Long story short, there is going to be significant changes, at least the mail suggested that, anyone's got any clue??
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Regional has built bloat instead of extending global process for last mile. This is more visible in EMEA compared to rest if the regions.
EMEA thinks they are some kinda special.
@qr that (dealing with that spaghetti bowl) would seldom happens and if MD/LT wants all process to be centralized, strategically evolved and implemented, there needs to be a balance between strategy in Global vs how they are implemented regionally !
The critical business processes are optmized by each team for themselves, and not for the overall design, creation, manufacturing, shipping needs of an enterprise. There are still places in Asia where a contractor in a factory has to retype details from one computer into another.
GT (and SEC) keep running into these little fiefdoms controlled by "the business" that won't change until a highly sucessful indvidual can navigate all the personalities, politics, and tech debt to pull out one piece of spaghetti.
@js I second that!!
@hc you would think but in my experience Nike has some of the worst systems when it comes to product creation and I’ve never had more boring repetitive data entry tasks. Having worked for multiple other brands, I’d say Nike is the worse system wise from my experience
IMHO, it's not about layoffs, or the overcrowded tech department, it's about the the thought process behind this layoffs, it should not jeopardize EMEA business, because tech is that unseen intern who doesn't do much but it does take that boring and repetitive tasks from you which then enables you (read Business Functions) to do more, make them capable in making faster & better decision which in the end will benefit Nike
The more time it takes to assign this tasks, or to fulfill the work, the more time wasted resulting in Nike losing money.
Hence PTC/ITC/WHQ/EHQ/Outsourcing whoever is going the work, the process should work.
Let's wait and watch
EMEA, Global, PTC, ITC
Someone who got rif’ed is trolling in this thread. Ignore them
Change is needed, but it's still hard. Nike is following what we're seeing in so many other businesses. It hired too many people without thinking long-term. Even tech companies are doing mass layoffs, let alone companies like ours. The sooner we come to terms with it, the earlier we can take control, go out to the market, and start applying.
@fv think enterprise: WE ARE NOT A TECHNOLOGY COMPANY. Also we lost market share to brands whose tech also didn’t sit close to WHQ. The point of centralization before was during the digital transformation / SAP4/ automated warehousing trends. Once those things are up and running it’s outsourcing help and let things run for another 10 years before they need new systems again.
Every consumer goods company (Nike/adi/UA/VF just went through this trend.
Additionally, we lost market share because we gave away shelfspace in wholesale while I investing too heavily in DTC not considering the cost it takes to be a retailer and drive traffic.
We are not a retailer. Or a tech conlang. We are a brand with a core competency in innovative sport product (apparel, footwear, accessories) and investments are (finally) being made accordingly
Something new is disband EMEA GT, discontinue their ungoverned, unproven development capabilities. PTC can do much better job. ITC is pathetic. Global is even more worse.
@f1 Exactly the point, for a regional, single currency country, Nike lost its market share to other new brands in sports category in NA, despite having GT, business and a world class strategy sitting closer to each other , do you think basing all goes strategy and asking other geos to follow Global strategy would work in a long run?
There has to be a balance in accountability and ownership , and I think GT is missing that tremendously right now, and moving work to WHQ/PTC/ITC is not going to solve this issue.
I hope MD brings in something new!
@eg Framing the US as ‘one country with slightly different tax codes’ just shows how surface-level your take is. From a tech and ops POV, you’re still dealing with 50 states that have their own labor, privacy, and compliance requirements, plus big regional differences in how business is actually done. Sure, it’s easier to centralize from a language point of view than EMEA’s 30+ countries, but don’t kid yourself into thinking the US is a frictionless monolith. The complexity is different, not nonexistent.
@e4 it's because there is an inherent difference between how Global focused on USA works vs how EMEA as a geo works!!
EMEA is working with 30+ different countries, different languages, different styles, different culture while USA is one country with just lil different tax laws (read California/Oregon) EMEA have different tax laws ,different trade & custom practices
Do you think it's feasible when the overlap of EMEA business with WHQ (GT or Business Functions) is just 1 hour in morning and another in evening ? If everything is driven by Global strategy, other geo businesses will suffer. Would you say the same for GC, nobody from WHQ dares to intervene in GC, GC works because they are regional, Period!
@cx - We are a WHQ based company and all GEO needs to make their mission to follow global tech strategy.
EMEA built large teams for data and analytics, doing data duplication, tool duplication and didn’t deliver much
@c1 And what miracles did Global GT brought by folding in Global business with them, re-orgs and more re-orgs, unusable or duplicate data products, close to no-support..
Wake up, smell the coffee, Global neither have the wit nor the backbone to support Global technology strategy across geos!!
ITC is better than what? Better than TCS, maybe. 😂
EMEA GT ran that cash cow for way too long using the excuse of being close to business. Time to get them folded into global.
I don't know if ITC/PTC is better or not, but EMEA GT's plus point was it's proximity and close communication with EMEA Business.
In this fast changing Nike world, moving everything away from EMEA is going to be bad for EMEA business!!
Move it ITC, we are better
EMEA GT will be disbanded. Most of it will run out of PTC
Wake up and smell the coffee. These are global changes with easy to see impact, all you have to do is check the structure in WHQ and other geographies. EMEA is just coming last as usual.