Nike Company free essay sample

The purpose of this report is to scrutinize the performance of Nike Company: the leading corporation in the world, which is engaged in the designing, development, selling and marketing of athletic footwear, apparels, equipment, services, and accessories. It is a US based company and established in 1962 by Bill Bowerman and Philip Knight in the name of Blue Ribbon Sports. Later in 1978, it was changed to Nike Inc. Headquarter of the company is located in Oregon, which is near Beaverton, the USA. It is the major manufacturer and supplier of apparel and athlete shoes. The business practices and manufacturing method of Nike Inc are based on innovation. Nike is now the market leader in the manufacturing of sportswear and gear and enjoys possessing more than 47% of the market hares across the globe.The company has over 700 shops around the world and has offices situated in 45 countries outside the United States. The Companys operating segments include North America, Western Europe, Central ; Eastern Europe, Greater China, Japan and Emerging Markets. The Companys portfolio brands include the NIKE Brand, Jordan Brand, Hurley, and Converse. The Company sells its products to retail accounts, through its retail stores and Internet Web Sites, and through a mix of independent distributors and licensees across the world. The Companys products are manufactured by independent contractors. (https://www. reuters.com/finance/stocks/company-profile/NKE ). Its 3 main competitors are; Adidas, Reebok, Converse, Jordan, and Puma.*table of contentINTRODUCTIONAgility meansA. CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH JUST-IN-TIME PRACTICESJust-in-Time manufacturing is a Japanese management philosophy applied in manufacturing which involves having their right items of the right quality and quantity in the place and the right time. (Jarvis, Cheng and Podolsky, 1996). There are several challenges associated with the process of Just-In-Time manufacturing that are faced by Nike Inc. in the process and production of its products. Some of these challenges are stated below.The major issue with this production process is evidenced in its name i.e. Just-in-Time which means that success of the business strategy depends largely on precise coordination between businesses and their suppliers to ensure prompt delivery (Investopedia, 2015). If a business does not have an inventory buffer, it is expected to suffer to a great extent if any one element of production is delayed. In an article written by Mallory Schlossberg in 2016, she stated that Nike has acknowledged; that ridding itself of excess inventory had a negative impact on the companys report as it caused gross margins to decline by 30 basis points. JIT production is based entirely on existing orders; hence it may not be the efficient system for dealing with the unexpected. A lack of back-up inventory means customers must wait for the company to receive supplies and manufacture the products. This can lead to extended delays, discontented customers and potential forfeit of part of all of an order if any supply chain issues arise. According to a case study published in 2004, Nike Inc. had a complicated supply chain system where orders were placed by retailers six months ahead of delivery dates. These orders had later been forwarded to the factories in Asia and the final products had to be shipped back to the retailers. (ICMR,2004)Inability to fulfill orders in a timely manner can cost the organization money, but there are also many other hidden expenses that are inborn in the JIT strategy that are though less dramatic but as important as any other costs which will be incurred. For instance goods or services produced by Nike for sale; that are in smaller quantities benefits the company where there is less spending per shipment of raw materials, but it can actually end up costing a company more.Relative complexity is another challenge faced in the application of Just in Time. The management must rethink the entire workflow of the company, from its initial intake of raw materials to the final output of finished products. According to a research by Edwin Lopez (2017), Nike is looking to reduce the lead time for its orders from 60 days to a sheer 10 days by redesigning logistics networks, make facilities easily accessible, improving contract manufacturer relationship and investing in automations.In the past, Nikes product cycle began with a futures order months in advance. But now, the company seeks a business model where consumer demand is the signal to anticipate and demand. (Edwin Lopez ; Jennifer McKevitt, 2017)B. HOFSTEDES MODEL OF NATIONAL CULTURE IN RELATION TO WORKFORCE MANAGEMENTGeert Hofstede, assisted by others, came up with six basic issues that society needs to come to term with in order to organize itself. These are called dimensions of culture and are rated on scale of 0 to 100. Dimensions are derived by companies in different countries in the world. Findings are summarized in six world map of distribution of those dimensions (rough climate of culture). The model consists of the these dimensions; Power Distance Index (PDI), Individualism Versus Collectivism(IDV), Masculinity Versus Femininity (MAS), Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI), Long Term Orientation Versus Short Term Orientation (LTO), and Indulgence Versus Restraint (IND).REFERENCES:About.nike. com. (2010). About Nike – The official corporate website for NIKE, Inc. and its affiliate brands. [online] Available at: http://www.about.nike. com/ [Accessed 8 Apr. 2018]Editorial, R. (2018). $(Instruments_Company/Name) $(Instrument_Ric) Company Profile| Reuters.com [online] U.S. Available at: http://www. reuters.com/finance/stocks/company-profile/NKE [Accessed 12 Mar. 2018]Educheer! (n.d.) Nike 8. [online] Available at: http://educheer.com/nike-6/ [Accessed 13 Apr. 2018]Topics, Sample Papers ; Articles Online for Free. (2016).Nike Presentation. [online] Available at: http://studymoose.com/nikepresentation-essay [Accessed 13 Apr. 2018]UKEssays. (2013). A Report on Nike Company Sport Essay. [online] Available at: http://www.ukessays.com/essay/sports/a-report-on-nike-company-sport-essay.php. [Accessed 13 Apr. 2018]Love-pet. net. (2017). Management Essays – Nike Inc – Love-pet. [online] Available at: https://love-pet.net/management-essays-nike-inc-4999/ [Accessed 15 Apr. 2018]Coursepaper.com. (2017). Introduction to Nike – Coursepaper.com. [online] Available at: http://www.coursepaper.com/introduction-to-nike/ [Accessed 15 Apr. 2018]UKEssays. November 2013. Case Analysis Nikes Dispute Business Essay. [online]. Available at: http://www.ukessays.com/essays/business/case-analysis-nikes-dispute-business-essay.php?vref=1 [Accessed 15 April 2018]International Journal of Economics, Business and Finance Vol. 1, No. 2, March 2013, PP: 07-25, ISSN: 2327-8188 [online] Available at: http://www.ijebf.com [Accessed 24 Apr. 2018]Jarvis, P. Cheng, T. and Podolsky, S. (1996). Just-in-time manufacturing. 2nd ed. London: Chapman ; Hall, p.2.Schlossberg, M. (2016) Nike is facing unprecedented headwinds. [online] Business Insiders. Available at: http://www.businessinsider.com/nike-is-facing-problems-2016-6?IR=TT [Accessed 26 Apr. 2018]Investopedia. (2015).What are the main problems with JIT (just in time) production strategy? [online] Available at: http://www. investopedia.com/ask/answer/040215/what-aremain-problems-jit-just-in-time-production-system.asp [Accessed 26 Apr. 2018]Icmrindia.org. (2004) Inventory Problems at Nike| Operations| Case Study| Case Studies. [online] Available at: http://icmrindia. org/casestudies/catalogue/Operations/OPER030.htm [Accessed 26 Apr. 2018]Pycraft, M. (2000). Operations Management. 2nd ed. Cape Town: Pearson Education South Africa, pp. 122-124.Lopez, E. and McKevitt, J. (2017) Inside Nike the Future is Faster, and its 3d. [online] Supply Chain Dive. Available at: https://www.supplychaindive. com/news/nike-lead-time-innovation-automation-consumer-508606/ [Accessed 28 Apr. 2018UKEssays. (2013). Geert Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions Theory. [online] Available at: https://www.ukessays.com/essays/employment/greet-hofstede. php?vref=1 [Accessed 1 May. 2018]Hofstede, G. Hofstede, G. J. ; Minkov, M. (2010). Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind (Rev. 3rd ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill. For Translation see www.geerthofstede.ni and our books.Hofstede, G. (1980). Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values. Beverly Hills, CA:Sage.