Kyte, an on-demand car rental service that delivers vehicles to drivers, announced the appointment of Barney Harford as an independent board director.
Harford brings extensive experience operating and governing large and growing technology-enabled businesses, with a particular focus on travel and transportation, according to the announcement. He will contribute to setting the strategic direction of Kyte, help scale the company's geographical footprint, and advise on expansions into new product categories and sectors.
Harford previously served as COO of Uber, with responsibility for the company's global ridesharing business, leading operations, strategy, marketing, customer support, safety, and insurance in over 60 countries, as well as for UberEats. While at Uber, Harford led initiatives to reduce trip defect rates, launch driver and consumer loyalty programs, introduce safety improvements, increase focus on high-value customer segments, and extend the platform to embrace lower-cost modes of transportation. He played a significant role in the company's 2019 IPO, which raised over $8B. Prior to Uber, Harford served as CEO and a director of Orbitz Worldwide, leading a turnaround of the NYSE-listed company that culminated in the company's sale to Expedia for $1.6B. Prior to Orbitz, Harford served in a variety of roles at Expedia, including as president of Expedia Asia Pacific, leading its market entry into China, Australia, and Japan. Harford currently serves as a board director at United Airlines, a position he has held since 2016.
"I'm excited to join the Kyte board of directors and contribute to Kyte's transformation of the car rental experience for consumers," said Harford. "Kyte's model of delivering cars to customers when and where they want is an important unlock as society transitions from individual car ownership to transportation as a service. I'm looking forward to helping Kyte play a leadership role in enabling this important transition."
Harford joins Kyte after a $60M Series B fundraisng round in 2022. Kyte's services are now available in 14 markets.
Kyte also has added new investors, including Rich Barton, CEO of Zillow and former CEO of Expedia; Mark Britton, former CEO of Avvo and former GC of Expedia; Dennis Cinelli, CFO of Scale AI and former head of U.S. & Canada Mobility at Uber; TJ Clark, former CEO of Turnkey Vacation Rentals; Rob Greyber, CEO of Vacasa and former president of Egencia; Robert Hohman, chairman of Glassdoor and former president of Classic Custom Vacations; Henrik Kjellberg, CEO of Awaze and former president of Hotwire; and Greg Slyngstad, Expedia's first general manager and former board director at Kayak.
