UPDATED: Phil Knight To Step Down as Chairman of Nike

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Byron Beck, GoLocalPDX Features Editor

Nike Chairman Phil Knight

Phil Knight is stepping down from his position as Nike Chairman by 2016.

Knight has indicated to Nike's board that he would like them to make President and CEO Mark Parker the next chair.

At 76, Knight has also indicated he will still stay involved with the company, as will his family. Knight’s son, Travis who is an Academy Award nominated filmmaker, was named to Nike’s board today as well.

Upon hearing the news former NIKE CIO Anthony Watson, commented to GoLocalPDX early this evening: "Phil Knight created one of the worlds most valuable companies. I only met Phil a handful of times whilst I was at Nike, but when I did spend time with him he was always warm, focused and engaged. It was always obvious Nike is his life’s passion. Mark Parker is the perfect choice to replace Phil when he steps down. Mark is one of the most inspirational CEO I’ve ever had the privilege to work for. In a word he’s brilliant. I miss working with Mark a lot."

“For me, NIKE has always been more than just a company – it has been my life’s passion,” said Knight in a press release from Nike today. “Over the years, I’ve spent a great deal of time considering how I might someday evolve my ownership and leadership of NIKE in a way that benefits all of our stakeholders. Today, we have taken a number of important steps that will continue to promote NIKE’s long-term growth.”

Knight leaves Nike in good hands. Last week, Nike stated its annual profit grew 22 percent to 3.27 billion and its revenue rose 10 percent to 30.6 billion.

ESPN Sports' Darren Rovell reports that Knight will transfer $13.88 billion of this stock into a new LLC called "Swoosh."

Knight added, “As I announced today, I have created Swoosh to hold the majority of my shares of NIKE Class A Common Stock. Swoosh will itself have a governance structure that is designed to make thoughtful and forward-looking decisions with respect to the ongoing voting and management of those shares. I believe this structure will maintain NIKE’s strong corporate governance, which has focused our management on serving the consumer and pursuing profitable, long-term growth.”

Mr. Philip H. Knight to Step Down | FindTheCompany

Mr. Mark G. Parker | FindTheCompany

Nike Inc. Executives | FindTheCompany

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