Thorsten Heins is now President and CEO of Research In Motion. The internal structure change alone is something investors have been calling for, but what that means exactly for Research In Motion in the long run remains to be seen.
Analysts have been weighing in on the change since the news broke and while the consensus thus far has been mixed, there is a general feeling that Thorsten Heins isn't exactly going to bring the needed changes to Research In Motion.
Many analysts see Research In Motion's change as a missed opportunity for the company to make some drastic moves at a time when they need it most, while Thorsten is under the belief that internal overhauls aren't needed.
Atlantic Equities’ James Cordwell - New leadership at RIM was clearly required given the co-CEOs had lost credibility with investors after a disastrous 2011. However, initial commentary from the new CEO suggests there is unlikely to be a material change in the company’s strategy, which is disappointing but perhaps unsurprising given he was part of the prior management team. Heins highlighted improved consumer marketing and better execution as his key areas of focus for turning the company around. Whilst we agree that these areas require improvement we fear that RIM‟s problems require more structural solutions.
Barclays Capital’s Jeff Kvaal - Heins is relatively unknown by the investment community. We thought some video clips made available by RIM last night were not particularly compelling - though admittedly they were not likely geared for an investor audience. We also believe RIM missed an opportunity to acquire some outside perspective by turning to Ms. (Barbara) Stymiest and Mr. Heins.
Jefferies’ Peter Misek - 1) By making a break and bringing in new blood RIM is able to start a new chapter. 2) By allowing the Board to become truly independent, RIM and its Board can now have a more open strategic review. 3) This opens the door to other companies who were considering partnering with RIM to reconsider. 4) It allows shareholders to place all of the share price woes on the departing management team. We believe Thorsten Heins, a seasoned Siemens executive, is the smoothest near-term replacement. While it does not necessarily change anything overnight, it does create a fresh chapter and open doors and possibilities.
Stern Agee analyst Shaw Wu - In our view, a CEO with a strong consumer electronics and supply chain background would have been ideal. The fact of the matter is that RIM is a consumer company whether the company likes it or not. We estimate that 60%-70% of its business is consumer vs. 30%-40% for enterprise. What has changed in IT over the past few years is that consumer is increasingly driving innovation and buying decisions. This is one of the key reasons why Apple and Google have been so successful in the smartphone space. We frankly would not be surprised to see RIM implement further senior management changes in the future.
Needless to say, only time will tell what this particular transition will mean to Research In Motion as a whole but we'll be watching very closely as it unfolds as I'm sure many analysts and investors will be. From a personal standpoint though, I'm not sure where this feeling of immediate change stems from -- no matter whom RIM appointed, nothing just happens overnight and rushed changes are never good. We're excited to watch and see what Thorsten can do and wish him the best of luck at it.
Via: ZDNet
Read more
RIM CEO: 'We are very very confident in BlackBerry 10'
Following up on yesterday's earnings report, RIM CEO Thorsten Heins sat down for an interview with CNBC. We're still moving forward to the BlackBerry 10 launch at full force, however RIM is being analyzed on all levels regarding their financials and what's next before the launch. During the interview, Heins first talked a bit about service revenue and reiterated that they're not going...
Says BlackBerry CEO, "We're not in the spec race... we're in the experience race"
RIM CEO Thorsten Heins has continued to make the rounds since BlackBerry Jam in San Jose. In an interview with CNET, he stressed that it's not about being the fastest or being first, but more about the experience itself. "We're not in the spec race, we're not like six cylinders are better than four, we're in the experience race; it's got to be fun to drive a BlackBerry, if you want to...
Thorsten Heins says sorry for todays BlackBerry outage in Europe and Africa
We posted earlier today that some areas of Europe and Africa were experiencing BlackBerry outages, here in the UK it seemed with Vodafone only. Hot off the press Thorsten Heins has issued the following statement apologising for the days issues for BlackBerry users in the said regions. I want to apologize to those BlackBerry customers in Europe and Africa who experienced an impact...
Who should Research In Motion get on their Board of Directors?
Current Chairman Barbara Stymiest and CEO Thorsten Heins at the 2012 RIM AGM Not too long ago, Kevin and I quarterbacked a very long article about Vic Alboini, and his crusade for change at Research In Motion. While we were not fans of his methods, nor do we necessarily understand his true motivations, we definitely agree that RIM's board of directors needs a shake up. In short,...