14 DAY TRIAL // On January 22nd, 2012, Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion appointed Thorsten Heins as President and Chief Executive Officer.
The Board of Directors of the BlackBerry maker acted on the recommendation of its Co-Chief Executive Officers to implement a previously submitted succession plan.
Thorsten Heins was appointed to RIM’s Board as well. The two appointments are effective immediately.
Mike Lazaridis, former Co-Chair and Co-CEO, became Vice Chair of RIM’s Board and Chair of the Board’s new Innovation Committee. Jim Balsillie, former Co-CEO, remains a member of the Board.
As Vice Chair, Mike Lazaridis, will be working closely with Heins to ensure a smooth transition and to continue promoting the company’s BlackBerry brand worldwide.
“Mike created a whole new way of communicating and I look forward to continuing our close collaboration,” Thorsten Heins commented.
“There comes a time in the growth of every successful company when the founders recognize the need to pass the baton to new leadership. Jim and I went to the Board and told them that we thought that time was now,” Lazaridis commented.
The company is on its way to deliver PlayBook 2.0 to the market as soon as next month, while it could launch BlackBerry 10 later this year. Currently, RIM is shipping BlackBerry 7 devices, and has announced the release of OS 7.1 at CES in January.
Jim Balsillie commented on his leave: “I agree this is the right time to pass the baton to new leadership, and I have complete confidence in Thorsten, the management team and the company. I remain a significant shareholder and a Director and, of course, they will have my full support.”
RIM’s new CEO stated that the company had a lot of potential and that it had a strong foundation on which to build.
“Mike and Jim took a bold step 18 months ago when RIM purchased QNX to shepherd the transformation of the BlackBerry platform for the next decade,” Heins said.
“We are more confident than ever that was the right path. It is Mike and Jim’s continued unwillingness to sacrifice long-term value for short-term gain which has made RIM the great company that it is today. I share that philosophy and am very excited about the company’s future.”
PlayBook 2.0 and BlackBerry 10 are expected to prove successful following the reception RIM saw at the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
“Going forward, we will continue to focus both on short-term and long-term growth, strategic planning, a customer- and market-based product approach, and flawless execution,” Heins continued.
“We are in the process of recruiting a new Chief Marketing Officer to work closely with our product and sales teams to deliver the most compelling products and services.”