Data Analysis: Nike CSR
The Nike Corporation had a tumultuous period in the 1990s due to the numerous accusations targeting the company’s business model, abuse of employees, low payment and lack of corporate social responsibility activities (Riddle, 2013). Nike took up corporate social responsibility engagements targeting innovation based on four pillars of materials to use, enhanced processing, better choices and the bringing of choices to scale (Nike, Incl., 2011).
The vision and mission statements of Nike contain a reflection of the company’s commitment to CSR to help enhance its business sustainability. The Nike, Inc. FY10/11 Sustainable Business Performance Summary notes that Nike’s vision statement states that, “Our vision is to build a sustainable business and create value for Nike and our stakeholders by decoupling profitable growth from constrained resources”.
Through the company’s vision statement, it is important recognize its commitment to CSR as it aspires for a sustainable business and enhanced welfare for its stakeholders. According to Riddle (2013), Nike’s commitment to CSR in the modern competitive market is evident in its vision and mission statements and the desire to achieve balance between people, profits and planet. Nike faced criticisms of its treatment to the environment especially in China where it was accused of environmental pollution through the release of poisonous effluents to rivers and other forms of pollution resulting from the overall manufacturing process.
The publicity created by Nike for its commitment to CSR in its vision statement is a convincing indication of the its intent to realize a better working environment for all associated stakeholders including the planet itself. Riddle (2013) notes that Nike adopted a policy to recycle its products in an effort to help reduce the level of environment pollution caused by its products around the world. The commitment to this process was never existent in the 1990s when it was accused of concern for only its profits and not the environment or its employees.
