Uber Technologies just handed one of its longest-serving executives a much bigger title and broader authority. On Monday, the company promoted Jill Hazelbaker from chief marketing officer to president and chief corporate affairs officer. The move consolidates power in a trusted lieutenant of CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. It also signals the ride-hailing giant’s determination to expand far beyond cars and food delivery.
Hazelbaker now oversees human resources, talent, real estate, safety operations, marketing, communications and public policy. She assumes many duties previously managed by Chief People Officer Nikki Krishnamurthy, who is departing the company. The change creates a second president at Uber. Andrew Macdonald, named president and chief operating officer last year, continues to report to Khosrowshahi alongside Hazelbaker.
From Political Operative to Power Player
The promotion rewards a decade of crisis management and brand rebuilding. Hazelbaker joined Uber in 2015 after stints at Google, Snap and John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. She arrived during the chaotic final years of founder Travis Kalanick’s tenure. Back then scandals piled up fast. Sexual assault allegations, driver protests, regulatory battles. The company’s reputation sat in tatters.
She helped steer a dramatic shift. Practices changed. Messaging sharpened. Uber began to emphasize safety features, driver earnings improvements and insurance reforms. A New York Times profile in 2022 detailed how Hazelbaker played a central part in moving the narrative from crisis to accountability. Her team pushed for concrete steps that included better background checks and in-app safety tools. Results followed. Public trust improved. Policymakers grew more willing to engage.
Yet her influence runs deeper than communications. As head of marketing she oversaw Uber Eats campaigns that earned Emmy awards. In policy she championed a candid approach to autonomous vehicles. These efforts aligned closely with Khosrowshahi’s post-Kalanick reset. He values executives who deliver results without drama. In an internal note obtained by Axios, the CEO praised her directly. “Her ability to translate priorities into action and results is unmatched,” Khosrowshahi wrote. “She is someone I trust implicitly.”
Hazelbaker responded in kind. “Over the past 10+ years, I’ve had a front row seat to many phases of this company—from the early days when everything felt like a fire drill, to today, where we remain intense and fast-moving, but grounded in ‘Do the right thing. Period.'” Her words reflect the evolution. Uber no longer races from one emergency to the next. It now plots measured growth across new categories.
That growth defines the current moment. Uber wants to become the everything app for consumers. Hotel bookings. Grocery delivery. Financial services. The platform already handles billions of trips and orders each year. Adding layers of responsibility to Hazelbaker’s portfolio equips her to shape the corporate culture that supports such expansion. Human resources and safety sit at the core of user trust. Real estate and talent decisions affect how quickly the company can scale new products.
But challenges remain. Ride prices have climbed in many markets. Drivers continue to press for better pay and conditions. Regulators eye the autonomous vehicle push with caution. Hazelbaker’s expanded mandate puts her at the center of all these debates. She must balance aggressive growth targets with the need to protect the brand she spent years repairing.
Her track record suggests she thrives in such tension. During the 2020s she helped Uber navigate the pandemic’s collapse in ridership, then the rapid recovery. She cut marketing staff early in one restructuring yet maintained creative output. Colleagues describe a pragmatic operator who builds coalitions inside and outside the company. That skill set matters now more than ever. Uber’s market value exceeds $100 billion. Investors expect consistent execution across an increasingly complex business.
The leadership shuffle also highlights Khosrowshahi’s preference for continuity. Hazelbaker ranks among a small group of senior executives who joined under Kalanick and stayed. Her promotion comes as the company reports strong financial performance and pushes into new verticals. Timing feels deliberate. With two presidents in place, Uber can pursue platform ambitions while maintaining operational discipline.
Not every move will prove popular. Adding human resources to Hazelbaker’s duties means she inherits ongoing labor relations issues. Safety oversight carries heavy legal and reputational weight after past controversies. Success will depend on her ability to integrate these functions without diluting focus on marketing and policy, areas where she built her reputation.
Industry watchers took note quickly. The announcement landed Monday and spread across business wires within hours. The Information first reported the promotion, framing it as a significant expansion of Hazelbaker’s influence. Subsequent coverage from Axios and others emphasized the everything-app strategy and the departure of Krishnamurthy. No major surprises emerged in the details. Yet the speed and breadth of the change caught attention.
Hazelbaker’s story offers a case study in modern corporate survival. She entered Uber at its lowest point. She helped steady the ship. Now she stands among its top two operational leaders. The promotion doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing ahead. Competitive pressures from Lyft, DoorDash and tech newcomers remain fierce. Regulatory scrutiny never fully disappears. Still, few executives match her institutional knowledge or proven ability to convert criticism into concrete progress.
So Uber bets on her once more. The company that once seemed defined by chaos now bets on steadiness, experience and a leader who knows every phase of its complicated history. Hazelbaker’s new title reflects that calculation. Results will test whether the bet pays off.
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