Lyft is growing rapidly. According to a recent post, they’ve expanded into more than 360 communities and have launched Lyft Lux. In addition, they are harnessing the power of their community with Round Up+Donate, an initiative that gives riders the choice to round up each fare to the nearest dollar and donate the difference to a charitable cause of their choice.
With the new growth of the company comes growth in other areas, specifically, their board of directors. Lyft has recently appointed former Senior Advisor to President Obama and Assistant to the President for Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, Valerie Jarrett. The company cites that the reason for adding her is to add new skill sets and perspectives to the organization.
Jarrett’s Background
Lyft’s recent blog post states that Jarrett worked on issues ranging from economic growth and opportunity to workplace policies for the empowerment of working families, while positioned at the White House and prior to joining the White House team, Jarrett served as a leader in both the public and private sectors as an executive and director on private and nonprofit boards, and in Chicago politics. In addition, Jarrett also sits on the board of Ariel Investments and is an adviser to the Obama Foundation, notes the post.
Lyft’s Current Board of Directors
This rounds out a pretty powerful board for the company. Jarrett will be joining the likes of Lyft co-founders Logan Green and John Zimmer; Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Ben Horowitz; GM President Dan Ammann; Icahn Capital’s appointee Jonathan Christodoro; investor and former Trulia CFO Sean Aggarwal; Rakuten’s Hiroshi Mikitani; and Floodgate Fund’s Ann Miura-Ko.
As a frequent traveler of Lyft, Jarrett states that she’s inspired by the strong community that the company has created. “We share a belief that reliable, affordable transportation positively impacts social mobility, and improves the quality of life in densely populated communities. I am thrilled to join the ride,” Jarrett said in a statement.
What the Founders Are Saying
The company is beyond excited to appoint Jarrett as their ninth board member.
“Valerie is one of our country’s foremost leaders and a distinguished public servant and a natural fit for our board,” said Logan Green, co-founder, and CEO of Lyft in a statement. “She will be a great partner for Lyft as we continue working alongside public transit agencies to provide upward mobility through transportation, reduce congestion, and ultimately reshape our cities. We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Valerie to the Lyft family.”
John Zimmer, co-founder, and president of Lyft added, “From day one, Lyft has been shaped by our core values that focus on service to our communities of drivers, passengers, and team members. Valerie shares these principles, and has a perspective that will push Lyft forward as we work to improve people’s lives with the world’s best transportation.”