How do employees afford to live in the Beaverton, Aloha area where Nike S level executives live? I've heard in a few meetings that have been brought up.......Management has said " Nike is a team collaborative company. Our culture depends on us being able to work together". HR has made it a point to release a memo expecting employees to return to the office around July. My question is how are they going to address the lack of inventory for homes in the area? Doesn't seem they're too keen on allowing the flexibility of employees to live in a affordable housing?
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I believe the poster was trying to call out has HR managed the hiring of employees who don't currently live in the area? With low availability of housing in all of the PDX metro area if they are all required to return to the office at the same time will there be adequate, affordable housing for everyone to be looking and moving at the same time.
If you can't afford to live in Beaverton/Aloha you are underpaid by Nike. That's a you issue for taking a job with a company that is notorious for not paying market.
Because so many people are just dying to move to Portland right now. Bring the kids, break some windows!
On May 31 Nike will have just had the best year in its 50+ year history with nearly everyone working remotely.
Any half-baked argument from Nike that employees really, really need to be on campus at least a few days per week is going to be met with the same skepticism and derision that appropriately accompanies Nike’s other half-baked ideas. (I still marvel at Nike trying to sell employees on open offices by saying “It’ll increase collaboration!”, when every study done on the subject shows open offices actually decrease collaboration and make employees miserable. I’m not sure who Nike thought it was fooling.)
I’m not so convinced Nike doesn’t fear people quitting over this. I’ve read it costs a minimum of $60,000 to hire a new employee, and according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the current unemployment rate for people with a 4-year degree is a scant 2%. I.e., “full employment”. I.e., it is not at all easy to find qualified workers right now. Sure enough the last time we hired in my group it took forever just to find a mediocre hire. I’ve heard similar tales from elsewhere in the company.
So yeah, I don’t buy the argument that HR doesn’t care if people quit over this. Nike can’t afford for even 1% of its employees to quit over this issue. If two or three percent quit you have a small employment disaster on your hands.
If I have to return to campus it’s really simple: my resume goes online and shortly thereafter I start my next adventure at a company that better understands the new reality created in the last 12 months. Honestly the last several months I’ve been kicking around the idea of quitting anyway. Having to return to campus would just be the final motivation I need to make the jump.
Yes I know that prior to the pandemic Nike spent nearly $1,000,000,000 remodeling the campus. Whoops. Call it a sunk cost, start the capital depreciation, and move on. I’m also aware that for a limited number of roles it probably does make sense for more in-person work. Fine. Make THOSE people go back to campus. With my job I’m good being 100% remote. Most others would likely say the same. And I’m aware that Nike probably wants people on campus “to preserve the culture”. OK, in that case make new employees spend a year or two on campus before giving them the option to stay or work remotely. As for me...I can get enough “culture” working remotely, thank you. Preferably from a beach town in Costa Rica or Mexico where I can live amazingly for 1/3 the cost.
I miss the days at nike were you had to be present to participate. even before covid started seeing more meetings with bluejeans. 80% on site 20% remote meetings are the worst.
I miss the days of you make it to the meeting or you missed it. And when you were in the meeting everyone was actively present.
@OP Obviously Nike has the right to require employees to work from campus, though I think many positions that previously required in-person collaborative work (even hands-on product/Merch roles) have been evolving so that they are more digitally driven. I’ve been hearing there will likely be alternate work schedules for certain depts/positions combining WFH and work from campus. Nike doesn’t fear people quitting due to this - HR will be the first to remind you that there are a million people who would gladly take your job and work from campus, without expecting to live in WHQ’s backyard. If you are lucky to have a flex work schedule once people return to campus, maybe extend the radius of your housing search since it wouldn’t have to be an everyday commute. For new employees (and I would guess those that were hired during the pandemic and will soon have to relocate to PDX), in Nike’s relocation benefit they provide access to people who can help you find housing to meet your needs & budget (the employee definitely needs to drive this process for it to be successful, though). If you aren’t a new employee, though, and are having problems finding adequate housing within your budget, perhaps you could reach out to HR for a resource to help. (Nobody @ me for suggesting that!!)
I guess they'll just have to go after workers who don't mind living in a small apartment near campus and don't plan on ever having a family.
@1iih, agree with your assessment. Certainly, I would have put some aspects of it in a different tone though 😀
@OP: Living in Beaverton/Aloha - or Washington County in general - is in most cases cheaper than living in Portland proper. I also don’t really understand the implication of your post. It’s not as if living within commuting distance to Nike is some kind of brand new concept that was just invented in the last year. How will employees do it? I’m guessing the same way they’ve done it for the past several decades? I agree with your larger point about not wanting to return to campus. It’s just that your argument - based on local housing costs - is somewhat strained and unconvincing. There are plenty of other, better reasons for not returning to campus.
@UTR: Wanna know how I know you aren’t familiar with Aloha? Aloha is roughly divided into two parts. There is the gross part north of Farmington and the nicer part south of Farmington. If you keep driving up 185th to the top of Cooper Mountain there are plenty of $1,000,000+ homes. And yes, that is Aloha and there are plenty of Nike execs living there. There are actually several nice pockets of Aloha with expensive houses, all south of Farmington and sandwiched in-between Beaverton and Hillsboro. Who knew, right??
On the broader topic I agree. I have no desire or need to return to campus. In fact my productivity will go down noticeably if I’m forced to return to campus. There is literally nothing I need to do on campus that I can’t do remotely. Returning to the office will just mean wasted time commuting, being unproductive since I won’t have a proper desk or office like I have at home, and being forced to waste time all day on the type of mindless chit-chat one must suffer when working in close proximity to dozens of other people.
Having to return to campus is the single largest thing making me reconsider how much longer I’m going to stay at Nike. If I can snag another similar job that lets me work 100% remotely it’s going to be “Bye bye Nike!” for me. If Nike doesn’t allow people to work completely or almost completely remote I think you’re going to see increased attrition levels amongst those of us who have other options.
I’m sorry, I don’t understand this post. Were employees hired with the understanding that they would never have to work on campus or live in the area? Not sure about now but about 5 years ago probably 70% of WHQ lived outside of Beaverton/Aloha including probably 90% of the S bands.
Were you hired to work on campus and then the pandemic hit and now you expect them to allow you to relocate? Or were you hired while living out of state?
For Nike, it is never going to be about affordable housing for the employees or really about "being together for a more productive ways of working." It is about the millions of $ spent on extravagant building in WHQ - someone is trying to "justify" the $ spent. Nike employees especially Global Tech do not need to be in the office. If Nike is not going to be "work from anywhere" company, at least give people an option to work 2 or 3 days remotely and 2 or 3 days in the office.
Point being if they truly wanted Nike to be a great company, they'd allow employees the option of working remotely as they are. Salesforce has already given that option to their employees. Nike is stalling and keeping people in Limbo. Especially those hired on during the pandemic.
I would venture to guess that the amount of Nike executives living in aloha is none.