Thorsten Heins has been CEO of RIM for only 3 months. But that 3 months has seemed like an eternity as we waited for updates on BlackBerry 10, restructuring of the company, potential partnerships, and long-awaited new executive blood. Well, yesterday RIM hired two new senior executives. The company finally has a chief marketing officer and a singular chief operating officer.

There have been a lot of complaints from the peanut gallery (media, analysts, casual observers) on the speed of the recruitment process. People were forming conclusions that Thorsten wasn’t doing things fast enough. But I’ve been around public companies as an analyst long enough to see a wide range of executive movement. Recruiting senior executives is hardly ever a fast process. Do you really want it to be fast? Or do you want the right amount of attention put on hiring strong candidates?

So let’s turn to the guys that Thorsten hand-picked.

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Following BlackBerry DevCon 2011, we posted a BBDoodle to the blogs here with the title The RIMPIRE Strikes Out. I took a lot of heat over that post (oh Kevin, you've turned your back on BlackBerry, etc. etc), but it was true. Between the complete lack of announcements and the performance of RIM's then CEO Mike Lazaridis during the keynote, the event definitely was an opportunity lost.

BlackBerry World 2012 was really the first at bat for RIM's new CEO Thorsten Heins (we'll call DevCon Europe a warm up), and as we talked about all week, he really nailed it out of the park with his performance. Yes, we know the BlackBerry 10 preview was brief, and some of you may be feeling like for a home run RIM would have needed to show more. Coming into BlackBerry World, I honestly didn't think RIM would show us any BlackBerry 10 preview at all. Knowing that the first phone wouldn't be released until later this year, it would be silly for them to blow their wad now (as Heins' said.. they have to keep some secrets). 

At BBWorld, Heins delivered a solid keynote, renewed RIM's connection to the media and as mentioned in our article Five Important Observations from BlackBerry World, we saw that this is a new RIM. Not bad for only having the job for three months.

Yes, we know Wall Street's immediate reactions to BBWorld would have the RIMPIRE taking a swing and a miss, but on our scoreboard RIM's new CEO definitely scored a point this week with his performance. And there's still a lot of innings left.

With BlackBerry World 2012 officially behind us, it's time to look back at the event that I believe will go down as a historic turning point in RIM's history. There's a lot to take in, so I'll keep the intro short and let's get right to it. Keep reading for what I view are five important observations coming out of the event.

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We already wrote about the awesome session that was held at BlackBerry World 2012 between the 150+ press in attendance and RIM's new CEO Thorsten Heins. Video recording wasn't allowed, but I did put the Voice Recorder app to use on my Bold 9900 and managed to capture the audio from the entire session. I highly recommend listening to it. Heins seriously Rock & Rolled it!  

Disclaimer 1: As noted, I recorded this on a Bold 9900 from quite a distance. There's some background noise and you'll have to crank up the audio and listen carefully, but you should be able to pick up most of it.

Disclamer 2: The session started off pretty embarassingly for yours truly. Me and Adam were at the session early when only a few people were there, so I was up on the stage at the podium and had Adam snapping photos (for use in future blog posts of course). Adam told me to take off my press badge. I did. I forgot it up there. What's the first thing Thorsten sees when he takes to the stage and walks up to the podium in a now jam packed room of people? My badge. Funny stuff. Listen for it. :)

Audio File: Download .MP3

Here it is CrackBerry Podcast fans... our BlackBerry World 2012 Super Podcast! There's 90 minutes of BlackBerry goodness to listen to right here, with Adam, Bla1ze, Umi and myself covering all of the events of the last three days. The BlackBerry 10 preview. The keynote session. The BlackBerry 10 Alpha Device. BlackBerry Jam. The awesome press session with RIM CEO Thorsten Heins. We cover it all and more on this one, so be sure to listen. Note - Craig couldn't join us for this one, so next week we'll follow up with another video podcast so we can get deeper into Mobile Fusion and all of the enterprise stuff. Enjoy the show!

Audio File: Download .MP3

If you missed out yesterdays BlackBerry World 2012 General Session keynote then you’ll want to check out the video above. RIM has made the full version available for your viewing pleasure. The keynote includes RIM CEO Thorsten Heins and other members of RIM’s executive team demonstrating the new features of the BlackBerry 10 operating system.

The session also includes guests from Salesforce.com, Gameloft, FishLabs, and a few others who are working with RIM to build the application ecosystem, as well as ensure that the new OS is ready for users around the globe. So grab a drink and kick up your feet as you're about to watch over 30 minutes of BlackBerry awesomeness.

Today at BlackBerry World, RIM arranged a meeting between Thorsten Heins and all of the members of the press who are attending the show. This meeting marked a significant shift in the company's communication strategy.

Under the previous co-CEO structure, the media really never had much of a chance to engage with the top leadership of RIM. Sure, the larger outlets were granted the occasional interview. But there were never CEO addresses to an entire panel of media.

Thorsten hit the ball out of the park today. He said all the right things, and he made people in the room like him and RIM. The importance of this can't be understated. With all of the media bashing that has been happening, even people who don't use smartphones have started to adopt the belief that RIM is dying. The only way to stop this is to have the media actually like your company and want to write nicer stuff.

Thorsten took the stage today and acknowledged the challenges facing RIM, creating a good agreement frame to warm up the audience. But the structure of what came next was brilliantly crafted. He simply had a conversation with everyone and opened up his thought process regarding the changes that he needed to make inside of RIM.

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Today, during RIM's keynote session at BlackBerry World there were two critical areas where I felt RIM did an amazing job. These two changes could mark an important turnaround for the company. So let's go through them.

First up - let's talk about the product. We're working on some more detailed editorials on the features RIM demonstrated. But suffice to say BlackBerry 10 is a stunning change for this company. The new virtual keyboard, the "flow" of the user interface, and even the camera (with time-machine-like capability) were hugely innovative. Coming from a company that has been accused of lacking innovation for years, these demos were greeted by thunderous applause. RIM has gone back to being cool.

Second, and less obvious, is the way the company presented its message. And this is what I really want to talk about here. I was impressed with how well Thorsten Heins delivered a compelling and understandable message about what RIM represents.

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The Fearless Leader of BlackBerry meets The Fearless Leader of CrackBerry

Lesson #1: Never leave a BlackBerry World party before its over or you might miss your chance at bumping into and talking to RIM's CEO! Just as Adam and I were heading out of the Monday night #BBWC Opening Reception we spotted Thorsten Heins walking in, undoubtedly a little late for the festivities due to rehearsals for Tuesday's big keynote.

Lesson #2: Spotting RIM's new CEO in a crowd is easy. Just look up! Seriously, At just over 6'1" I'm fairly tall, but standing next to Thorsten my head literally comes up to his shoulder. He's a giant.

This was my first time meeting Thorsten Heins in person, and just as he was super friendly and approachable when I interviewed him during his first week as RIM's new CEO, the same was true in real life. Well, minus the fact maybe that in person he could probably crush me into the ground if I stepped out line. Damn leverage. :)

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It seems like just about everyone has weighed in on what's best for Research In Motion, and how they can turn their current situation around. Analysts have analyzed, bloggers have blogged, and everyone else has tweeted, commented, or Facebooked their feelings on the future of the BlackBerry maker. It only makes sense that celebrity chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsey would have an opinion on the matter and share it directly with new CEO Thorsten Heins. Watch the video above to see just how it all went down. 

Of course this is a spoof, that's not really Gordon Ramsey or Thorsten Heins. This clip appeared recently on CBC's "This Hour has 22 Minutes". Thanks for posting it in the forums AWDragon200!

Source: CBC

if you missed our coverage of the BlackBerry DevCon Europe General Session Keynote yesterday, not to worry. RIM has posted up a replay of the entire keynote for your viewing pleasure. Some good stuff to be had within as Thorsten Heins, Alec Saunders, Chris Smith and many partners took the stage in Amsterdam to show off some goods. If you have a few hours to kill it's definitely worth checking out. So grab a cup of coffee (or beer if that's more your thing) and hit the link below. Be sure to keep following all of our coverage from BlackBerry DevCon Europe.

Check out the BlackBerry DevCon Europe General Session Replay

Here it is folks, BlackBerry history! CrackBerry was on hand in Amsterdam to witness (and record) the first BlackBerry event keynote presentation by newly-minted CEO, Thorsten Heins. You can hit play on the video above to watch his full 25 minute debut at BlackBerry DevCon Europe.

On the announcement front, there wasn't really anything in the way of BlackBerry news. But honestly, we didn't go to the show expecting any. Mobile World Congress is coming up at the end of this month, which makes a much more strategic time and venue to officially release PlayBook OS 2.0 (and maybe announce some PlayBook models with radios inside). And as for learning more about BlackBerry 10 phones, knowing they won't hit until later in the year it makes sense that BlackBerry World in May may be where we get a bigger glimpse. 

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RIM's new CEO, Thorsten Heins, has been a busy guy doing media interviews over the last couple of weeks. But yesterday he took some time to chat with Bay Street sell-side analysts in Toronto who cover the stock.

What did he say? We've had a chance to read through some notes from analysts who attended and here are the big points:

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In a recent interview with FireceWireless, AT&T chief marketing officer David Christopher weighed in on the current situation at Research In Motion. Christopher noted that AT&T believes consumers want choice, which is why they hope that RIM will bounce back. "We want RIM to succeed. We like choice," Christopher said. "They have a strong base. But they have to innovate quickly and execute.". Currently AT&T carries five BlackBerry smartphones, all of which are the latest BlackBerry 7 devices (Bold 9900, Torch 9810, Curve 9360 and Torch 9860) with the exception of the older Curve 3G. 

With the upcoming release of BlackBerry 10 devices like the BlackBerry London, things should certainly pick up across the board for both RIM and the carriers. If the things we've heard and seen thus far are any indication, the next generation devices from RIM will no doubt be strong sellers against the likes of the iPhone and Android devices. Newly branded RIM CEO Thorsten Heins has already said in his interview with Kevin that there are new structures in place which will help greatly in bringing products to maket on time -- so combining the new strategy with BlackBerry 10 phones, RIM should have no problem with either innovating or executing as we move forward. (Take THAT AT&T!)

Source: FierceWireless

During the first few days of Thorsten Heins taking on the position of RIM's President and Chief Executive Officer, there were a few quotes pulled from his interviews. One in particular struck a chord with many in the market and while Thorsten later went on to clarify what he meant, that wasn't the closing of the questioning. In speaking to Reuters, Heins elaborated further on the matter and took the time to note an upcoming meeting he has planned with RIM's board:

"I will have time with the board in two weeks to present my ideas and changes," Heins said.

Heins hasn't been blind to the situation at RIM, knowing full well that their U.S. market share has rapidly been slipping, and while they're still making plenty of headway in emerging markets, it's not enough. In the past, RIM has relied heavy on their relationships with carriers to create promotions and that once again looks to be the game plan. Right now, only 20 percent of U.S. BlackBerry users are making use of newer devices while the rest remain on the previous generations hardware - some even two-generations behind. 

When BlackBerry 7 was released, RIM began working with carriers in the U.S. in an effort to get newer devices into people's hands. The problem is -- no one seems to have noticed. Some insight offered by Heins shows the ramp up for that hasn't even really begun, and while he wouldn't divulge the full details, it was noted:

"All the plans are ready. The carrier agreements are all ready. Now we have to get off the starting grid. Now we need to execute that upgrade program," Heins said.

The information about carriers is rather interesting and really plays a bigger role here. It's been suggested in the past that some carriers may have been holding back on RIM products due to their lack of LTE implementation - something that RIM is also addressing starting with the BlackBerry PlayBook. Come Spring, RIM has plans to launch an LTE equipped BlackBerry PlayBook that will serve as their first foray into LTE, with BlackBerry 10 devices also getting LTE treatment later on. In the meantime, we'll have to see what comes about -- one thing seems certain though, we'll be seeing more BlackBerry promotions through carriers soon.

Source: Reuters