Meg Whitman - HPE CEO
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) CEO, Meg Whitman, has spoken out to quash rumours that she could be in line to head up troubled ridesharing company, Uber, confirming her continued commitment to HPE.
“Normally I do not comment on rumors, but the speculation about my future and Uber has become a distraction,” Whitman said in a LinkedIn post on 28 July. “So let me make this as clear as I can.
“I am fully committed to HPE and plan to remain the company's CEO. We have a lot of work still to do at HPE and I am not going anywhere. Uber's CEO will not be Meg Whitman,” she said.
The proclamation puts to rest suggestions that she had been a frontrunner to take charge of the ridesharing app developer, amid rumours she had reportedly been included on a shortlist of around six potential candidates to replace outgoing Uber CEO and co-founder, Travis Kalanick.
Kalanick departed the company in June, amid allegations of sexual harassment and the subsequent dismissal of over 20 employees.
Bloomberg reported on 26 July that unnamed sources said Whitman was among a handful of candidates the company was considering as its next CEO, and that she had already held meetings with senior representatives of the ride-sharing app.
A new leader for the company was expected to be announced within six weeks, the report said.
Despite the speculation, HPE swiftly denied the news, insisting that Whitman is committed to the vendor for the long-term.
“As Meg has said several times before, she is fully committed to HPE and plans to stay with the company until her work is done,” an HPE spokesperson said at the time.
No doubt adding fuel to the flame of speculation, HP Inc. told shareholders on 25 July that Whitman had decided to step down from the company's board of directors, effective 26 July.
Whitman had occupied the post of HP Inc.'s chair since HP's 2015 split into two separate entities, HP Inc. and HPE.
