Nike Essay Samples

The incorporation of NIKE Inc. occurred on the 8th day of September, 1969. NIKE specializes in developing, designing, marketing and the selling of athletic apparel, footwear, accessories equipment, and services. NIKE has a worldwide market for all its products. The company uses its distributors, retail stores and the internet as well to sell its products. The NIKE brand produces eight categories:Soccer, Basketball, Running, Golf, women’s training, Men’s Training, Action sports, and Sportswear. The men’s training includes baseball products, and the basketball includes its brand, Jordan. NIKE also markets products for other recreation and athletic uses such as volleyball, lacrosse, tennis,wrestling, and even outdoor activities. The company’s athletic footwear wearing is for leisure or casual purposes although their making primarily focused on athletics. The selling of timepieces, socks, bags, eyewear, gloves, sports balls, golf clubs, digital devices, and other sports equipment occur under the NIKE Brand name.
The company’s Jordan Brand uses the Jump man trademark to license, design, and distribute accessories, apparel, casual and athletic footwear. NIKE wholly owns some of its subsidiaries like the Converse incorporation, whichinvolves the designing, distribution and marketing accessories, apparel, and casual sneakers. Another subsidiary that NIKE owns is Hurley International LLC, which participates in thecommercialization, designing and distribution of accessories, apparel, and even youth footwear (Datamonitor, 2000). NIKE has received recognition as one of the leading innovative companies, and most companies admire it for its success.
A good example of an innovation made by NIKE is the Fuel Band. The innovation involved the creation of an electronic bracelet. The interesting bit about this bracelet is its ability to measure a person’s movement any time they move. Fuel Band measures the movement when walking, playing tennis, running, or even jogging. The market price of the device is $150. The Fuel Band impressed many people due to its quality and efficiency. It has an excellent interface that uses color cues to indicate the tracking activity (Housman, 2005). The device uses two colors, green when the achievement of the daily set goal occurs and it turns red when a person is inactive. The device displays the steps taken; calories burned and NIKE fuel points, on the pressing of its button. The Fuel Band is a clear indication that NIKE intends to embrace technology in its work.
The Fly knit Racer is another important innovation made by NIKE ink in 2012. The innovation involved coming up with shoes that are as light as a feather. The shoes feel like one is just wearing a pair of socks with a sole. The Fly knit Racer manufacturing occursfrom the threading of kneads contrary to the usual method of using multiple fabric layers. The technique involved a complete change in the company’s process of production. Manufacturing the shoe plays a role in the reduction of production costs in the long term as well as being environmental friendly. The Fly knit is a major threat to other shoes in the industry like Adidas due to its efficiency and lightness. A person can cover longer distances in lighter shoes than in heavier ones.
The success of NIKE is due to its proper management strategies and hard work. The company has rules that govern its functions. The anticipation of a product’s evolution is one important rule. The invention of the Fly knit Racers clearly shows that NIKE intends to incorporate all kinds of changes. The idea of a sock being fitted with sole displays a tremendous level ofevolution.Shoes are now evolving from the large and heavier ones to light ones. The attitude gives the company a chance to try out new inventions every day (Frisk, 2010). The ability to think ahead enables the company to become better than its competitors. The company made the Flyknit, for instance, with the intention of selling it in Brazil for use by athletes in the 2016 Summer Olympics. The company intends to set up knitting machines in Brazil to manufacture the shoes (Nolte & Ghosheh, 2010). NIKE focuses on turning a possibility to a reality. The Fly knit that looks like a modified tube sock is now in the market and making profits for the company.
The improving working conditions in NIKE contribute to its prosperity. The company ensures that all its worldwide supply chain works in favorable conditions. The process involves collaborating with other supply chains to make it a success (Frisch, 2009). An example of a method used to improve these conditions is by working with the Fair Labor Associations to come up with an effective initiative. The initiative is still in its formative stages. It involves the provision of quality, efficiency, and consistency improving tools, that assists the company to follow the law and meet its standards. A successful business is one that attains the set standards.
NIKE can attribute its success to its understanding of Impacts, Risks, and Opportunities. The company takes time to understand its business and the impacts involved. The importance of this step is to ensure the making of properly informed decisions that bring about the greatest change (Mc Crackan, 2005). The company also considers the connections that exist in all areas of one decision can affect other unintended areas. Taking a broad view then becomes a necessity to weigh the impacts that may result from the consideration of individual decisions. NIKE Inc. employs an outsourced model for manufacturing that other industries use as well. The model displays the complexities associated with lack of direct management of enterprises that have many varieties of products and inadequate information concerning the performance and impacts.
The company concerns itself with the environment as well. NIKE conducts studies on the production process of raw materials up to, including the disposal of their products (Nike Inc, n.d). The study is challenging due to the variability of available data, and the many participants involved. The analysis looks at water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, waste generation and even energy use (Canas and Sondak, 2011). Factsare emerging from the study reveal that 56% of greenhouse gas emissions occur during leather production. Also, the growth of cotton uses more than 63% in the whole value chain. These analyzes assist the company in developing more efficient production techniques that are environmentally friendly.
The company looks for opportunities in every challenge that presents itself. An important example involves the use of more sustainable and recycled materials to deal with the problem of reducing resources (Canas and Sondak, 2011). The company also advocates the use of less wasteful manufacturing processes. The company has also dealt with increasing labor cost by increasing the supply chain’s efficiency. The improvement of the safety of workers has improved with the introduction of adhesives that depend on water. The eradication of these challenges occurs because of the innovations and improvisation methods. The company significantly benefits from these innovations and the reduction of the effects of these challenges reduces as well. The strategy is effective since any problem that comes presents a new opportunity to make the production process more efficient.
NIKE also employs scenario-planning technique to get better knowledge on the impact of the business sustainability issues and to make better decisions. Scenario planning makes it possible to gauge the potential effects that the company can face due to factors like scarcity of resources and even climate change (Chermack, 2011). The company can estimate the expected effect resulting from a percentage change in the use of a sustainable material across the chain. The company can also analyze the impact energy improving or water efficiency initiatives on the competitiveness of the enterprise. These interconnections assist NIKE in the preparation of better innovation strategies and changes that may come, as a result.
Applying an integrated approach to its performance assessment is another factor contributing to its success. The company rates its factories using its Sourcing Manufacturing Sustainability Index(SMSI). The manufacturing index measures costquality,delivery, and sustainability to choose the most appropriate factories to strike a deal with them(Housman, 2005).The factories that pass the index test receive more attention and resources since they operate efficiently. The SMSI can use the obtained results to gauge the safety and health of workers, human resource management, carbon and energy management and other issues involving environmental sustainability. The assessment increases productivity and performance of the company since every factory aims at passing the index test.
NIKE possesses a worldwide recognition for its involvement in collaboration with other enterprises. The company has a strategy that encourages partnerships to enable it to make more innovations (Deering and Murphy, 2003). A good example is in the year 2012 when NIKE invested in Dye Coo Textile Systems, a company based in the Netherlands. The textile company is the first to come up with textile dyeing machines that are waterless. Dye Coo eliminates the use of water by replacing it with recycled carbon dioxide when dyeing its products. The method reduces the amount of water usage in NIKE Company. The new dyeing process produces the one of the best colors and eliminates water usage in the process as well.
The future of NIKE is to grow profitably by use of sustainable sourcing and manufacturing process. It involves the use of the company’s Sourcing Manufacturing and Sustainability Index to assess the factories. These factories are assesses based on their performance in terms of cost,sustainability, and even quality. The company employs scenario planning to enable an improvement in its decision-making process. NIKE’s success can also come from how it views challenges as opportunities for innovation. The company researches on the impacts involved its business before it makes decisions. The company also focuses on improving the working conditions of its employees. It ensures that its supply chains work in favorable conditions. The emphasis innovative side of NIKE can arise from its two successful products mentioned. The Fly knit Racers is one example of the company’s innovation abilities. The shoe is as light as sock a significant threat to other shoe companies like Adidas. Another example of the innovation skills in the enterprise is the Fuel Band. An electronic bracelet records one's movement. It even can tell the number of calories lost during the exercise.

References

Cañas, K. A., & Sondak, H. (2011). Opportunities and challenges of workplace diversity: Theory, cases, and exercises. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Chermack, T. J. (2011). Scenario planning in organizations: How to create, use, and assess scenarios. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.
Datamonitor (Firm). (2000). NIKE, Inc. New York, NY: Datamonitor.
Deering, A., & Murphy, A. (2003). The partnering imperative: Making business partnerships work. New York: J. Wiley.
Fisk, P. (2010). People, planet, profit: How to embrace sustainability for innovation and business growth. London: Kogan Page.
Frisch, A. (2009). The story of Nike. Mankato, MN: Creative Education.
Hausman, A. (2005). Doing business in a digital world. Bradford, England: Emerald Group Pub.
McCrackan, A. (2005). Practical guide to business continuity assurance. Boston: Artech House.
NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis. (n.d.). (Business Source Complete.) Cleveland: Datamonitor Plc.
Nolte, C., & Ghosheh, N. (2010). Working conditions laws report 2010: A global review. Geneva: Ilo.