21 influential CEOs who stepped down in 2017 by Nina Zipkin on Dec 22, 2017, 12:29 PM Advertisement
 2017 saw a raft of chief executives leave their companies. While some exits were expected and came after years of service, others were more surprising, brought on after the discovery of wrongdoing. Take to heart these lessons learned about transparency, accountability, how to handle shifting marketplaces and how to approach your next chapter from these now former CEOs. SEE ALSO: I'm a psychologist, and I've found one of the biggest relationship problems people have always boils down to the same thing 1. Travis Kalanick, Uber  What happened: 2017 was a tumultuous year for Uber. It began with a $20 million payment to the FTC and controversy regarding Kalanick's position advising President Donald Trump on a White House economic council. There were calls to #DeleteUber following the ride hailing service's comportment during protests of the Trump administration's travel ban. Then in February, former engineer Susan Fowler wrote a blog post chronicling the discrimination and sexual harassment she experienced during her year at the company. Fowler's post led to an investigation led by former attorney general Eric Holder, which in turn resulted in the firing of more than 20 employees and a complete overhaul of the company's cultural values. Meanwhile, Uber was also engaged in a legal battle with Google over self-driving car technology. In June, Kalanick officially resigned, though he remains a member of the board. In August, former Expedia CEO Dara Khosrowshahi took over Uber's top position. What you can learn: You reap what you sow. A company culture that prioritizes results and rapid growth over the safety and value of employees cannot sustain itself.
2. Richard Smith, Equifax What happened: Following a breach that left 143 million people's personal information vulnerable, Richard Smith, the CEO of the consumer credit reporting agency, announced that he would be retiring from his position. It was later revealed that it was not the first time that the company had been hacked this year. The company's response to the issue was highly criticized, as the website they set up for customers to check whether they had been affected required them to provide their social security numbers to access the information, but in doing so, they may have forfeited their right to sue. What you can learn: Be transparent, no matter how big the issue is. You only stand to lose trust by continuing to keep customers in the dark.
3. Marissa Mayer, Yahoo  What happened: Mayer left Google to help turn Yahoo around in 2012, and her time at the internet company was marked with controversy, including a focus on mobile and digital that did not lead to a significant return and significant cybersecurity breaches. With the finalization of Verizon's purchase of Yahoo, Mayer exited from the company with nearly $260 million. What you can learn: Mayer's legacy at Yahoo is up for debate, although she was able to exit her CEO role with a significant payout.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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