Nike’s mission statement and vision statement determine business goals and strategic direction for the company’s competitive position as the leading athletic shoes and apparel business in the global market. A company’s mission statement defines the fundamental objectives of the business, especially in terms of its purpose. In this company analysis case, Nike’s mission statement prompts the business to support the endeavors of athletes. On the other hand, a company’s vision statement provides a target future condition of the business. Nike’s vision statement focuses on brand strength and development. The company applies these corporate statements as guides for the evolution of its business, leading to the creation of business strengths and competitive advantages, like a strong brand image, as determined in the SWOT analysis of Nike Inc. Through the evolution and effective implementation of its mission statement and vision statement, the company supports its market position as a leading producer of sports footwear, apparel, and equipment.
Adhering to its vision statement and mission statement, Nike Inc. aims for leadership in the international market, while counteracting competition. The Five Forces analysis of Nike shows that competitive rivalry imposes a strong force against the company and its industry environment. The mission and vision statements compel the company’s strategic management to develop policies for competitiveness against other firms, such as Adidas, Puma, ASICS, and Under Armour. These firms make the global sporting goods market a challenging business environment.
Nike’s Mission Statement
Nike’s mission is “to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world.” This mission considers the psychological and utilitarian aspects of how the sportswear company satisfies its customers. The following main components are in Nike’s mission statement:
- Inspiration
- Innovation
- Every athlete in the world
The company states that everybody is an athlete, based on Nike founder Bill Bowerman’s statement, “If you have a body, you are an athlete.” In this context, the mission statement represents the company’s strategic goal of reaching every person on earth because everybody is considered an athlete and, thus, a customer. As a leading manufacturer of sports shoes, apparel, and equipment, Nike Inc. inspires people to adopt a “winner mindset”, which is covered in the “inspiration” component of the mission statement. The company’s “Just Do It” slogan represents this inspirational goal. Also, Nike’s mission statement emphasizes innovation. This component is applied through the organization’s strategy of continuous improvement of products through new technologies, as included in Nike’s generic competitive strategy and intensive growth strategies. The “every athlete in the world” component indicates that the company’s mission statement pushes the business to target every person in the world. As noted, the company considers every person an athlete. Thus, based on this mission, Nike’s products are designed to attract and satisfy a wide variety of market segments globally.
Nike’s Vision Statement
Nike’s vision is “to remain the most authentic, connected, and distinctive brand.” The business continues to apply this vision statement for its long-term strategic goal of keeping its market dominance and business growth. The sportswear company focuses on developing its brand. The following are the notable keywords in Nike’s vision statement:
- To remain
- Most authentic
- Most connected
- Most distinctive
Nike’s vision statement uses the word “remain,” which indicates that the company already considers its brand as the most authentic, connected, and distinctive in the global market for sporting goods and related products. The “authentic” component of the corporate vision statement shows that the business organization aims to make its sports and leisure products deliver high performance to satisfy consumers. On the other hand, the “connected” component is about ensuring customers’ personal connection with the brand. Nike’s marketing mix or 4P supports the creation and maintenance of such connection with customers. The company also maintains a “distinctive” quality by delivering the best possible products to the sporting goods market. This vision statement regards Nike Inc. as a leader in the industry, while pushing the business to further separate itself from competitors. A notable point about the company and its vision statement is that it also develops connections with consumers through its separate vision for corporate social responsibility: “to help NIKE, Inc. and our consumers thrive in a sustainable economy where people, profit and planet are in balance.” This CSR vision serves as a basis for Nike’s corporate social responsibility (CSR), ESG, and stakeholder management strategy.
Assessment & Recommendations – Nike’s Mission & Vision
Nike’s mission statement outlines the general strategic direction of the business. The statement includes such information as the company’s customers (everybody), the target market (global), and part of the philosophy of the sporting goods business. This corporate statement has strong points, based on conventions in writing ideal mission statements. However, Nike’s mission statement is philosophical and does not include specifics about the kind of products offered to consumers and the nature of relevant business processes. In this regard, it is appropriate to recommend that the company specify the nature of its products. For example, Nike can improve its mission statement by illustrating that its products are in the athletic and leisure footwear, apparel, and equipment industry. Also, stating that business processes are within the scope of the design and manufacture of such products can make the corporate mission statement more accurate in guiding Nike’s operations, employees, and business partners, including suppliers.
Nike’s vision statement is about keeping brand leadership in the global industry. The athletic goods company considers its brand as one of the major strengths of the business and points out that it has already achieved the top brand position. In this regard, Nike’s vision statement is satisfactory in terms of having the characteristics of ideal vision statements. For example, the company’s vision statement is concise, clear, inspiring, and challenging in focusing on maintaining brand leadership. The statement is also future-oriented, considering that Nike Inc. highlights keeping its brand’s leading position as a strategic aim for future business development.
References
- About Nike, Inc.
- Fitzsimmons, A. B., Qin, Y. S., & Heffron, E. R. (2022). Purpose vs mission vs vision: Persuasive appeals and components in corporate statements. Journal of Communication Management, 26(2), 207-219.
- Lüthy, A. (2023). From the Mission Statement to Value-Oriented Corporate Management. In Value-Oriented Leadership in Theory and Practice: Concepts-Study Results-Practical Insights (pp. 79-93). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
- Nike, Inc. – Form 10-K.
- Nike, Inc. – Investor Relations.
- U.S. Department of Commerce – International Trade Administration – Consumer Goods Industry.