Former Orbitz CEO joins Uber
CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has brought in old colleague, former Orbitz CEO Barney Harford, as his number two at Uber.
Harford becomes Uber chief operating officer after working in an advisory capacity for Khosrowshahi for the last few months.
Harford led Chicago-based Orbitz for six years before it was sold to Expedia, then headed by Khosrowshahi.
Harford also worked at Expedia in the early 2000s as president for Asia Pacific and is a board member at United Continental.
It ends a months-long hunt for a permanent chief operating officer
As COO, Harford will oversee all ride hailing operations, marketing, customer support, and the food-delivery unit.
“It is very clear that the way the company was run before is not acceptable and we absolutely need to change. I know Dara’s way of operating and he knows mine,” Harford told Bloomberg.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
France prepares for a massive strike across all transports on September 18
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt