In a widely reported memo announcing the 2% cut to Nike’s workforce, Donahoe added that he didn’t take the decision to lay off thousands of employees lightly and put some of the blame for Nike’s recent underperformance on himself and the company’s leadership. Portland, Ore.-based publication Willamette Week was first to report Donahoe’s comments in the memo.
“We are not currently performing at our best, and I ultimately hold myself and my leadership team accountable,” he added.
It’s unclear if any Nike executives would face repercussions for the company’s lackluster performance. The company did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
In a statement provided to Footwear News, a spokesperson said “Nike’s always at our best when we’re on the offense. The actions that we’re taking put us in the position to right-size our organization to get after our biggest growth opportunities as interest in sport, health and wellness have never been stronger.
The shoe and apparel company’s decision to cut back on its employees echoes similar moves made across industries in the past year.
In January, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that the company’s “year of efficiency” changes instituted in 2023 would become permanent, after he saw that Meta had been able to “execute better and faster,” despite mass layoffs.
Other CEOs have also been quick to scale back their own workforces, with one tech analyst adding that the trend has “become contagious.”
In January, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that the company would follow up 12,000 layoffs in 2023 with more cuts this year. He said in an internal memo obtained by the Verge that the cuts were meant to “…drive velocity in some areas.”
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