Philip H Knight

“I wanted to build something that was my own, something I could point to and say: I made
that. It was the only way I saw to make life meaningful “

Philip Knight, the founder of Nike, is famous for his passion and rule-breaking "continuous
reinvention" of his entrepreneurially minded business. His unrelenting, focused energy built Nike
into the most recognized brand in the world.
He started selling track shoes out of the trunk of his car. Forty years later he presided over the
largest and most visible athletic apparel company in the world. From 1964 to 1972 Knight and
his former track coach, Bill Bowerman, distributed Japanese-made running shoes in America and
gradually laid the foundation for the Nike empire. By the late 1980s, the Nike "swoosh"
trademark had become ubiquitous, and Knight was well on his way toward managing a
multibillion-dollar company.

Some of the key leadership skills to be learnt from Phil Knight are:

1. Find your Passion-

Many of us are focused on following a passion, not satisfied settling on a career for the
sole sake of making money. Passion is something that we really want to do, no matter
what others say, no matter what we get out of it, and no matter what the results are.
Hardwork and Dedication can only help you reach some distance, but passion is a very
important factor in the long run.
Phil Knight started Nike with a similar philosophy. Phil was always interested in running
and he was also part of the track program at the University of Oregon. Phil always
believed that along with eating and sleeping, running is also a vital factor for staying
healthy. It was Phil’s passion for running that pulled Nike ahead of its competitors.
Phil’s passion for building a running shoe brand is visible from the fact that in 1962 Phil
Knight decided to visit Japan to enquire about superior quality running shoes which were
manufactured in Japan by a brand called Oniksuka tiger. Phil ordered two hundred pairs
of the shoe and passionately marketed them at various track and field events.

2. Hire Smart-
 Nike is unique in the sense that nearly all early employees were involved in the sport of
Track and Field. This demonstrates the value of hiring people who fit with your culture,
especially if you’re building a company with a strong vision - Don’t onboard someone
who isn’t excited about your organization’s goals.

Even if Phil was the co-founder of Nike, he was not involved in activities like designing
the logo or even the company’s name; rather he took the charge to hire people that shared
his vision of creating quality shoes and innovating.

For instance, Bill Bowerman, trusted partner, was Phil’s track coach at Oregon
University, while Jeff Johnson, their first hire, was a fellow runner and competitor of Phil
Knight. Bowerman pioneered many of Nike’s early shoe models and was constantly
testing them on his athletes while Johnson on the other hand, put forward the name Nike.
Both of these people were a smart hire by Phil as they were a perfect fit to the
organization’s culture.

3. Micromanagement won’t Help Anyone-

Micromanagement is a type of a management style whereby a manager meticulously
observes and controls or reminds the work of her/his subordinates and employees. It is
generally considered to have a negative implication, mainly because it shows a lack of
freedom in the workplace.

Phil not once thought in micromanaging people nor did he like anyone else
micromanaging him, he rather displayed more of a hands-off leadership style. He
strongly believed -“Don’t tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and let them
surprise you with their results”. He used to share the vision of the company and general
guidance as well as never really told his employees how to get things done.

For instance, Jeff Johnson, the first employee of the company, who worked diligently for
Nike and did everything to increase the sales of the shoes to make Blue Ribbon Sports
famous. In the near future when Nike was in its primary stage, Phil asked Jeff to relocate
from the West Coast office to open an East Coast to run Nike’s first American factory.
Initially, Jeff was reluctant with the sudden changes, but Phil knew that Jeff was the right
person to handle the Factory and Phil wasn’t wrong. Jeff handled the factory very well
and increased the productivity of the company. Doing so he believed that people show
their true potential and showcased how laissez-faire leadership style can bring the best
out of employees.

4. Don’t be afraid of a fight-

 We know that Nike was not born in a day, the company was originally known as blue
ribbon sports and it was founded by Phil Knight in 1965. He started off by selling shoes
from the trunk of his car at Oregon Track meets. Later, he faced many hurdles that
included lawsuits and financial struggles which lead Nike to the brink of bankruptcy for
almost two decades. Phil Knight refers to business as a war without bullets and weapons
in many of his interviews because he believes that, only by fighting through the battles
and curveballs that are thrown at the business due to various situations will create a more
tougher and sustainable version of the organization. This can clearly be seen when Phil
Knight had a disagreement with their Japanese manufacturer when they tried pressurizing
him to sell 51% of the company to them, to which he responded by ending their
agreement and travelling solo till they could find another manufacturer. The company
changed their name during this course and he went on to create the first few shoes of
Nike, this shows how he was determined to fight for what he knew was right.

5. Competition is Healthy-
Competition in the business world is a good thing as it pushes the business to strive to be
the absolute best thus satisfying the customers and making it their primary goal.

From the beginning, Nike was in constant competition with its earlier counterpart Adidas.
In his story, Knight frequently referenced how Adidas was a driver for success and kept
him on his toes.

Specifically, when naming a shoe model - Bowerman chose the ‘Aztec’, paying homage
to the 1968 Olympic Games being held in Mexico City. Adidas, already having a shoe
called the Azteca Gold, threatened litigation. As a result, Nike changed their model to the
‘Cortez’ - one of their most iconic and popular shoes to date.

6. Ask for Help-

In his initial days, Knight recalls asking his father for an initial loan to build Blue Ribbon
Sports. Then, having realised the need for ads, Knight paid an Oregon University graphic
design student $35 to draw the company's signature swoosh, which Knight initially
referred to as 'fat lightning bolts' and 'chubby checkmarks.'

Most famously, Oregon's long jumper and Nike employee Bob Woodell and his parents
decided to lend Knight $8,000 to hold the company going in 1970. 10 years back, Knight
was able to sit down at the Woodell's to let them know that their loan was worth $1.6
million.
Taking help for achieving the objectives is not wrong, Phil took help from a lot of people
like Mindy Grossman for Advertisement, Blair from Pepsi to be the CEO, Mary Kate
 from Disney to head up new ventures and William Perez to be the CEO, who was then
the Chief of Johnson & Johnson.
Unfortunately, there’s a belief among many entrepreneurs that asking for help is a sign of
weakness. Getting past your initial fear and enlisting the help of others can allow you to
grow your network, get useful advice, and even sometimes get through difficult
situations.

7. Understand your Shortcomings-

 As a leader, it is crucial to recognize where you have gaps and at the same time,
give people the strengths you’re missing, as well as an opportunity to
contribute.
 Leaders who take the time to identify and accept their weaknesses can see
immediate benefits and Phil Knight was among those leaders who understood
the importance of self-realization.
 He was able to analyse his flaws and understood that he was struggling to find
work-life balance. He realized that he had not been a present father because he
invested most of his time and energy in his business.
 He also accepted his shortcomings professionally.
 He did not give enough praise and acknowledgement to his employees.

8. Innovation-
The successful exploitation of new ideas is crucial to a business being able to improve its
processes, bring new and improved products and services to market, increase its efficiency and,
most importantly, improve its profitability. The process of exploring new ideas and putting them
into an application is known as Innovation.
Phil Knight is no stranger to Innovation as Nike has been able to hold a strong position in the
market with the help of Innovation. Nike has been able to introduce radical and disruptive sports
equipment innovation which not only changed the market but also the sport.
An example of Phil’s innovation can be seen with the introduction of the Waffle Trainer, which
debuted in 1974. Prior to this, all running shoes had spikes for a better grip with the field. Nike
solved this problem by getting rid of the spikes and introducing waffle shaped design on the soul.
This new design not only made the shoes lighter but also provided a similar grip with the running
field.

9. Dynamic Responses-
Nike is always known for being in trend, this was mainly because Phil Knight always made sure
the emphasis was on the importance of being relevant. He believes in changing, adapting and
innovating to be in line with the current trends and requirements in the market, this is what keeps
the company significant in the sports arena till today. Nike according to him, is a marketing
company and the products are the most important marketing tools. When it came to
advertisements and brand ambassadors, he always went with who/what was the newest and most
appropriate element in the industry. He is also a risk taker as he was not afraid of going with his
instincts when it came to pushing his company to the next level. An instance of this would be
when he decided to go with Michael Jordan as in his words “We had a lot of good players, but
we didn’t have really great players. We thought he had the chance to be that.” As he was one of
the most talked about players in the NBA during the 80’s-90’s. Knight even took a chance by
running a huge ad saying “Banned in the NBA” when the then NBA commissioner David Stern
banned the ‘Jordans’ from being used on the court. This caused a huge surge in the sales for the
shoes.

10. Quality and Branding of the Product-

Nike is a brand builder, its advertising slogan ‘Just do it’ ‘There is no finish line’ have moved
above advertising into popular voicing. His brand represents innovation, inspiration,
creativity and energy. The question arises how did he achieve it?

 His brand has been an inspiration for the people who fear to start something new. He
made a remarkable entry in the market amongst giant shoe dictators because he
understood the athlete’s need and focused on the quality (light, comfortable and go
to distance shoes)
 Phil’s legendary innovation is the Waffle outsole, which he discovered by pouring
rubber into a waffle iron. The Waffle Trainer later became the best-selling training shoe
in the United States.
 When Nike introduced a new segment (casual shoes) it did not attract customers, he
understood making good quality shoes isn’t enough, they need to be customer centric as
well. He learnt to do well all the things involved in getting to the consumer, starting
with understanding who the consumer is and what the brand represents. His creativity
has made his company reach heights.

11. Collaboration-

Nike is defined by both collaboration and innovation. Initially fashion averse, over the past
decade Nike has embraced creatives from all walks of life. From fashion moguls to streetwear
brands and artists to celebrities, Nike and its subsidiaries have been open to working with anyone
who can tell a story and in doing so take the brand in a new direction.

For Nike, collaboration is more than simply putting two names together. It’s about finding
synergy between two partners where the resulting product is more than the sum of its parts,
setting the blueprint for releases moving forward. Below, we present a selection of the most
notable brands, stores, artists and individuals whose work with Nike over the past decade has
transcended the product and elevated the brand as a whole.

1.Nike Air Max Susan "Missing link”

2.Nike Air Fear Of God 1 "Light Bone"- a collaboration with swoosh

3.Cash Ru x Nike Air Max 97 "Shanghai Kaleidoscope".

4. Cactus Plant Flea Market x Nike Air VaporMax 2019 "Black"

5. The sacai x Nike LDWaffle "Black"

6. PEACEMINUSONE x Nike Air Force 1 "Para-Noise"

7. fragment design x CLOT x Nike Air Force 1 "Black"

12. Sustainability-
Corporate Social Responsibility-

Indeed, creating and building business models that not only recognize and accommodate,
but thrive also on, the constraints of the natural world is the only way an organization can
achieve growth in the present that won’t compromise its ability to grow and succeed for
decades to come.

It was only 20 years ago that consumers were protesting outside Nike town stores, and
news stories were casting Nike in the role of villain amid child labor and sweatshop
allegations. It’s hard to believe, given the steady stream of corporate social responsibility
(CSR) accolades the company has racked up in the last 10 years, that Nike was facing
boycotts and public ire throughout the 1990s.

In 1998, then-CEO Phil Knight made a public speech promising change.

In 2005, Nike was the first company in its industry to demonstrate transparency, when it
published a complete list of its contract factories. In the same year, it also published its
first version of a CSR report -- detailing pay scales and working conditions in its factories
and admitting continued problems

In addition to continuing to work on improving conditions for workers, Nike is

innovating its materials development and management to address the impact of climate
 change on the supply chain and reduce its environmental impact. One area of
concentration is water conservation.

The tide turned once the company acknowledged its issues, demonstrated transparency
and worked toward change. And today the company is counted among CSR leaders.

13. Contributions and Accomplishments-

1. Awards & Achievements

 In 2000, Knight was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame for his
Special Contribution to Sports in Oregon.
 In 2012, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a
contributor for being the driving force behind Nike's huge financial support of
U.S. basketball and its players.

2. Philanthropic Works –
 Knight donated US $105 million to the Stanford GSB in 2006, which was at that time
the largest ever individual donation to an American business school.
 Along with his wife, he pledged US $100 million to the OHSU Cancer Institute in
2008 which was later renamed "OHSU Knight Cancer Institute" in his honour.
 In 2012, Knight contributed US $65,000 to the higher education Political Action
Committee (PAC) which aims to facilitate an increase in the autonomy of schools in
the Oregon University System.