On the road with Ketki and Aditi on Uber’s employee driving program

“For a brief moment, I was able to step into the lives of people I otherwise would never have met, dive into the pulse of the city, and learn far more than just how to navigate the cities’ streets,” shares Ketki Garg, Uber Engineering Manager, who explored the Uber platform from the other side as a driver in Bangalore as part of our employee driving program. 

Uber happens in real time on city streets around the world. To build for this intersection of the digital and physical worlds—dig into real life nuances, what it feels like, what’s working and what’s not—you need to experience it from the eyes of the people who use it everyday. From new hires all the way to our CEO, and couldn’t be more true for the people who work directly with our platform.

Below, we chat with Engineering Manager, Ketki Garg and Product Manager, Aditi Chaturvedi, who recently got behind the wheel to discover our platform from a different perspective.

Ketki: “It was an eye opening and fantastic experience. I learned the importance of human connections, the challenges drivers can face, and the diverse perspectives of our riders. It’s clear that Uber is making a positive impact, and there’s room for even more.”

Aditi: “As a Product Manager, it’s easy to operate in a silo without being fully aware of every feature that gets released. When I took the driver’s seat, I could see the amalgamation of all of it come to life. Some features were magical, a few added friction to my experience.”

Aditi: “It’s hard to build a great product until we truly empathize with our users. I realized that there were multiple blind spots for me and user challenges that I had taken for granted. It was a great opportunity to establish what works and what doesn’t work so that we can Build with heart”

Ketki: “The support for female drivers. My first passengers were a lovely couple, one retired and the other working with a large tech company. The couple was particularly supportive of female drivers and advocated for positive change in our country. I also met a Sales Executive who expressed pride in seeing me as a female driver.”

Aditi: “As a driver, I had two important priorities, being able to take the most trips and ensuring my rider reached their destination safely. I realized that what we build needs to focus on these two key things.”

Ketki: “One of my initial challenges was refueling. It was my first experience, and navigating the process was more complicated than I anticipated. It was a long queue, and after some mishmash and a detour due to a closed road, I finally filled up the tank and embarked on my first ride.”

Aditi: “Whatever we build for our earners, has to be very very quick to find, easy to understand and consistent to use. I learnt the value of time and the importance of earning because I was constantly on the move! There was no time or space to stop and wait.”

Interested in joining us? Explore our open roles →