Mark Parker has announced that he will step down as chief executive officer (CEO) of Nike after 13 years at the helm of the footwear company.
The announcement by Mark Parker to step down as CEO next year came as a surprise as Nike previously stated that Parker would remain as CEO "beyond 2020". He has been serving as the company's chief since 2006.
Parker has been with Nike since 1979, rising through the ranks from designer to co-brand president and eventually to CEO. He will be replaced by John Donahoe, a current board member at Nike and CEO of cloud computing company ServiceNow, Inc.
Parker, who previously served as chairman of the board, will become executive chairman after his resignation on January 13, 2020.
According to Nike, Donahoe will be able to help boost the company's digital transformation efforts, which has been a key element in their business strategy in recent years. "John is the right leader and a proven CEO who is no stranger to Nike. In his new role as Executive Chairman, Mark will work closely with John to build on Nike's success and seize the opportunities ahead," said a Nike spokeswoman.
Parker's tenure as CEO in recent years has been tainted by two major scandals. One is the alleged gender discrimination and "boys' club" culture at the company after multiple lawsuits were filed following an executive overhaul in the spring of 2018.
Another issue that plagued the company recently is the closure of its running club, the Nike Oregon Project, after longtime coach Alberto Salazar was banned from the sport for four years for anti-doping violations. However, Parker denied that those issues were part part of his decision to step down.
Parker wrote a note to employees saying: "To be clear, I'm not going anywhere. I'm not sick. There are no issues I'm not sharing. I strongly believe the best way for us to evolve and grow as a company is to bring in a phenomenal talent to join our team who has long been part of the Nike family."
