Last Updated:
10/4/20 8:31 PM
overall rating:
undertones approved
Nike
Internal Representation & Support
78%
Public Commitment
72%
External Communication
70%
To evaluate this pillar, we take into consideration a range of factors, including but not limited to:
- Employee representation
- Diversity, equity, & inclusion (DEI)
We weigh a company’s degree of public commitment primarily on their monetary contributions to DEI matters or organizations fighting racial injustice.
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Forms of monetary support we look for:
One-off donations
Recurring donations
Grant initiatives
Employee donation matching
Highlights
Since we first rated Nike in June 2020, they began highlighting their top executive team (16 people, 3 of whom are Black). The Jordan Brand specifically seems to be more active in their anti-racism efforts than Nike as a whole - launching a series on October 7, 2020 to "highlight key issues facing the Black community and how to drive actionable solutions." Additionally, Nike's Summer N7 collection was created to increase awareness of wellness in Indigenous communities.
Lowlights
Nike clearly caters social messaging to each of their vertical's unique audience. More progressive accounts are vocal while others have almost zero BLM posts, likely due to the demographics of their followers (e.g. golf, soccer, and skateboarding IG accounts).
We scour the company’s website and official social media channels to determine what message they are sending around racial injustice, how they are communicating it, and whether their communications are perceived as genuine or performative.
Public statement: We verify that companies have made a formal statement regarding racial injustice.
Social media: We consider how a company uses their platform(s) beyond performative allyship.
Representation: For companies that have the opportunity to showcase diversity in their feed, we consider whether they have adequate Black representation and BIPOC representation across their models.
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Deep Dive
I. Internal Representation & Support:
Board of Directors:
> 15% Black, 21% - 25% BIPOC, 31% - 35% Women
Executive Leadership:
> 15% Black, 16% - 20% BIPOC, 21% - 25% Women
> 15% Black, > 40% BIPOC, 46% - 50% Women
Workforce:
An appointed DEI senior leader and/or a dedicated DEI organization, A Black employee resource group
DEI Support:
II. Public Commitment
Nike has pledged a donation of 0.1% - 0.9% of annual revenue towards racial injustice, specifically for Black lives. Additionally, Nike has engaged in actions that advance racial justice and/or uplift BIPOC communities, such as partnerships with nonprofits or mission-based organizations, sponsorship of individuals who use their platform to speak out on racial injustice, and matching donations to a broad range of qualifying organizations. Nike is also an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, people living with disabilities, and Indigienous populations.
III. External Communications
Nike has issued a public statement, both on social media and in a public memo, addressing racial injustice that included specific calls to action, and explicitly stated "Black Lives Matter." Since June 2020, 21% - 30% of the brand's social media content has been centered around racial injustice with posts seeming performative in nature. The brand has made an effort to include ethnic diversity, specifically increasing Black representation, and has shown support of the LGBTQ+ community beyond Pride on social media, there is little to no evidence of inclusion of people living with disabilities or a wide range of models with varying body types.
