No successor has been named, and there has been no comment on the reason for Steele's abrupt departure.
Nike also has had a recent leadership change, with former S.C. Johnson & Son Inc. CEO William Perez becoming CEO and president as of December 28, succeeding Nike co-founder Phil Knight, who remains chairman.
Steele joined Nike in 1997 as director of IT for the global finance group, and then led the IT efforts to resolve problems in the company's supply chain.
The company has faced rising costs of late from implementing a supply-chain system in the Asia-Pacific region, though Nike still managed $2.9 billion in gross income on $6.7billion in revenue during the six months ending November 30, up from $2.5billion on $5.8billion in revenue during the same period last year.
