We grind endlessly to climb some invisible ladder, only to end up feeling disposable. This place has lost its soul, forgetting where it even started. Stuck in perpetual "transition," Nike is headed nowhere fast. Soon, everyone who actually cared will be gone, leaving behind a hollow shell. What’s the point of all this effort if it just leads to being erased like we never mattered... What a joke!
6 replies (most recent on top)
I’ve been at Nike for a few years and my first impression within a few months of working at Nike was that my department was redundant. Now a few years in, I can confirm it. My long term Nike managers have figured out the mix of creating busy work for the illusion that we are providing some value. Nonsense. Not sure where the “Just Do It”, make it happen mentality went, but it hasn’t existed in my dept for a long long time.
@ar+1js2hr8b0 said it best, just meet people. I think we lost that touch, I use to have skip levels... mentors, peer chats, coffee chats. We've kind of moved to a grind culture with no soul... we're getting it back but its slow.
OP, you gotta just enjoy your time there. Start working out on campus during work hours(personally, I liked to do 2-4PM). Start getting coffee with new faces and just fu--ing chat for a while. Start caring about making your skip level adore you when it matters most.
OP and others, agreed. It certainly used to seem there was greater care and potential upward mobility for the employees. With that now gone…
…what threshold must we cross to comprehend unionization?
My last 15+ years has been layoff after layoff. Some big, some massive. Obviously last year was the biggest. Literally every 24-30 months though. Couple this to management that doesn’t adhere* or espouse leadership traits… with an actual and observable care for their employees… what else needs to happen?
Working at a big corporation doesn’t necessitate a Union. Working for one that can and will let you go at a moments notice certainly may. Look up the merits of a union, and when one should be considered. We’re past the threshold, considering:
- Pay disparity from the top to the bottom
- Unfair hiring or retention practices
- Lacking a voice in company direction
- Fear of reprisal resulting in separation
- Employment security
- Transparency to promotions
- Lack of development opportunities
And others.
Labor laws in the US dictate that unionization (or even discussing it) is not a fireable offense. The fear you the reader and I have on this topic… and resulting in “getting fired” for even mentioning it… is reason enough to comprehend it.
We got toxic, and there isn’t an effort in flight to fix it.
At 500 up votes on this thread, I’ll commit to kicking it off.
If this thread is deleted by the admins (at the request of our own HR) you’ll know where the company stands regarding the honoring of labor laws.
*allegedly. Like, allegedly had inappropriate s-xual relations. Or allegedly knowingly misled investors. Those types of things. Allegedly.
I don't disagree with you necessarily OP but there are a lot of people in much "worser" jobs that make a lot less than a typical Nike employee. Retail employees aside (thank you by the way you are awesome).
So perspective needs to be gained perhaps comparing the work situation vs. others and pay rates.
Really good answer @a1+1js2hr
Maybe the tl;dr is it's just a paycheck, looking for it to be a lot more will just end in frustration.
You want to know what the real issue is? Everyone seems to be emotionally attached to the job, the product, the company. Now if it was really yours...meaning you invented it, marketed, built it, sold it...sure makes sense. But, this is just a job. The loyalty doesn't ever go both ways, obviously. You depend on the paycheck to live, they maybe..have some small dependency, depending on your job, on you to get product out the door. When you work for a small company, wearing lots of hats, it makes a difference. Large companies....not so much. You were hired to do a specific job. If it seems there is never an upside to trying to excel, then do the job you were hired for. Thats it. Leave the job at the job. Divorce yourself from any emotional attachment. I used to have an emotional connection to the company, the job, the product. Learned the hard way not to.
Currently I work in R&D at a large company. I take pride in my work, I want to see the designs I do succeed and make them money, and help the world in what my products do. But, if they came today and said this project is cancelled, I'm ok. Whats next? No emotion. What would you like me to do next is the question. And when I retire, I can look over the past 40+ years and say I had a hand in this...and this...and stuff I can't tell you about. And I walk away..