Speaker Maria Eitel’s Accomplishments Include…
Maria Eitel, president of the Nike Foundation, works with key players in economic and social development to achieve the foundation’s objective of contributing to poverty alleviation. The Nike Foundation leverages business resources and skills to increase awareness and investment in adolescent girls in the developing world as an untapped resource in fighting global poverty.
Prior to becoming the foundation’s first president, Ms. Eitel served as Nike Inc.’s first vice president for corporate responsibility. During her tenure, she saw Nike through the challenging global business environment of the late 1990s into the 21st century with the development and implementation of Nike’s first corporate responsibility agenda, including labor practices, environmental sustainability, community investment, diversity and governance.
Formerly, Ms. Eitel served as European corporate affairs group manager for Microsoft Corporation where she managed corporate, public and community affairs initiatives for the company’s European headquarters and 24 European subsidiaries from Paris, France. Before joining Microsoft in 1995, Ms. Eitel served as director of public affairs for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and was senior manager of communications and community relations at MCI Communications Corp. From 1989 to 1992, Ms. Eitel served in the White House as deputy director of media relations and later as special assistant to the president for media affairs. She directed White House communications initiatives and programs, served as an official spokesperson for the president and managed Cabinet involvement in White House and communications initiatives. Her earlier career experience was as a reporter and producer in commercial and public broadcasting.
She serves on numerous boards and advisory groups including the Initiative for Global Development, the Acumen Fund, the World Bank Gender Action Plan, the World Economic Forum HIVAIDS Global Agenda Council, the Millennium Promise, and the Lakeside School in Seattle, Washington. Formerly, she served as a director of the Safeco Corporation, the World Economic Forum Global Governance Initiative, the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities, the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Monitoring International Labor Standards and Business for Social Responsibility, a business membership organization that promotes corporate social responsibility among global companies. Ms. Eitel speaks at numerous forums on corporate social responsibility, governance, human and labor rights, sustainable development, philanthropy and social entrepreneurs.
Born and raised in Everett, Washington, Ms. Eitel graduated with a BA from McGill University and an MS from Georgetown University. She is a graduate of the Executive Program at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. In addition to her native English, she speaks fluent French.