Question

Predict Ubers ability to adapt to the changing needs of customers and the market environment. Indicate how open communication channels are critical for successfully implementing change in the organization. Provide support for your prediction.

Answer 1

Uber has done wonderfully well to adapt to changing customer expectations and market environment. They have expanded beyond USA and is now present in Indian, Malaysia and other emerging economies. In keeping with different needs of the customers and market situation, they have also ventured out into financing the acquisition of vehicles by their driver partners and have also provided rides at different price points to cater to the needs of the market. So it can safely be concluded that their robust growth and their ability to setup businesses in foreign markets do suggest that they can adapt fast to the customer needs.

Open communication is a pre-requisite to enable fast adaptation inside an organization and ensure that changes are assimilated inside an organization well. For example, Uber when it was relatively small, had an open culture and a flat organizational hierarchy and everyone was provided information on the company's growth strategy and its plan to venture into overseas market to drive growth and enrich its valuation. Also it was more or less known inside the company that the company would go for an IPO once the business is well established and growing outside USA also. These pieces of communication meant that the employees were on board and convinced of the company's strategy and felt part of the overall mission. This created more ownership and led to overall growth and achievement of the corporate goals by aligning efforts without any distrust or conflicts within teams.