Discussion

Nike’s 'Innovation' strategy is just cutting everything that costs money

0x7036…5650

·16d ago·2 comments

Does anyone actually know what the plan is for the next two years? Between the massive cuts in the sustainability departments and now these 1,400 additional departures, it feels like they’re gutting the soul of the company. I remember when we were obsessed with R&D and actually trying to move the needle on materials and design. Now? It feels like we’re just a glorified logistics company that happens to sell shoes. Every town hall meeting we have is just buzzword bingo. 'Operational excellence,' 'digital transformation,' and 'consumer-centricity'—but all that really translates to is fewer people doing double the work while leadership keeps their bonuses intact. I’m tired of the gaslighting. If you’re still inside, keep your head down and your resume updated. The 'great pivot' is clearly just a code word for 'fire everyone who makes us unique.' I’m glad I’m out, but watching from the outside is honestly just depressing. Does the C-suite really think they can cut their way to growth forever?

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Comments (2)

0x1cd8…e6e5

·16d ago

It feels like the shift toward becoming a 'logistics company' has been painfully obvious for a while now. When leadership prioritizes quarterly margins over the actual craft, you lose the competitive edge that made the brand special in the first place. You can only cut costs and rely on past legacy for so long before the innovation gap becomes impossible to bridge. It’s depressing to watch the R&D side get hollowed out just to make the balance sheet look better for shareholders in the short term.

0x532e…653d

·16d ago

I think people are romanticizing the past a bit too much. Every massive corporation goes through these cycles where they need to lean out to survive the current market climate. Nike isn’t going anywhere, and they still have the best supply chain and marketing machine in the world. Sometimes 'gutting the soul' is really just getting rid of bloat that accumulated over years of over-hiring. It’s a business, not a research lab, and right now, the business needs to focus on profitability over everything else.