After years of dominating the mobile space, BlackBerry had reached a level of comfort in which the desire to innovate began to fade. Market share took a steep dive and the numbers of subscribers declined in flocks. BlackBerry knew it had to act and come up with something innovative to not only get them back in the top 3 mobile ranking, but to establish a lead for years to come. BlackBerry, formerly Research In Motion (RIM), made an acquisition in 2010 with software giant QNX that will one day be one of the most important acquisitions in tech history. Not only does QNX software allow BlackBerry to be competitive in the mobile arena with its OS, but it will take mobile computing, networking and communication to the next level.
The company unveiled its building block to the next generation of its mobile transition with the debut of a unified platform and a jab into the tablet market with the original Tablet OS running on the BlackBerry PlayBook. With the PlayBook launching incomplete and lacking full support, the vibe surrounding the company felt like leadership and execution were headed in the wrong direction.
Shortly into the calendar year of 2012 a new CEO was announced, Thorsten Heins. The German Canadian with a strong background in product sales, hardware and software was viewed as the perfect chief to lead the once top selling smartphone company through a mobile transition and define the operation of mobile computing.
I’m here to say that there is no one better for the job than Thorsten Heins. While I’ve written many articles on Thorsten, I finally experienced the personal demeanor that has sparked this turnaround and allowed BlackBerry to become profitable again.
Tuesday, the day of the general keynote session, BlackBerry hosted a Keep Moving Experience produced by Alicia Keys at Universal Studios. Attendees had exclusive access to Universal Studios with unlimited entertainment and a first of its kind musical collaboration. After enjoying Alicia Keys, and company, perform Thorsten Heins could have went back to his suite or anywhere else, but chose to go where attendees went – the #LobbyBar at the Orlando World Center Marriott.
Night turned into morning with Heins and executives still mingling with BlackBerry Live attendees discussing the announcements of the general keynote and the magnificence that took place at Universal Studios. I had a memorable conversation with Thorsten; as a matter of fact I was his last conversation at the Tuesday night #LobbyBar gathering.
I had the pleasure of spending 10 minutes with Thorsten – and I was instantly inspired, feeling the energy everyone inside and outside of the company shares with him daily. While we discussed the crucial announcements, and a few unannounced rumored topics, I wasn’t there to ask the same (pesky) questions he is asked on a daily basis. We had a connecting conversation talking about cars, NBA Basketball, Formula1 and engaging in ideas and thoughts.
I’ll repeat myself here by saying that after that conversation with Mr. Heins, there is no one better to hold the baton and lead this company to the top than he. Yes, he is the “boss” and is responsible for managing a corporation, but it is how he does it and it lay in the manner he asserts himself to others. We spoke about the future direction of BlackBerry and he was very determined and confident in the transition and workload that needed to be executed in order to put BlackBerry back on top in the mobile market. Not only is Thorsten putting his utmost faith in the strategy to move forward aggressively with the BlackBerry 10 platform and he is also open to numerous ideas and implementations. When asked on the absence of a Latino executive Thorsten’s answer was that he actually agreed and shared some insight on the importance and acceptability of the Latin American market.
While speaking about marketing, sports marketing to be exact, we discussed the NBA Playoffs and which team we wanted to see win it all. Thorsten mentioned he was a big Miami Heat fan and wished they win a consecutive title. Me, well I’m a diehard San Antonio Spurs fan closely following as the Spurs drive for their 5th ring in a little over a decade. Forgive me for the obvious, but to use basketball as a parallel – Thorsten Heins is the Gregg Popovich of BlackBerry. The San Antonio Spurs are a model of excellence around the NBA and its starts with the head coach, the leader. Staff and organization are well trained and led; players trust and buy into the system so no matter who is on the floor, the winning percentage remains high. With Heins as the head coach BlackBerry is destined to return back to championship caliber form and the World will soon be turning back to BlackBerry for mobile computing.
If you’d like to hear more about my talk with Thorsten, stop by the new BlackBerry Empire forums, or drop me a line.