Uber’s International Expansion Chief to depart after only 15 months
The Uber executive in charge of international expansion will leave the company as part of a broader shake-up within the firm. Niall Wass, Senior Vice-President for Europe, Middle East and Africa and Asia-Pacific, was seen as Co-Founder Travis Kalanick's most senior executive outside the US, however today we learn he will leave the company at the end of the year. Mr Wass's departure comes soon after the company underwent a major restructuring over the summer. Various international business units were brought under a single global umbrella run from San Francisco by Ryan Graves, Senior Vice-President of Uber's global operations. Mr Wass, who previously reported directly to Mr Kalanick, was offered a new role reporting to Mr Graves, but declined the position.

Uber’s senior vice president of international expansion, Niall Wass, is departing after some internal restructuring,

Over the summer, much of the company’s international operations were culled into a single department headed by Ryan Garves in San Francisco, according to a report by the Financial Times. Under the new arrangement, Wass, who had been reporting to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, would have to report to Garves. Instead, Wass decided to leave Uber altogether.

Uber hired Wass roughly 15 months ago, and he was leading both its European and Asian businesses.

The departure comes as Uber is facing difficulty in China, where competitor Didi Chuxing is aggressively tackling the market. Earlier this month, Didi became China’s first legal digital car-booking service. Prior to that it landed a major partnership with Lyft, enabling U.S. Lyft riders to access Didi cars when traveling in China, and vice versa. Didi also has a hometown advantage and is said to be more well connected to Chinese authorities than Uber.

No doubt, Wass was feeling pressure from increased competition and slow growth in Asia.