Did Nikes Frat Boy Culture Lead to the Departures of Two Executives?

Nike execs Trevor Edwards and Jayme Martin protected male subordinates who engaged in behaviour that was demeaning to female colleagues.

Following a series of complaints regarding inappropriate workplace conduct, two Nike executives are leaving their positions at the sportswear giant, effective immediately.

Brand president Trevor Edwards is stepping down from Nike, but will remain as an advisor until August, while Nike vice president Jayme Martin was fired from the company, and is already gone, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal. Sources say both executives protected male subordinates who engaged in behaviour that was demeaning to female colleagues, and bullied women and individuals from foreign countries. Yesterday, in a memo obtained by the Journal, CEO Mark Parker told employees at the company that over the last few weeks, Nike has become aware of reports occurring within our organization that do not reflect our core values of inclusivity, respect and empowerment at a time when we are accelerating our transition to the next stage of growth and advance of our culture. Parker also told employees that Nike was currently reviewing the companys internal HR system, noting that this has been a very difficult time, according to the Journal. An employee since 1992, Edwards was reportedly being considered to take over as CEO when Parker retires. Yesterday the company released a statement that Edwards will now retire from Nike in August, although sources tell ESPN that there was no outward talk that the 55-year-old Edwards was ready to retire. Martin, who reported to Edwards, has been with Nike since 1997, and most recently ran Nikes business divisions of training, basketball, and its womens business, according to the Journal. These departures have created a shuffle within the company: Parker is now staying on as CEO beyond 2020, and former Nike Geographies & Sales president Elliott Hill is assuming responsibilities as president of consumer and marketplace. In his memo, Parker wrote that the situation at Nike disturbs and saddens me. He did not specify what exactly the complaints at Nike were about, or whether they involved Edwards or Martin personally. (Nike did not immediately respond to Racked for comment.)The news of workplace misconduct isnt all too surprising, though. Nikes headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, has plenty of complaints on Glassdoor, with several employees calling Nike a company with frat boy culture. Boys club, with frat-boy type bad behaviour that is ignored by management, one Glassdoor user wrote. I have been told multiple times to sit and keep my mouth shut during a meeting (Female typically in all male meetings), another Glassdoor review reads, written by a Nike Beaverton employee who holds a director position. The employee also says Nike has a lack of promotion of female leaders: Often excuse given is that a specific female acts too aggressive and therefore is passed over for promotion (this is when a male counter-part can say the exact same thing but been seen as a strong leader). I see this occur on a weekly basis. One current employee, whos worked at Nike for eight years, wrote on Glassdoor two months ago that Nike has disrespectful, ageist, sexist, entitled, pampered and selfish upper management.

Times Up on the odious frat-boy culture, dudes, the Nike employee writes. Many women I talk to are super sick of the boys club atmosphere. Train managers of people to actually spend time managing ALL their people, in a professional, consistent, sincere way... I dont really want to hear about how drunk you got last night or listen to your 45-minute colour commentary on last nights game when I am trying to get my work done. Another former Nike employee writes about the companys good ol boy culture, adding, Itll be the downfall. One Nike employee who works at Beaverton describes the headquarters as a toxic environment where employee satisfaction is at an all-time low. Political. Petty. Bureaucratic. 70-80 hour work weeks. Low Compensation. The employee also says the headquarters has Frat Boy Mentality.

Required:

Is this a case of enlightened self-interest or a case of a company embracing a form of responsibility to the employees affected by its operations? Critically illustrate your answer. From a theoretical perspective, do you think that by firing two Nike executives would help to solve the problem? Demonstrate your answer by using relevant theory or theories