Nike’s new CEO acknowledges difficult times in first message to staff

The new CEO reportedly told staff he would hold a town hall meeting on October 14 and encouraged them to send him questions to find out “what’s on their minds.”

In the video message, he told employees they should “mobilize as a team” and “act quickly and with a sense of urgency.”

Hill started at Nike as an intern in 1988, He rose through the ranks to senior management at the popular sportswear brand over the next 30 years.

He described Nike as a “core part” of his identity in a statement released Thursday, after retiring in 2020.

Hill, who replaces John Donahoe as CEO, faces the challenge of turning around the sneaker company, whose stock price has plummeted this year.

The company has been cutting costs since December to save $2 billion over the next three years. Analysts told Business Insider that To succeed, Nike must stop resting on its retro laurels and return to its roots as an innovator.

Hill has highlighted his experience as a Nike veteran, and his hiring is a sign that Nike is turning to company insiders to lead the brand’s renaissance.

The new CEO will, however, have to do so with less money than his predecessor.

According to SEC filings, Hill’s total compensation will be $27 million, about $2.1 million less than the $29.1 million Donahoe received in 2023 compensation.

Nike did not respond to a request for comment sent outside normal business hours.