One surprising role of Nike’s committee is to provide support
for innovation. More and more companies recognize the importance of corporate
responsibility to their long-term success--and yet the matter gets short shrift
in most boardrooms, consistently ranking at the bottom of some two dozen
possible priorities. Many years ago labor conditions in Asian contract
factories prompted Nike board member Jill Ker Conway to lobby for a board-level
corporate responsibility committee, which the company created in 2001. In the
years since, the committee has steadily broadened its purview, now advising on
a broad range of issues including innovation and acquisitions in addition to
labor practices and resource sustainability. A close examination of Nike’s
experience has led HBS professor Lynn S. Paine to conclude that a dedicated
board-level committee of this sort could be a valuable addition to many if not
most companies in at least five ways: as a source of knowledge and expertise,
as a sounding board and constructive critic, as a driver of accountability, as
a stimulus for innovation, and as a resource for the full board. In an
accompanying interview with Paine, Conway discusses the committee’s creation
and provides an insider’s perspective on what has made it so effective.
[ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]