Almost all of us have owned something or the other from the brand Nike and loved it too. But did you know that, while Nike has always managed to make its users happy with their products, it was not really keeping its employees happy?
And specifically, its female employees?
In the Nike that was till now, women employees were always made to feel inferior to their male counterparts. They were not given a voice at important meetings, were not considered for promotions, and their career at the brand was pretty much clear – stagnant and failure to reach the highest point.
The story has now changed.
In a great example of how teamwork can bring about positive change in the workplace, some women employees at Nike created a survey. They asked their female peers in the same organization if they felt they too were victims of gender discrimination. Once completed, the survey report was sent directly to the CEO of Nike, Mark Parker.
Image Credit: vox
It is no surprise that the results caused quite a stir, as it came out that almost all female employees at Nike were unhappy and had some or the other complaint of gender bias and discrimination. As a result, the CEO took immediate and necessary steps, which saw some of the biggest male names at the top most level of the firm take an exit from the brand.
Image Credit: middletownpress, weartesters
Amongst the male employees who were made to leave the firm was the President of Nike, Trevor Edwards. Incidentally, Trevor Edwards was also in the running as a top candidate for the post of the next CEO. Along with Edwards, his main man Jayme Martin, who was responsible for looking after most of Nike’s global business, was also made to leave. The list from the top echelon also includes the Vice President in the footwear division and one of the Senior Directors who was part of Nike’s basketball division.
At the moment, most of these posts are being reviewed to be taken over by deserving female candidates. Also, Nike has started an all-new HR policy that requires HR to take immediate note and act immediately on any reports of bias, discrimination and harassment at the workplace. This is especially a good move, as earlier, female employees at Nike were convinced that the HR would not help them, and avoided meeting them at all costs.
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