management project. In the report, the overview of the company will be covered by analyzing its competitors, its market position, and strategic events. The SWOT analysis of Uber will be analyzed in two parts; internal assessment and external assessment. The report will also present the strategic analysis, including the strategic financial analysis of Uber. Finally, the report will conduct strategic review, choices, impact, and measurement in relation to Uber’s market.
Introduction of the Company
Description of the firm
Uber Technologies (UBER) provides safe ride services. Founded in 2009, Uber has rapidly grown to become the world’s largest app-based transportation network; today operating in more than 80 countries. The app-based transportation network is headquartered in San Francisco, California, in the United States. Uber makes use of a Smartphone App to receive and accept ride requests that get sent to Uber drivers via a magic GPS. For Uber users, this is an on-demand car service that allows them to request a ride and the nearest driver respond to offer the service (Cramer & Alan, 2016). Uber has tirelessly been developing mobile apps for road transportation, ride-sharing, navigation, and payment processing solutions. Uber service makes use of dispatch software to have the nearest driver send to the riders’ destination.
Founded by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp, Uber works with simply pressing a “button’ once the App is opened. Uber driver is always circling cities, ready to transport people from one point A to Point B. Uber has been developed using unique technology and goes to a strategic financial of even sending customers the taxi-style car and also registration number (Cohan, 2019). The co-founders (Travis and Garrett) designed the service to offer a cashless solution that charge ride of customers directly to their own credit cards. To riders, Uber has been synonymous with tax cars, and for drivers, Uber has been a referral service.
Among Uber’s greatest milestones is the 2010 strategic decision to hire Ryan Grave as the CEO and the 2011 milestone, when Uber Cab was shortened to Uber, and in 2012 when Uber rolled out the Uber X service (Morris, 2019). Today, Uber has grown as a global brand; now offering app-based ride service to over 100 million users across the world. Specifically, Uber is operating in 300 cities and six (6) continents. As at 2016, Uber’s gross income was $11.3 billion.Company History
Uber Technologies was founded by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp in the year 2009 under the name “UberCab.” In 2010, the co-founders made a strategic decision to make Ryan Grave the first employee of UberCab, then a general manager whose shares in the company were 5-10 percent. The same year, Ryan Grave became UberCab’s CEO. In 2011, the company’s name was shorted to Uber, now the world’s most recognized app-transportation company. In 2012, Uber launched UberX, a service allowing drivers to work for the company by driving their cars (Laurell & Christian, 2016). Since this strategic milestone, Uber has kept growing from transportation technologies and services, from self-driving saloon cars to a carpooling service and also a helicopter service. At the moment, Uber is operating in over 300 cities across six continents. Nevertheless, Uber is also a household name even in locations that do not access its services.
Vision and mission statement
Uber is transforming how the world moves. By ensuring seamless connection between riders and drivers via an app, Uber is focused on making cities more accessible, on creating more possibilities for passengers, and on opening up more business/ work for drivers (Morris, 2019). Since its 2009 inception, Uber has launched operations in over 300 cities today and enjoys a continually growing global presence, now in 6 continents is attracting more people closer to the cities.
The vision and mission statement of Uber states:
Vision statement: The vision statement of Uber is, “At Uber, we ignite opportunity by setting the world in motion.”
Mission statement: Uber’s mission statement states, “Make transportation as reliable as running water, everywhere, for everyone.”
In Uber’s vision and mission statements, the company takes on big problems to help rides, drivers, eaters, and delivery partners get moving in more than 600 cities all over the world by 2025. In this case, Uber welcomes stakeholders from all realms who seek an opportunity to assist in creating a future that everyone and everything will be able to move independently. Passion, curiosity, and a spirit of collaboration are the most important values for the company to build and globally while living locally.
Vision and Mission Statement of Uber Competitors
Lyft’s
The vision statement of Lyft is “to improve people’s lives with the world’s best transportation.”
The mission statement of Lyft states, “Ride by ride, we are changing the way our world works.” The company imagines a world where all cities feel small again, where tech and transportation join people together once more rather than staying apart. We aim to have a community-driven future that starts with you.
Taxify’s Vision and Mission Statement
The vision statement of Taxify is “Given our ability to solve transportation problems on an increasingly broader scale; we want the brand to reflect the company’s future rather than the past”
The mission statement is, “Change the way people move within the city, create jobs, and transform the transportation ecosystem by delivering high-quality ride experiences at affordable rates.”
Uber versus Key Competitors
Uber
Lyft
Taxify
Products/ service
YES
YES
YES
Markets
YES
YES
YES
Employees
NO
NO
NO
Customers
NO
YES
NO
Philosophy
NO
YES
NO
Public image
NO
NO
YES
Technology
YES
YES
YES
Self-concept
NO
NO
NO
Growth/profitability
YES
NO
NO
Strategic elements of the History
The strategic aspects of the history of Uber are reported by the Business Insider (Hartmans & Leskin, 2019). The elements of Uber’s strategic growth in America and the world are as below:
March 2009: Uber becomes founded as UberCab, by then a “black-car service” by Garret Camp, Conrad Whelan, and Oscar Salazar. During this strategic decision, Travis Kalanick serves as the “mega adviser.”
January 2010: Travis Kalanick suggested Ryan Gravel become Uber’s general manager and after a few months he became CEO the same year.
June 2010: UberCab was rolled out in San Francisco, California, the U.S.
October 2010: The Company’s name becomes shortened to Uber, a strategic approach to make the brand short and straightforward.
4th May 2011: Uber transportation services are rolled out in New York City.
December 2011: Uber launches initiatives to go global and begins with Paris, France.
July 2012: Uber rolls out/ launches UberX to allow people to work for the company by driving their salon cars.
August 2013: The largest competitor of Uber, Lyft, is rolled out in San Francisco. In the same month, Google invests $258 million at Uber
August 2014: Uber launches the Uber-FRESH service in Santa Monica, California
February 2015: Uber begins to test self-driving car by partnering with Carnegie Mellon University. In May 2016, Uber started to test self-driving cars in Pittsburgh.
April 2015: UberFRESH is rebranded to UberEATS, and it is separated from their app for Uber rides
25th June 2015: France orders police in Paris to crack down on Uber after violence erupts following taxi drivers strike against Uber.
February to August 2016: A class-action suit is filed against Uber by three drivers. Other protests in Hungary create problems with Uber.
July 2016: Uber out-competes its largest Chinese competitor, and this leads to a merger with Didi Chuxing.
February 2017: Bad publicity and increased number of lawsuits hit Uber again
21st June 2017: Travis Kalanick, Uber CEO resigns following several chaotic months and allegations of gender discrimination and sexual harassment to riders by drivers
1st April 2019: Uber went public with a valuation of over $120 billion
May 2019: Uber win big after the Federal board’s general council rules that “Uber drivers are independent contractors, not workers of the ride-hailing firm.”
Overall Assessment
Uber has made transportation more mobile. The app-transportation Company is cheap and cost-friendly to riders. The IOS, Android and Windows Phone App connect passengers with Uber drivers by the use of their mobile phone’s GPS software, allowing both parties trace the location of each other and avoid questions of the time the driver will arrive to offer the ride. Moreover, Uber Technologies process all involved payments, charging either cash or the passengers credit card, taking the deduction by itself (5-20% charge), and by directly having the remaining money deposited into the account of the designated driver.External Assessment
In the context of Uber, a SWOT analysis is the best model to conduct the external market factors that face its ride/ hailing transportation services. The SWOT has two parts, internal and external, and the external factors are opportunities and threats. To assess the market opportunities and threats to Uber, the severity of the threat and the potentiality of the opportunity helping Uber will be stated and ranked as per the score.
Analysis of competitive position, opportunities, and threats
Opportunities
Opportunities
Weighting
Rating
w. Score
Exploit new and larger markets in countries such as India where there are expensive and inconvenient taxi services
0.06
3
0.18
Increase its valuation to convince more investors and thus increase profitability
0.15
4
0.6
Tap the growing markets located in suburban zones where taxi services have not reached
0.08
5
0.4
Increase Uber drivers number to lower the estimated arrival time; this will be rated high by many users
0.02
2
0.04
Use cheaper electric cars to lower cost and raise profit margins to drivers
0.15
1
0.15
Include additional services like transporting the aged patients to the hospital, kids to school, and pets to the vet
0.07
4
0.28
Threats
Threats
Weighting
Rating
Score
Unhappy drivers because of poor profit margins threaten negative publicity
0.05
3
0.15
Global zones like Germany passing new regulations that ban Uber services
0.05
2
0.1
A bad relationship with local authorities in America attracts penalties and bad public relations
0.02
1
0.02
Stiff competition from Lyft and other firms create threats of losing customers and thus reduction in revenues
0.03
2
0.06
Self-driving cars are another threat, for instance Google cars posing a threat for no need of Uber
0.12
4
0.48
Damaged brand by the new drivers entering the market since scandals and fraud are increasing
0.2
2
0.4
The total for external factors = 2.86
Analysis of Competitive Position, Opportunities, and Threats
By analyzing the two elements of the external business environment of Uber above, the company is beyond average when it comes to responding to the existing threats and opportunities. The analysis shows that at the moment, Uber has little bad relationship with local authorities, and thus its PR can be guarded by paying taxes to the local authorities (Morris, 2019). Also important to note, Uber is facing less competition in the market and thus can exercise monopoly power. But, Uber is threatened by the emergence of self-driving cars, for example Google cars and therefore the company must be keen to come up with new business models to counter this threat. The other biggest threat is high chances of tarnished reputation since the new entrants/ drivers are engaging more in fraud and scandals such as sexual harassment to customers.
In addition, the evaluation shows that Uber has the greatest opportunity to increase its valuation and attract more investors; as a result, the company will reap more profits. Also, Uber has a big market opportunity to grasp the idle market in those areas where Uber services are not accessible; this would make the company likable to more customers (Hartmans & Leskin, 2019). Nevertheless, Uber should note that increasing services like transportation of older adults to hospital and children to school is another market segment that if properly exploited would help diversify its business operations and thus increase profitability. Last, since Uber operates in many countries across six continents, the threat of political instability should be expected, and therefore a plan B is needed like in the case of Germany who passed a law to ban Uber services.
Uber Competitive Position
Uber does not operate as a monopoly; it faces stiff competition from other companies in the technology transport sector. As per Forbes 2018 report, Uber competes with ride-hailing companies and personal mobility businesses.
In the technology transport industry, Uber is ranked number 1 by Forbes. Its close competitors are ranked in the table below
Rank
Company
Category
1
Lyft
Ride-hailing / personal mobility
2
Ola
Ride-hailing
3
Careem
Ride-hailing
4
Didi
Ride-hailing
5
Taxify
Ride-hailing
6
Yandex Taxi
Ride-hailing
7
Curb
Ride-hailing
Uber’s CPM
The competitive profile matrix (CPM) is a powerful analytic tool for Uber managers in decision making. The CPM Matrix of Uber is presented below
Uber
Taxify
Lyft
Key success factors
Weight
Rating
Weighted score
Rating
Weighted score
Rating
Weighted score
Profitability
0.15
2
0.3
1
0.15
2
0.3
Global market growth
0.15
4
0.6
1
0.15
3
0.45
Technology
0.20
2
0.4
1
0.2
2
0.4
Corporate social roles
0.15
2
0.3
2
0.3
1
0.15
Customer loyalty
0.1
3
0.3
1
0.1
2
0.2
Price competitiveness
0.15
2
0.3
2
0.3
3
0.45
Drivers dedication
0.1
4
0.4
1
0.1
2
0.2
Total
1.00
2.6
1.3
2.15
By analyzing the above competitive profile matrix of Uber, the company has a slight competitive advantage over Lyft and Taxify. Increasing global market growth, drivers dedication, and technology are Uber’s best performing areas. In particular, Uber’s investment into the mobile UberApp technology expands its competitiveness. The mobile phone App is easily accessible to users and getting ride is just a matter of clicking “Request” button. As a result, the profitability of Uber is increasing (Cohan, 2019). However, Uber should take care of its prices because Lyft is charging lesser and this could be a loophole to losing competitive edge to Lyft.Internal Assessment
Financial Ratio Analysis
In this report, Uber Technology Financial Ratios will be analyzed for the years 2016 to 2019
2018
2017
2016
Current ratio
2.0329
1.7772
–
Debt/equity ratio
-09301
-03562
–
Gross margin
50.1065
47.5542
42.0546
Operating margin
-26.9122
-51.4372
-78.6216
EBIT
-26.9122
-51.4272
-78.6216
EBITDA Margin
-23.1322
-45.0076
-69.5969
Pre-tax profit margin
11.6415
-57.6778
-83.6931
Net profit margin
8.8465
-50.8447
-9.6229
Asset turnover
0.4698
0.5142
–
Inventory turnover ratio
–
–
–
Receivable turnover
12.2633
10.7334
–
Return on Equity
-13.3649
47.131
–
Return on tangible equity
-12.9528
46.6243
–
Return on assets (ROA)
4.1146
-26.1442
–
Return on investment (ROI)
-191.2791
73.2075
–
Book value per share
–
–
–
Long term debt/ capital
2.0329
1.7772
–
The financial analysis was done for three years (2016, 2017, and 2018) financial reports (https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/UBER/uber-technologies/financial-ratios). Uber Technologies have all the necessary financial information for all years, and this is helpful in ratio analysis. Having the most recent three annual reports, it was easy to generate the financial ratios and make comparison across the three years. The long term debt/ capital ratio of Uber is high for 2018 when compared to 2017. Also, the current ratio of Uber is high for 2018 as compared to 2017, meaning that Uber is making more profits and thus ready cash at hand. The net profit margin calculation shows that Uber is increasing profitability year by year (-69 percent in 2016 to -50 percent in 2017 to +8.8465 percent in 2018). However, return on investment is posing risks to Uber as the percentage is deteriorating (from 73 percent in 2017 to -191 percent in 2018), this needs proper financial decision making. The current ratio in 2018 was 2.0329 compared to 1.7772 in 2017; this means that Uber’s probability of meeting all short-term goals is high. The negative long-term debt/capital ratio is affecting the financial stability of Uber, and this together with return intangible equity should be corrected.
Analysis of internal capabilities and implications for your strategic decisions to follow
In this context, Uber’s SWOT analysis will be analyzed again. However, only the internal environment factors, strengths, and weaknesses will be examined.
Strengths
Weight
Rating
Weighted Score
High standard/ quality services
0.13
2
0.26
Well-organized brands
0.1
3
0.3
Unlimited fleet of cars
0.05
3
0.15
Global presence and recognition
0.05
2
0.1
Convenient system for rides and drivers
0.01
4
0.04
Less amount of operations costs
0.1
4
0.4
Community involvement
0.2
3
0.6
Fast and reliable services
0.05
3
0.15
Low competition
0.1
2
0.2
Weaknesses
Weights
Rating
Weighted Score
Easy to imitate/ copy the idea
0.01
2
0.02
Unprofessional relationship with drivers
0.02
2
0.04
Unpredictable business model
0.03
1
0.03
Increased concerns over riders privacy
0.01
1
0.01
No bonding between Uber and riders
0.03
2
0.06
High costs of operating cars
0.04
1
0.04
Drivers actions are uncontrolled
0.05
2
0.1
Bad publicity
0.01
3
0.03
Regulations affecting global business
0.01
1
0.01
Total
1
2.54
Strengths
High standard/ quality services
Well-organized brands
An unlimited fleet of cars
Global presence and recognition
Convenient system for rides and drivers
Less amount of operations costs
Community involvement
Fast and reliable services
Low competition
Weaknesses
Easy to imitate/ copy the idea
Unprofessional relationship with drivers
Unpredictable business model
Increased concerns over-riders privacy
No bonding between Uber and riders
High costs of operating cars
Drivers actions are uncontrolled
Bad publicity
Regulations affecting global business
Opportunities
Threats
Based on the above analysis, Uber Technologies is positioned well to its internal business factors. Uber has a well-organized brand and also has the advantage of the global market since it as gone globally to over 300 countries. Too important to note, Uber faces competition from Lyft only, the other competitors are very far as internal functioning is concerned (Hartmans & Leskin, 2019). In addition, Uber has unlimited fleet for cars, and this increases convenience of rides. Moreover, Uber is excellent in community involvement through corporate social responsibility activities. The other strength is that the App/ system is easy to use and thus convenient to both passengers and the drivers.
However, Uber is having a lousy relationship with drivers out of their bad conduct/ unprofessional behavior such as sexual harassment to passengers. The other weakness is that the system/ App of Uber is easy to copy by others (Cohan, 2019). Failure to control driver actions is creating bad publicity for Uber in the world market. Therefore, Uber should establish an excellent and close relationship with drivers to eliminate such petty issues in such a big company like Uber.SWOT Matrix
Strengths
· High standard/ quality services
· Well-organized brands
· An unlimited fleet of cars
· Global presence and recognition
· Convenient system for rides and drivers
· Less amount of operations costs
· Community involvement
· Fast and reliable services
· Low competition
Weaknesses
· Easy to imitate/ copy the idea
· Unprofessional relationship with drivers
· Unpredictable business model
· Increased concerns over-riders privacy
· No bonding between Uber and riders
· High costs of operating cars
· Drivers actions are uncontrolled
· Bad publicity
· Regulations affecting global business
Opportunities
· Exploit new and larger markets in countries such as India where there are expensive and inconvenient taxi services
· Increase its valuation to convince more investors and thus increase profitability
· Tap the growing markets located in suburban zones where taxi services have not reached
· Increase Uber drivers number to lower the estimated arrival time; this will be rated high by many users
· Use cheaper electric cars to reduce cost and raise profit margins to drivers
· Include additional services like transporting the aged patients to the hospital, kids to school, and pets to the vet
Threats
· Unhappy drivers because of poor profit margins threaten negative publicity
· Global zones like Germany passing new regulations that ban Uber services
· A bad relationship with local authorities in America attracts penalties and bad public relations
· Stiff competition from Lyft and other firms threatens Uber revenues
· Self-driving cars is another threat, for instance, Google cars posing a threat for no need of Uber
· Damaged brand by the new drivers entering the market since scandals and fraud are increasing
BCG Matrix
In the BCG Matrix:
Uber Stars:
· Global market growth/ expansion
· Well-positioned brand in the market
· High profitability
Question Marks:
· UberEats
· UberX
· Uber business strategy
Cash Cows:
· Broader market share
· Easy and user-friendly App
· Innovative non-cash payment modes
Dogs:
· Negative profits in the last three years
Uber Core Values and Culture
The core values of Uber are clearly stated in its value statement. Uber is customer-obsessed and wants to do the right thing and nothing more. Uber is committed to creating long-lasting relationship with all stakeholders. In the market, Uber operates with utmost respect, honesty, integrity, and the right conduct. Uber requires the riders, drivers, and the community to partner together with them to ensure that integrity has been upheld (Cohan, 2019). The Company is tirelessly working to earn and maintain trust with customers in the market. The culture of Uber is ensuring value for people and makes short-term sacrifices for a lifetime of loyalty. The company has built a unique culture by which ideas are valued over hierarchy, differences in opinions get celebrated, and all actions are focused on building globally.
Uber is non-discriminative as its culture advocates for diversity and inclusivity. The Company sees a future with many opportunities for drivers. Uber plans to raise the number of women workers to over 35 percent. Uber’s culture seeks to establish a conducive work environment for all workers, an environment where self-morale rule the day. Also, the culture of Uber requires that rides be treated with due respect; matters of sexual harassment are heavily punished by the company (Hartmans & Leskin, 2019). Any driver signing up to work with Uber has to be of sound mind, and understand the objectivity of this company. Issues of abusing riders are not welcomed at Uber; ethical conduct is a must-have principle for all workers in the company. In 2017, Uber sacked 20 drivers over sexual harassment issues.
Uber Organizational Structure 2019
The organizational structure of Uber majors on the topmost managerial positions. The topmost position in the organization is Chief Executive Officer, Dara Khosrowshahi. The new CEO, Mr. Dara has solid understanding, experience, skills, and knowledge in IT and management. The Chief Executive Officer of Uber is supported by other senior officials such as Head of Uber Everything, General Counsel, and President Redesigning. The front line managers are nowhere to appear in the organizational structure; and this is clear indicator of Uber’s corporate culture (Anu, 2016). In any case the company fails globally, and then this organization structure should either be altered or modified.
Recommended Changes to Structure, Processes, Rewards or Technology
The organizational structure of Uber represents an upper management company. After the CEO, only senior members are included in the structure, meaning that the junior staffs are not recognized when it comes to decision making. Also, managers located in different countries are not included in the structure; this is a sure sign that Uber can make the wrong investment decision to specific countries if they do not engage the managers (Morris, 2019). Alternatively, Uber should set a communication structure that directly connects top leadership to other employees without bureaucratic protocols. In addition, Uber should add middle managers or direct supervisors to monitor drivers’ actions while at field for work.
Strategic Analysis, Choices, Impact, and Measurement
Product Positioning Map
In this product positioning map for Uber, Curb and Lift can be considered as the leading competitors. In high brand equity, all the three Ube, Lyft and Curb have more concentration. Realistically, Curb is charging higher prices than Uber (Cohan, 2019). Also Curb is indirectly competing Uber in America as it operates in 65 cities. Generally, the Uber brand is safe in the market, but the management should not assume to enjoy continuous superiority in the market because Curb and Lyft are making efforts to catch up.
Evaluation of Strategies and Objectives to achieve Favorable Market Position
Market expansion and growth is the future of Uber (Bariso, 2017). Based on Uber’s SWOT analysis, the tech transportation giant should take the following strategies in order to maintain a favorable and competitive position in the market:
Strategy 1: Investing in self-driving cars
The future of Uber in the market depends on its creativity and investment into tech ideas, and self-driving cars. This strategy will enable Uber to attract more customers and ensure that it enjoys a monopoly market that the competitors have not yet identified and exploited.
Strategy 2: Launch Uber services in local areas
Neither Uber nor its competitors like Lyft have extended the mobile App transportation to local cities. Despite Uber’s strategic decision to launch its services in more countries, only the big cities are targeted yet Uber is widely recognized in all cities (Laurell & Christian, 2016). Therefore, exploiting those idle markets would greatly help Uber achieve larger markets and maintain edge over rivals.
Strategy 3: Use a formal employment approach
Currently, Uber has bad relationship with drivers, and many cases of Uber driver riots and protests have been reported across the world. Uber has to first eliminate private car ownership and increase the number of formal Uber drivers, a strategy that would create a strong bond with the workers. This strategic approach would help avoid drivers’ strikes and thus ensure business continuity (Bariso, 2017). Uber riders would in turn benefit from pick-up time and transport convenience.
Description of Strategy Implementation
Now and onwards, Uber needs to implement the above recommended strategies in order to achieve market growth, sustainability, and competitiveness. While this implementation is necessary for Uber, their implementation should follow priority order as below:
Investing in self-driving cars
Launch Uber services in local areas
Use a formal employment approach
Investing in self-driving cars
In implementation of this strategic approach, Uber should partner with companies in other sectors for example Denso and Toyota who invest heavily in automated driving technology (Anu, 2016). At the moment, Uber has partnered with Volvo, but the management needs to find other partners. By this doing, Uber would become the most preferred partner by automated driving technology players, and hence gain more brand awareness in the market.
Launch of Uber Services in more Cities
Strategic growth has always been Uber’s strategic objective. In this perspective, rolling out Uber services must remain among the top in implementation priorities. Uber should use different cities managers to spot new business opportunities in the unexploited cities and go down to offer its transport services there; this will contribute to sustained market growth.
Using a formal employment approach
Formal employment strategy should be implemented as soon as possible to curb issues of drivers’ misconduct while on a ride. More supervisors need to be hired to monitor actions of Uber drivers (Cramer & Alan, 2016). Also, Uber should ensure a non-discriminative approach when recruiting drivers and other employees, this would create positive public relations and company-worker relationship hence continued market growth.Milestones of Major Initiatives and Specific Achievements
If the above strategic recommendations are implemented well, Uber will achieve the following market benefits:
If Uber implements the strategic recommendation of investing in self-driving cars now, the new brand will have gained market awareness across all cities by December 2019.
If the launch of Uber services into more cities is implemented by November 2019, Uber will enjoy 8 percent increase in the number of Uber users across the globe by November 2020.
If for example Uber implements the formal employment strategy in January 2020, issues of driver strikes, driver riots, driver protests, and drives misconduct will be an issue of the past by June 2020.
Financial Projection
As at 2019, Uber is valued at $120 billion. The strategic recommendations suggest that by June 2020, Uber will have addressed all the strategic concerns as far as achieving more markets and sustainability is concerned (Sherman, 2019). In the next 3 to 5 years, Uber’s financial profitability will raise by between 15 to 20 percent its current valuation of $120 billion.
Conclusion
Technology has changed the world today. Uber Technologies, founded just a decade ago has gained popularity and high acceptance by the world in a way that the co-founders did not imagine. The company, Uber, has been effective in providing transportation services to riders from point A to point B. Also, Uber has created job opportunities for jobless drivers. However, Uber’s technology/ idea is easy to copy, and this has led to establishment of competitor firms such as Curb, Lyft, and Taxify just to mention a few. Therefore, Uber should continue to innovate new ideas and build on their current app-transportation system to avoid any possible loose of competitive edge to the competitors in the market.
References
Anu, G. (2016). Uber: Driving Change In Transportation With Digital Marketing. Business Case Studies, 50-62.
Bariso, J. (2017). Uber Quietly Changed Its Business Strategy to Focus on 1 Thing–and It Was a Stroke of Genius. Innovate, 1-6.
Cohan, P. (2019). Uber: Driving Change In Transportation With Digital Marketing. Forbes, 1-8.
Cramer, J., & Alan, K. (2016). Disruptive change in the taxi business: The case of Uber. American Economic Review, 106(5), 177-182.
Hartmans, A., & Leskin, P. (2019). The history of how Uber went from the most feared startup in the world to its massive IPO. Business Insider, 1-16. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/ubers-history?IR=T
Laurell, C., & Christian, S. (2016). Analysing Uber in social media—Disruptive technology or institutional disruption? International journal of innovation management, 20(5), 164.
Morris, C. (2019). Uber Drivers Plan 12-Hour Strike As Company Looks Toward IPO. Fortune, 1-12.
Sherman, L. (2019). Are There Quick Fixes To Improve Uber’s Profitability? Forbes, 1-10.