The Counter

There are a number of issues that make it pretty unlikely for Drummond to become CEO of Uber.

• The timing would create significant conflicts. Uber and Alphabet are locked in a lawsuit that could take a while to play out. For Drummond to jump to the other team in the lawsuit would create a lot of conflicts, not to mention that move would most likely damage a number of bridges. Drummond has been with Alphabet since practically the very beginning. He’s clearly loyal and I don’t know that a move like this would be worth those relationships.
• At the same time, Drummond has been at Google nearly 20 years and has had essentially the same title over the time, though his job has changed a good bit. I’m sure he’s been approached about CEO opportunities at other companies. His playing such an important role at Alphabet creates a high bar for an opportunity to run another company to be attractive. The opportunity to run a company like Uber is not the kind that comes around often.
• Alphabet is due to make him a good bit more wealthy. Drummond has roughly $70 million in stock options that won’t vest until April 2018. Uber would need to put together a very nice package for him to leave that kind of money behind, though it could probably make that happen.
• Travis Kalanick is still on Uber’s board. I expect Kalanick to make a move to take back the CEO role at Uber in a few years. I could totally see him blocking a Google employee becoming CEO of Uber. If I’m Drummond, I see dealing with Kalanick on the board as a big headache.

Still think he should be CEO?

Absolutely. Drummond has played an integral role in changing the world through his stewardship of Alphabet. Alphabet has some pretty big bets still out there, but who knows how effective they will be. Watch how he talks about Calico, Alphabet’s attempt to address aging (make people immortal), and I hear someone who’s not a true believer in this moonshot. At Uber, he has an incredible challenge in fixing Uber and shaping how people and things move in the future. That’s an opportunity worth taking.

Kwame Som-Pimpong is manager of the Africa Business Fellowship, a partnership that sends talented American business leaders to get business experience in African markets. He is also editor of Black People Things, a weekly newsletter that surfaces business news by and/or about black people.

This article was published with permission of the author.