NKE Nike Inc

By Sara Germano 

Nike Inc. said four more executives have left the company amid an internal investigation into complaints about workplace issues at the sportswear giant.

The departures this week include Steve Lesnard, vice president and general manager of global running; Tommy Kain, director of sports marketing; Helen Kim, vice president and general manager of Nike East, North America; and Simon Pestridge, vice president of performance categories global marketing.

The four Nike veterans didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. The exits bring to 10 the number of executives who are known to have left amid the probe. Of those, Ms. Kim is the first woman.

With their exits, Nike has completed the initial phase of an internal investigation into complaints of inappropriate workplace behavior, according to a person familiar with the matter. The New York Times earlier reported on this week's exits.

On March 15, Nike Chief Executive Mark Parker wrote a memo to employees saying the company had received complaints and initiated an investigation, and that his second-in-command, Trevor Edwards, would resign his position as Nike brand president immediately. In that memo, Mr. Parker said the company had established a hotline for employees to come forward with any additional complaints, the review of which is still ongoing, the person said.

The Wall Street Journal reported in March that the company started the probe after a group of women within the company circulated a survey about concerns about workplace behavior and gender imbalances in pay and promotion. The Journal also reported about complaints of a boys-club culture at Nike and flaws in the company's human-resources department.

Last week, in a rare all-hands meeting at Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Ore., Mr. Parker apologized to employees for a workplace that excluded some staff and failed to take internal complaints seriously.

Write to Sara Germano at sara.germano@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 08, 2018 14:37 ET (18:37 GMT)

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