Dr. Andrew Armacost, President | University of North Dakota
Dr. Andrew Armacost, President | University of North Dakota
Last week, Sam McCracken, founder and general manager of Nike's N7 program, visited the University of North Dakota's Nistler College of Business & Public Administration. He participated in a fireside chat with students and faculty. The discussion was moderated by Laine Lyons, director of development at the College of Arts & Sciences for the UND Alumni Association & Foundation.
McCracken is a member of the Sioux and Assiniboine Tribes from the Ft. Peck Indian Reservation in Montana. Lyons, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, helped recount McCracken’s journey from rural Montana to leading a division at Nike.
After high school, McCracken moved to San Francisco with his mother and coached youth basketball while working as a forklift operator. In 1997, he joined Nike’s West Coast distribution center in Oregon as a forklift operator. Shortly after, he was offered an unpaid position to lead Nike’s Native American employee network.
“There was an article in my hometown paper that said, ‘Tribal member becomes chairman of Nike’s Native American network,’” McCracken recalled humorously.
The volunteer role paved the way for his future business ventures, including his patented N7 brand. In 2000, he proposed his business plan to Nike executives. Today, the N7 Collection supports programs for kids in Native American and Aboriginal communities.
“At Nike, we’re naturally storytellers,” McCracken stated about his success.
According to Nike's website, since 2009, the N7 Fund has provided $12.1 million to over 300 organizations.
N7 represents the Native American concept of drawing wisdom from seven generations. McCracken was named Nike’s Employee of the Year in 2004 and appointed by President Obama to a national advisory council on Indian education in 2010.
Despite accolades, McCracken remains focused on community impact: “If I were to fail in my job, I’d be failing them.”
He plans to retire later this year after 28 years at Nike and has named his successor — someone he mentored after a chance meeting following a university speech.
“She emailed me later and said, ‘I want to job shadow you,’” McCracken recounted about his successor who will take over N7 soon.
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