A sporting challenge

Jenny Gu loves challenges, which is perhaps just as well. As director of finance for Nike Taiwan, her workload is set to increase further in 2005. Colette Steckel reports

Nike's orange swoosh-bedecked offices in downtown Taipei are rather fitting for one of the world's leading sport and fitness brands. From the floor to ceiling windows, there's a bird's eye view of the city's all-new and extremely stylish Hsinchuang Stadium and, in the reception, there's a host of sporting paraphernalia: panels of black & white photography depicting sport in action, a duo of seats in the shape of huge basketballs, and, wait for it, a pair of Michael Jordan's slightly battered Nikes, lovingly displayed in a glass case inset in the wall.

Which is rather like having the crown jewels of the sporting world on show. 'Michael Jordan is huge in Asia,' remarks Jenny Gu, director of finance at Nike Taiwan. 'He visited China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan in May, which was such a great thing for us because he generated a lot of interest in the brand.' Jordan, the former NBA star, is revered by young sports fans and fashion followers in Asia who have been brought up on a diet of sports programming. Of course, basketball isn't the only sport to have fuelled an interest in athletic footwear and clothing; baseball is popular, as is the gym and lately hip-hop culture. Even football (and that ubiquitous Manchester United strip) has a following, albeit small.

Nike, in a nod to the burgeoning interest in team sports and fitness in the region, has already signed up some of Asia's own sporting heroes to promote the brand. New signings include 17-year-old Yi Jianlian, who plays for basketball team Guangdong Hongyuan Club, and China's Liu Xiang, the Athens gold medallist in the 110-metre hurdles, who will no doubt be wearing the orange swoosh when he competes at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. 'Nike is one of the coolest brands in the region,' enthuses Jenny.

It's also one of the fastest-growing. The Asia Pacific region, which covers Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, is Nike's third largest contributor to revenue (after the US and Europe, the Middle East and Africa). 'The Asia Pacific region has been the growth engine for Nike Inc in the last few years,' says Jenny. 'The late 1990s were particularly tough for Nike in the region because of the effect of the Asian crisis but business has gradually picked up since then and it's moving very fast now.'

According to Nike's annual report for the year ending 31 March 2004, the Asia Pacific region reported revenues of US$1.6 bn - a hike of 20% on the previous year - and sales for FY2005 are set to follow suit with a 17% increase in first quarter sales ($406m).

Overall, the region contributes 15% to Nike's sizeable global sales of US$12bn, but the company is watching with interest how the brand develops, particularly in China where revenue grew by 66% in FY2004 and one Nike store is opened a day. And that's before the run-up to the Beijing Olympics, which is likely to drum up even more interest in sport.

From philosophy to accounting

Jenny, who is from mainland China, joined Nike China in 1997, four years after she started training with a Western accounting firm in Shanghai. She first considered a career in finance when her father pointed out an advertisement in the press for trainee accountants. She was studying a masters degree in philosophy at Shanghai Fudan University at the time but the prospect of training for a profession with a Western slant piqued her interest: 'The chance to shift my career into something entirely different was almost unique at that time in China.'

Along with two friends from her philosophy classes, she joined the Shanghai representative office of BDO Binder Hamlyn - KwanWongTan&Fong in 1993 and almost immediately started studying for her ACCA qualification. 'This was a great opportunity: it wasn't just about learning accounting but about international accounting. At that time, it was all very new to China,' she says, adding that, until then, the Chinese accounting system had been highly influenced by the Soviet regime.

She took on the role of financial planning manager with Nike China right at the onset of the Asian crisis. As business tumbled and the expatriate workforce was cut, Jenny admits that she found the going tough but her willingness to get on with the job and her solid accounting background was recognised by management, who quickly promoted her to assistant financial controller. Within two years she was finance director. 'Opportunity knocked on my door and I was ready for it. But it was also down to luck as well.'

A two-year secondment at the Nike headquarters in Portland, Oregon, was another lucky break. With three years experience within senior management at Nike China, Jenny was singled out by Nike Inc's Asia Pacific management team when she was offered a job as regional strategic planning director. 'I wasn't expecting that at all. But I thought about it and decided it was a fantastic opportunity: working overseas, living in the US, getting more business exposure as well as getting a chance to experience Nike's corporate culture, which would be very different to that in China,' she explains.

She moved to Portland, working with senior managers from a range of disciplines, including finance. Six months later, she was asked to take on the directorship of the financial planning department, which saw her move back into a more traditional finance role. 'The two years experience at headquarters really helped me to have a broader perspective of business in the Asia Pacific and the US, particularly on the finance side, and it also gave me the chance to work closely with respected business leaders who were my mentors. It was a terrific personal experience too.' On a lighter note, she says she didn't rate the cuisine in Portland. 'I really missed good Chinese food,' she jokes.

The Nike Taiwan job came up shortly before she ended her two years at Nike Inc. 'When Nike Inc said there was a job opening in the Taipei office, I said yes. I knew about the organisation from my time in Nike China and was very impressed by the extent of innovation and integration at the office when I visited in 1999. Although we are all Chinese and we have the same culture and language, Taiwan is a unique market. I decided to come here to learn from the business management team.'

The forthcoming year at Nike Taiwan promises a few challenges. There's the Nike supply chain implementation project, which Nike Inc is rolling out to its offices worldwide and which will impact all aspects of Nike Taiwan's business, and a plan to replace a self-managed distribution centre with one run by a third party, which will enhance delivery of stock to retailers in Taiwan. Jenny is also studying an MBA in Hong Kong, a joint programme run by US business school Kellogg and the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, which sees her in Hong Kong two weekends every month. 'I love challenges. I'm one of these people who gets bored easily so I need something to aim for. And I'm always curious to try new things.'

Which might explain Jenny's revelation that she'll spurn the business world after the Beijing Olympics in 2008. She bursts out laughing when I ask her if she's serious about retiring. By the time the Olympic flame is extinguished, Jenny will have turned 39, which would make her a rather youthful retiree. 'Working for Nike is very exciting. It's a young and fun company but I would like the opportunity to do something different in the future. I like the idea of becoming a teacher. I lectured on accounting in Shanghai for ACCA back in 2000 and found it such a rewarding experience, helping people to learn new skills that are useful in business, management, even life,' she smiles. 'That might be my next career move.' Who knows? Maybe she will follow Nike's well worn slogan and 'just do it'.