It could take the rideshare company in a new direction
The ride-sharing giant Lyft (LYFT) – Get a free reportis making a huge and fundamental change after more than a decade.
The company, which has been competing with Uber (UBER) – Get a free reportto share the ride and mindset since the inception of the gig economy is finally changing its management.
Lyft co-founders Logan Green, who is chief executive, and John Zimmer, who is chairman, will leave their management roles at the company this spring, the company said in a statement.
In his place, a longtime tech executive and board member, David Risher, will become CEO.
Green and Zimmer will assume the roles of chairman and vice chairman of Lyft’s board of directors.
“Building Lyft with John for the past 16 years has been the adventure of a lifetime,” Green said in a statement. “All founders eventually find the right time to step back and the right leaders to move their company forward,” she added. Risher “stood out above other candidates the company considered,” she added.
Risher, who was Amazon’s 37th employee, is “a customer-obsessed leader who drives hard,” Green said.
Risher said he was initially “stunned” when asked to consider the job. However, “the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the competitive spirit I learned at Microsoft, the customer obsession I learned at Amazon, and the lessons of doing more with less I learned leading Worldreader are exactly what Lyft needs. . right now.”
Both Lyft and Uber suffered during the pandemic, as people dramatically cut back on rides.
However, Lyft has struggled to regain its momentum and posted a huge loss in the fourth quarter. Last month he offered a first-quarter revenue outlook of $975 million and adjusted EBITDA between $5 million and $15 million, further disappointing investors.
“There are no changes to Lyft’s first-quarter 2023 revenue, contribution margin and adjusted EBITDA outlook provided on February 9, 2023,” the company said in the statement announcing the leadership changes. Lyft expects to report its first quarter 2023 results in early May. .
