Nike Case Situation Synopsis Nike

Nike Case

Situation synopsis

Nike is beyond any doubt the leader of the shoes industry. It all commenced in restrained and confined facilities, where ingenious minds came up with the design of the Air Jordan -- the best sold shoes of all times. The design part plays a crucial role in Nike's success and throughout the years, incremental emphasis has been placed on improving the design and having it represent the organization.

While the evolution and role of design have followed the consistent path, the same cannot however be said about the evolution of business administration. The company executives have evolved tremendously from the time in which they implemented strategies based on hunches or when they spent tremendous sums of money on marketing alone. Throughout the years, the administrative process at Nike has significantly changed to improve and to become more efficient. One specific evolution in this sense has been constituted by the management of the creative act. Aside this, the company has also focused more intensively on improving operations, disciplining financial decisions, launching new ventures and expanding the Nike brand.

2. Analysis

a) Market orientation of Nike

To a high extent, Nike is a market oriented organization. It focuses on satisfying the needs of customers and it achieves this through a multitude of elements. For instance, the company continually enlarges and diversifies its product offering. It strives to address all age categories in the audience and it also strives to serve as many needs as possible. Another piece of evidence in this direction is constituted by Nike's decision to outsource its manufacturing operations. On the one hand, this materializes in lower costs, which subsequently materialize in lower retail prices and as such an increased access of the customers to the Nike products. On the other hand, the decision to maintain marketing operations within the United States points to the commitment of Nike to its market orientation and customer attraction.

b) Nike's growth strategy

Nike's growth strategy was more aggressive than initially estimated. Despite the fact that it took even some executives by surprise, the growth strategy was powerful and well developed and implemented. The company developed a series of strategic partnerships by which it aggressively promoted its products. Additionally, aside from a deeper penetration of the already existent market, the company has also focused on international expansion through increasing the consumer access to products -- both online as well as within the real life environment.

c) Nike business design

A major component of Nike's business design has been constituted by the merger or acquisition of several organizations. At the organizational level, this materialized in a series of challenges which forced the company to continually restructure, resize and readjust. At the creative and design level however, there were numerous benefits and they materialized in a significantly higher know-how, expertise and innovative ideas. The company has also strived to increase organizational efficiency, which not only improved the organizational design, but also generated customer value.

d) Nike new product portfolio and brand management strategies

Nike's development and continuous appeal to the audience has been based -- to an extensive degree -- on its product portfolio and brand strength strategies. The company has strived to develop new products, which materialized in an increased ability to appeal to wider customer markets. Additionally, it has also strengthened the brand to consolidate the customer appeal, and to assign the Nike products a significance other than that of their functionality.

Relative to improvements, these could occur in the sense of adding new features which better adapt to modern day necessities. Nike could for instance implement a brand approach by which it promotes the company and the products as supporters of environmental stability.

3. Nike in 2010

Nike remains an indubitable leader of the shoes industry. Throughout the past years, it has consolidated its position and it has expanded its operations within the apparel and accessories market segments. Combined with operational efficiencies, the company has been able to intensify its competitive strength.

Despite the internationalized economic crisis, due to which most economic agents are facing financial challenges and decreases in their sales revenues, Nike Inc., completed fiscal year 2009 with a positive growth rate. The Nike Inc. revenues gradually and consistently increased from $13.7 billion in 2005 to $19.2 billion in 2009 (Nike Inc. 2009 Annual Report).