Nike Leadership Consolidation: CTO Out, Tech Oversight Moved to New COO
Nike is shaking up its senior leadership team, eliminating the chief technology officer position and shifting roles and responsibilities.
Current EVP, CTO Muge Dogan will depart the company. During his time at Nike, Dogan helped advance the company's tech capabilities, shaping how it embeds digital, data and AI across the business, according to president and CEO Elliott Hill.
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Instead, Venkatesh Alagirisamy, previously chief supply chain officer, will oversee technology efforts as part of his newly expanded EVP and COO role, beginning Dec. 8.
Alagirisamy, a 20-year Nike veteran, will report directly to Hill to better connect operations and integrated tech capabilities more seamlessly into the end-to-end business. He will also continue to lead supply chain, planning, operations, manufacturing and sustainability operations.
"His experience, innovative mindset and team-first leadership style will be key as we continue to evolve into a more agile, tech-enabled Nike," Hill said in a statement.
Hill also announced that Nike has eliminated the role of EVP and chief commercial officer. As such, Craig Williams will depart the company. During his tenure, Williams advanced the company's marketplace strategy and led the Jordan brand.
These responsibilities will shift to EVP and CFO Matt Friend, who has deep commercial, strategy and geography experience from spending more than 15 years at Nike, according to Hill.
"He has partnered closely with me for several years, managing our integrated marketplace, and his understanding of our global business will be especially valuable now," he said. "Bringing these teams under Matt’s leadership, alongside the strategy work he already oversees, puts him in a unique position to connect our marketplace directly to company strategy and where we place our biggest bets."
The company hopes to derive insights from Nike's stores, digital platforms and wholesale partners to directly shape corporate planning, growth initiatives and investment priorities.
Additionally, the senior leaders of Nike’s four geographies will now join the senior leadership team. This includes Angela Dong (Greater China), Carl Grebert (EMEA), Tom Peddie (North America) and Cathy Sparks (APLA).
"This move is about growth and offense — giving sales and Nike Direct an even stronger voice in how we set strategy and invest," said Hill. "Our physical and digital footprints will continue to celebrate the passion and emotion of sport, highlight our innovations and game-changing products, and inspire consumers wherever they experience our brands."
