Thorsten Heins Takes Over As RIM Chief

Research In Motion underwent a massive shakeup on 22 January, with longtime co-chief executives Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie (pictured) stepping aside in favour of Thorsten Heins, who now assumes the titles of both president and chief executive.

According to a statement issued by RIM, Lazaridis will become vice chair of RIM’s board, as well as chair of the Board’s newly created innovation committee. That statement also suggested he would work closely with Heins “to offer strategic counsel, provide a smooth transition and continue to promote the BlackBerry brand worldwide”. It remains to be seen how much influence he exerts in his new role.

Board changes

Meanwhile, Balsillie will apparently remain a member of the board. Barbara Stymiest, previously a member of the Royal Bank of Canada’s Group Executive, has been named independent Board Chair; rumours of her becoming RIM’s next chairperson have circulated since early January.

Heins is a company insider, having joined RIM from Siemens Communications Group in 2007. After a stint as senior vice president for hardware engineering, he became RIM’s chief operating officer for product and sales in August 2011.

Once a dominant smartphone maker, RIM in recent quarters has seen its market-share tumble in the face of aggressive competition from the likes of Apple’s iOS and Google Android.

One of Heins’ first public statements alluded to the challenges facing the company as it attempts to adjust to this shifting paradigm: “We have learned from those challenges and, I believe, we have and will become a stronger company as a result.”

New devices

By the end of 2012, RIM plans on issuing an all-new line of devices running the next-generation BlackBerry 10 operating system. In addition, it will issue a long-awaited software update for its BlackBerry-branded PlayBook tablet in February.

Until those BlackBerry 10 devices arrive, RIM will depend on its product line running BlackBerry OS 7 to hold the market-share line against competitors. For some time, RIM executives have characterised the company’s current period as a “transition”. It’s now seemingly up to Heins to see this period through.

Nicholas Kolakowski eWEEK USA 2013. Ziff Davis Enterprise Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Recent Posts

Tesla Shares Surge On China Advanced Self-Driving Push

Tesla makes key advances toward advanced self-driving rollout in China as chief Elon Musk meets…

11 hours ago

UK Law Aims To Boost Security For ‘Smart’ Devices

New UK rules bring in basic security requirements for millions of internet-connected devices, aiming to…

13 hours ago

Alphabet Value Surges Over $2tn On Dividend Plan

Google parent Alphabet sees market capitalisation surge over $2tn on plan to over first-ever cash…

19 hours ago

Google Asks US Court To Dismiss Federal Adtech Case

Google asks Virginia federal court to dismiss case brought by US Justice Department and eight…

19 hours ago

Snap Sees Surge In Users, Ad Revenues

Snapchat parent Snap reports user growth, revenues in spite of tough competition, in what may…

20 hours ago

Shein Subject To Most Stringent EU Digital Rules

Quick-growing fast-fashion company Shein must comply with most stringent level of EU digital rules after…

20 hours ago