• Print
  • Send to a friend
  • Comment (1)
  •  

RIM's 'fat' must be trimmed: CEO

RIM CEO Thorsten Heins. Provided

RIM CEO Thorsten Heins.

Published on May 2, 2012
Published on May 2, 2012
The Canadian Press ~ OBJ  RSS Feed

Thostein Heins treaded lightly on criticism of the state of Research In Motion (TSX:RIM) at the BlackBerry World conference in Orlando on Wednesday, but said the company is in need of streamlining its operations.

Topics :
Research In Motion , BlackBerry 10 , Apple

Heins also said that he launched a major examination of RIM's organization earlier this year.

"It became clear that – here and there – the company has a little fat on the hips," he said of his initial impression as the new CEO.

"We just need to move and evolve to be a lean, mean, nimble hunting machine."

BlackBerry 10 is seen as an important part of RIM's attempt to compete against the likes of Apple's iPhone and devices using Google's Android operating system.

RIM's stock is down about 11 per cent since the conference began.

Prior to becoming CEO in January, Heins was a senior executive with the company.

He was put in charge of all product engineering functions last July, about the time Research In Motion announced it would cut 2,000 jobs worldwide.

Many changes are afoot at RIM, but chief executive Thorsten Heins says the company will continue to offer devices with its popular physical keypad on BlackBerry.

"We won't lose the focus on physical keypads. It would be wrong – just plain wrong to do this," Heins said.

The Waterloo-based company weathered some criticism on Tuesday when Heins unveiled the new BlackBerry 10 operating system and focused on some flashy features available to touchscreen users, but didn't address any future plans for keypad devices.

Some reports suggested the company would completely ditch the physical keys that helped build its name and are favoured by many of its users.

"We only showed you one element of what the future of the BlackBerry 10 portfolio might look like," Heins said.

The confusion emphasized one of the challenges RIM faces in the gradual unveiling of its new operating system and products that will stretch into the latter part of this year. The company hasn't revealed what its new line of smartphones will look like, but it wanted to give developers the opportunity to witness its new operating system at the conference.

It will be one of the first major challenges for the company, which is presently hunting for a new chief marketing officer.

Comments

  • Username
    Emmanuel
    - May 2, 2012 at 20:17:49

    Every time a CEO announces he will "trim the fat", the most competent employees start updating their resume and sending it around. They refuse to live in fear and they go to more peaceful places, because they can. They may even do it for slightly smaller salaries. Replacing them is time-consuming and expensive because the smarter outsiders read this sort of news and don't even apply there, or they demand higher salaries to compensate for the higher risk. The less competent employees are still there, but they live in stress and they're even less productive than before. Nobody helps anybody else succeed, since the other guy's success reduces your own chances to survive the next round of layoffs. Backstabbing reaches ridiculous levels. Employees spend days trying to find information that left the company when some employee quit. Eventually the company dies. I've seen this at Nortel. Mr. Heins should have cut whatever he feels necessary, all in one day, announcing that same day that no further cuts will be done for at least one year (or whatever). I've seen that sort of thing where I worked in the past, and it was a lot less damaging.

    Submit a comment

Submit a comment

Submit a comment (we keep all emails private)
Agreement

We ask that users remain courteous. You may not post insulting, discriminatory or inappropriate content, which may be removed at our discretion. We are not responsible for user content and opinions. Use of this site as well as content submission & ownership are governed by our Conditions of Use and Privacy Policy.

Member organizations should be non-profit in nature, and promote legal activities. Any organization found promoting illegal activities or commercial products or services will be deleted from the site.

I agree with these conditions.

Advertising

Expert bloggers

Equitas Consultants Inc.
Blogger
Ron Prehogan
Family Business Longevity: The...
Design 1st
Blogger
Kevin J. Bailey
The Backyard Inventor's Maze:
Impact Public Affairs
Blogger
Huw Williams
How to be a PR Star!

More bloggers here

CASE STUDY VIDEOS

Building stronger communities across Ottawa
Domicile Developments

An investment in yourself
LC Fitness Studio

No surprises, no upselling
RE/MAX Citywide Realty

Newsletter

Please enter your email to receive our free newsletter

Subscribe to news alerts

Advertising