Our biggest strength at Lyft is our people, and today we’re excited to welcome back a familiar face. Nilka Thomas is returning to Lyft to serve as our new Chief People Officer, overseeing every part of the team member experience and ensuring that Lyft continues to build the best place for everyone to do their best work.

Nilka first joined Lyft in 2018 as Vice President of Talent Acquisition & Inclusion, after more than a decade at Google. During a period of exponential growth for the company, Nilka was instrumental in recruiting top talent, allowing Lyft to scale quickly and succeed. Most recently, Nilka served as Chief People Officer at SeatGeek, where she worked to retain talent and look after their team in these difficult times. 

“I’m thrilled to be returning to Lyft,” said Nilka. “I feel a deep connection to Lyft’s mission, and believe in what Lyft can and will do. As Chief People Officer, my immediate focus will be to understand people’s needs during this tumultuous moment in history, and make sure those needs are met.”

Nilka’s work on inclusion and diversity laid the foundation for what is now a robust and influential function within the People team, and she brings to Lyft an understanding of the unique workplace challenges brought about by COVID-19.

Nilka succeeds Emily Nishi, who served as Lyft’s Chief People Officer for three years. Emily was instrumental to Lyft’s growth, building a high performing People Team and guiding Lyft’s transition to a public company. 

Please join us in welcoming Nilka and her passion, expertise and leadership back to Lyft!