RIM Holds BlackBerry Job Fair, Set to Hire 600 New Employees

It looks like the hiring freeze at RIM has come to a halt as the company has announced they are seeking to hire around 600 new employees. According to Ali Rajah, RIM’s global talent acquisition leader, RIM is looking to hire in fields such as software development and testing, hardware engineering and technical support. The majority of the positions come from Waterloo, Ont. (headquarters), with some openings based in Mississauga, Ont.

The technology business is cyclical,” said Rajah. “RIM is growing considerably — few companies are growing at the same rate. We’re looking for talent, fresh ideas and innovative people to address that growth.”


Below are some tidbits of what was said during RIM’s Job Fair.

Lambert Rishi, 31, four years experience in routing and switching.

“It’s one of the biggest smartphone companies in the world. To have RIM on your resumé makes you stand out from the competition. Working for them would be a dream job for me,” he said.

 Colin Davidson, 56, a software developer with 30 years experience. He was laid off by RIM last June. Why he is back?

“They’re a good company. They pay well and treat you well. Their management style is friendly. You get to work on very interesting stuff. They have a good bonus program if they make their numbers,” he said, adding he is surprised at all the negative publicity the company gets.

“Their sales have actually gone up. They have a big captive market in business and government that use their BlackBerrys because of their secure encryption and that is not going to go away. But they’ve got to appeal to the general public if they want to grow more.”

Full testimonials here via CBC