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Examining The Organizational Identity of Nike Inc. Through Social Media
Quentin Howard
Jonique Morris
CST 460:03
Dr. Cerise L. Glenn
May 4, 2015
II. Introduction
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We chose the Nike Incorporation. According to the words of Bill Bowerman, their mission is to “bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete (if you have a body, you are an athlete).” This inspiration comes through in the products they make, services they offer and problems solved for the succeeding athletes. Nike is an international company involved in the design,
development, manufacturing, marketing and sales of countless products and services including
shoes, apparel, memorabilia, and much more.
Nike was originally Blue Ribbon Sports. The company was created January 25, 1964 by
Bill Bowman and Phil Knight. On May 30, 1971 the company took on the name of the Greek
goddess of victory, Nike. Nike was founded with $1200 in its account and is now a multi-billion
dollar corporation (O’Reilly, 2014). There are over 850 Nike stores worldwide, while Nike products are sold in countless other stores across the globe. Nike has set itself apart and is recognized
worldwide by the nike swoosh and “just do it” slogan. Through sponsoring elite athletes and
sports teams and making quality products, Nike has developed an organizational identity and image that is top tier worldwide. We are interested in researching what Nike’s organizational identity entails and how they uphold (or fail to uphold) that image through social media.
III. Literature Review/ Theoretical Frame
In order to talk about identity and social media, they must be defined. Albert and Wheten
(1985) define identity as that which is central, enduring and distinctive about an organization
character (Hatch & Schultz, p.349). Identity is constructed by what members think of the organization, what member’s think outsiders think of the organization and how the public actually perceives the organization. “Social media are computer-mediated tools that allow people to create,
share, or exchange information, ideas, pictures and videos in virtual communities and networks”
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(Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p.61). Social media often comes in the form of apps that are user
friendly and the content is mainly user created. Those who partake in social media are able to
comment, co-create, inform and advertise over a broad area. Social media has facilitated changes
between the consumer and businesses and how identities are constructed.
Identity can be seen as dynamic and complex. “Identity is imputed from expressed values, but the interpretation of those values is not necessarily fixed or stable” (Hatch & Schultz,
p.352). Identity is crucial to success and increasingly so with the increased access consumers
have to companies/organizations. “Image often acts as a destabilizing force on identity, frequently requiring members to revisit and reconstruct their organizational sense of self” (Hatch &
Schultz, p.355).
There are several different forms of image that make up an organizational identity. Construed external image, “how organization insiders think that people outside of the organization
view said organization”, and its assumptions has influences on the specific efforts an organization puts forth to construct their image(Hatch & Schultz, p.355). The projected image is what
organizations constructed to present to the public and may inaccurate. The projected image reflects what the insiders think the outsiders want to see. Desired future image is the perception the
organization would like the public to have in the future.
The interactions outsiders have with the organization create a transient impression. These
images and interactions along with organization's actions, policies and beliefs contribute to the
reputation of the organization. A organization’s reputation is subjective to public opinion and
fairly stable.
Identity is a social process, therefore it takes time to create the identity desired and/or to
take on the identity ascribed. Organizations have been personified and depicted as ‘superper-
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sons” that are capable of learning, growing, having values etc. (Hatch & Shcultz, p. 407). Members/investors are “encouraged to align their personal values with those of the company” (Hatch
& Shcultz, p.378). With large companies such as Nike, this is quite a challenge to keep all the
branches, locations, employees etc all aligned to the company values. With things like new products and franchisors, it is important that the franchisors and new ventures are consistent with the
current organizational image (Zachary, M.A., McKenny, A.F., Short, J.C., Davis, K.M. & Wu,
D., 2011)
Through things like mirroring, organizational members take on characteristics of the organization. There is a shift from “what they do” to “what we do” and “who we are” (Hatch &
Schultz). Organizational attributes are internalized and create an organizational me (which may
or may not be separated from a personal me). Fostering a positive internal image is crucial to the
insiders and reflects in the external image (Wegge, J., Schuh, S. & Rolf van Dick, p.134). This
identity is important because it guides the decisions the organization makes.
The research of Dutton and Dukerich(1991) suggests “that we better understand how organizations behave by asking where individuals look, what they see, and whether or not they like
the reflection in the mirror” (Hatch & Schults, p.385). By examining where organizations look,
one could better understand their changes, new marketing, motivation and various other aspects
that are responsive to an organization’s environment. Beyond sales, social media is a qualitative
and quantitative site for Nike to examine. Through social media, Nike can receive consumer
feedback as well as help contribute to their organization identity by the way they conduct themselves via social media.
In the article Social Media’s Function in Organizations: A Functional Analysis Approach
it details the relationship consumers and organizations have in how they function interchangea-
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bly. This research from system theorists believe organizations have a better opportunity to survive if their organization is a more open system of communicating (Reitz, 2012). They act better
in reacting to change in their environment when something happens. In the closed system, it is
more of a give and take strategy where the organization gives the consumer a product and sees
how they react to it and is not much two way communication.
The bridging of the gap between consumers and organization has been the recent addition
to social media. Social media is described as a collaborative environment focused on the exchange of content (Reitz, 2012). In this instance, it’s more attainable for the consumer to reach
out and have a conversation with the organization about a problem they might have or question
they need answered. This adaption of social media is now more prevalent in the public relations
aspect. In this new research it focuses on four functions the maintenance of organizational identity, building relationships, control issues management, and promote social corporate responsibility. In the organization identity it gives social media, through the feedback mechanism, allow
organization stakeholders a chance to provide their preferences, opinions, and thoughts about the
organization to help construct organizational identity (Reitz, 2012). For helping build relationships since social media is primarily collaboration and interaction it’s important for this dialogue
to build emotional connections which then can have strong consumer relations. In issues management it identifies a problem in the dialogue and monitor the conversation going on. Through
this they can ask people about their opinions and attitudes and try to solve the issue at hand. Finally with social responsibility in social media it gives the organization a chance to promote its
mission and values. They can in turn find out what they can do to make an even greater impact to
society.
Social media usage
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The next article entitled, Social Media Usage and Organizational Performance: Reflections of Malaysian social media managers, discusses how much effort is put in social media by
different organizations. It shows how now social media is more effective than traditional lines of
marketing. More organizations are adopting social media pages to keep up with their competitors. This article focused on Asian based companies and the usage of their social media. The
main types of platforms they used were Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. I will detail the usage
of these sites and also the impact it has on the performance of the organization.
This platform of social media has shifted how the internet was mainly for consuming and
now toward being interactive. It is suggested that managers should use it keep up with the changing trends among consumers (Parveen, Jaafar, & Ainin 2015). This has allowed companies to
expand their marketing, product and customer management, and public relations. The results
showed that task characteristics were related to media usage, whereas social factors (social influence and social affinity) moderated the degree of the relationships. Moreover, the usage of social
technologies results in positive task performance (Parveen, Jaafar, & Ainin 2015).
In the use of organizations it was found that the main use was to search for information
about their market, customers, and competitors. They wanted to identify the trend that’s going on
around them (Parveen, Jaafar, & Ainin 2015). The customer is always changing and to know
what they like at every moment is challenging for an organization, so through social media organizations found the likes and dislikes of the consumer without the annoyance factor that is often found through telemarketing.
It was also found for a place of branding. This new type of engagement was not happening before the Web 2.0 in which the internet became more collaborative. It showed customers
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talking to each other more through comments and discussion pages. This type of branding can
reach more people and a wider base and has organizations shying away from radio and television. Finally with the impact it has shown an enhancement on customer relations and customer
service. It helped to answer a customer’s question in an instance on Twitter and build customer
service without the long wait on an automated messaging system. This field is still growing in
the progression of how it’s analyzed and how organizations use it. In all, it has shown that social
media has a great impact on what organizations do.
Social Media and Organizational Image
The next topic discusses how social media was conducted during a labor dispute and how
the organizational image was reflected. In the article Shaping, Driving, Engaging, and Influencing in 140 Characters: Exploring Twitter’s Role in a Labor Dispute it detailed how the NFLPA
used social media in describing the labor dispute with the NFL. The NFLPA used its Twitter
page @NFLLockout to engage the public and its fans.
The researcher used the uses and gratifications lens for his research. In this lens it says
that the media use emanates from goals, as media consumers select specific, targeted channels to
satiate needs and achieve gratification (Sanderson, 2014). In this they observed three uses interactivity, demassification, and asynchroneity. With this they discovered that social media sites
such as Twitter promote decentralization and interaction during a crisis. When the NFLPA used
Twitter they used it to link events/content, promotes itself favorably, criticize the NFL and engage its fans (Sanderson, 2014). In linking its account to events it showed players working out on
their own time and showing they are working hard to upkeep their bodies. They promoted themselves favorably by presenting themselves as caring and always working around the clock. In
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social media for the NFLPA they also criticized the company they work with. They showed how
this lockout was hurting the public at large and costing a lot of cities money in their economy.
The use of being in control worked in their advantage in this viewpoint. Finally in fan engagement in giving them access to events that are usually closed off and showing a caring side by
displaying how they want the product on the field.
Overall, social media allows an organization to shape its identity anyway they can. It
gives the consumers a closeness that is sometimes missing with such a big organization and allows them to interface effectively. This showed that they didn’t need traditional media to drive
their media and display favorable coverage of the organization. This forum of social media
shows the power of acknowledging your consumers and how you can build those ties stronger in
a crisis.
Alice White Walker, Nuke Suite’s Marketing Manager, wrote an article in 2014 depicting
Nike as a success story when it comes to utilizing social media. In her article, Brand Focus: How
Nike Excels on Social Media, Walker points out how Nike uses many social media sites including Facebook, Vine, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and their own apps to stay abreast to their customers needs and comments, advertise, and provide customer service. Nike separates their subbrands and products (and often again by country) in order to more affectively reach their target
audience and provide more relevant feedback. With videos, product pictures, and celebrity endorsements, Nike’s social media is not short of motivation or effective product placement.
IV. Selection and Analysis of Cultural Artifacts
Employee Manual
One cultural artifact that is essential to an organization’s identity and code of ethics is the
employee manual. I chose this artifact because this manual explicitly sets up the goals, values,
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and ethics of the organization and provides the framework for organizational conduct. Nike’s
employee manual is creatively and appropriately sports themed. The manual is titled, Inside The
Lines The Nike Code of Ethics: Defining the Nike, Inc. Playing Field and the Rules of the Game.
The manual begins with a message from Phil stating that “At Nike, we are on the offense, always. We play hard, we play to win, and we play by the rules of the game.” He goes on to ask
employees to make a commitment to the ethics despite the difficulties presented. Nike insists that
their name and reputation stems from collective action and the code of ethics applies to Nike and
its subsidiaries (i.e. franchises, sub-brands, etc.).
Twitter and Instagram
In looking at Nike’s social media, we decided to examine their Twitter and Instagram
page. We chose these platforms to look how they approached their consumers and what methods
they used. This connects to our research question: what they do to uphold their image? They do
this from these platforms by portraying an image of excellence through hard work, effort and engaging their consumers. On Twitter, messages are often of success through the teams they sponsor and different inspirational quotes to motivate athletes (Twitter, 2015).
The most famous slogan is “just do it” and that’s often cited throughout the page. They
are upholding the image of being about the athlete and how they can make them better when they
do the sport. On Instagram, which is more photo based in its messaging shows pictures of their
athletes doing activities that’s using their products (Instagram, 2015). What this says about the
organization is that if you use their products you can inspire to be one of these athletes in these
sports and compete at a high level. It promotes it’s product as well with showcasing the different
uses of the technology and the effectiveness of it. This all connects to the existing literature review by showing how organizations use these platforms as advertising to their consumers. They
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provide information about product releases, answer customer questions, and listen/respond to
customer concerns. These two platforms are showcasing their ability to reach their consumers
and finding ways to keep them engaged.
Facebook and YouTube
Facebook and YouTube look at fan engagement and the comments people leave on the
sites. The sites also give the consumer a look at the newest products.This connects to the research question by analyzing what the image is and how they maintain it. It also gives people the
chance to comment in the section under and give the opinion on the product and their likes and
dislikes. The videos also show a personable side to the organization where it talks to different
athletes and creators of products. This type of interaction gives consumers an in-depth look inside the organization. This connects to the literature review in seeing how displaying the insides
of the company can affect how people look at the organization and what actually goes into it.
Organizational Insiders
According to glassdoor.com, a place where employees can share their work experiences
without alteration from organizations, Nike’s identity and culture aligns with its claims for the
most part.Several reviews speak to a great culture and a fun place to work. However, one review
speaks specifically to the code of ethics and says that Nike should “do the right thing” and that
“the Nike I read about and the one I worked for are NOT the same”. Another review stated that
the retail aspect is outdated which challenges Nike’s claim of innovation.
Image Challenges
Nike has also received criticism for outsourcing, sweat shops, child labor and other production issues. Since then, Nike has shifted its focus to being more ethical and revamping their
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image. They have joined with the Global Alliance to get their facilities up to code and paying
their workers adequate wages. Nike is also committed to sustainability. They are trying to be ethical and environmentally friendly with initiatives like going toxics-free by 2020. Nike also partnered with Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign which moves them towards their change
to more corporate social responsibility as well as consumer engagement programs (“Nike’s new
ethics”, 2015 . With their social media and social campaigns, Nike is more involved with their
public than ever. Through these actions and interactions, Nike is realign its identity with its reality.
Discussion
Through this project we have learned a lot about Nike’s organizational identity using social media and how other companies use social media. The thing that we took away was that Nike used social media effectively to target their audience. They combined their values and mission
to project this image to the public and come across as an organization that wants to help achieve
their goals with their products. They did this by engaging their fans through social media by
marketing the products they make to their target audience. This allowed consumers of their
products to critique the products by commenting their likes and dislikes on a global scale. It
shaped the organization as something that consumers can link to effectively with the closeness
social media makes people feel by interacting. Through social media, Nike built grew its fan
base and is continuing to grow with the people.
Some suggestions for the research is to examine more into how the other side such as the
public perception of how the organization uses social media. A more in-depth look into the consumer’s opinion not just how the companies use it can tell a lot into why they buy the product.
This can provide a glimpse into the psyche of the consumer and what goes into making the deci-
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sion to buy the product. The limitation of not surveying the public about social media can play a
part if even more companies use it and think their consumers might want to engage with it. Now
organizations are aware of these sites and have the ability to use them effectively.
Conclusion
Overall, our research supports that social media is crucial to the development and
maintenance of organizational identity. Nike has successfully utilized social media to their advantage to communicate with their customers and potential customers. Through social media,
Nike has been able to expand on their pros and work on their cons. Nike is among the leaders of
sports products and organizational use of social media.
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