Phil Knight co-founded Nike with Bill Bowerman and served as CEO of Nike. He was born on February 24, 1938 in Oregon and is a graduate of the University of Oregon and Stanford Graduate School of Business (Stanford GSB). He met Bill Bowerman at the Univerisity of Oregon when he ran track, and Bowerman was his coach. Knight was Forbes 43rd richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US $18.7 billion in 2014.
Another word for work partner is colleague.
teammate, partner, associate, helper, friend
An ally or member of a person's group or gang. A partner or colleague.
Joseph N. Niepce's world famous partner and colleague was Louis-Jacques-Mande Daguerre. Joseph and Louis created a process to make heliography faster.
bowermans wifes waffle iron
Logrolling
accessory, accomplice, associate, collaborator, colleague, friend, helper, partner
assiant, aid, aide, collaborator, co- worker, colleague, and partner.
Some synonyms for "associate" are colleague, partner, companion, and fellow.
The closest word to colleague that can be used interchangeably is co-worker. Partner, on the other hand, typically refers to someone with whom you have a business or professional relationship, often in a shared venture or project.
I believe the root words are league and collaboration...though I am not sure.