Blackberry maker would eliminate 2,000 jobs
Research In Motion Ltd (RIM) is preparing for a radical restructuring that will begin in the next two weeks, which will eliminate at least 2,000 jobs worldwide, reported Saturday’s Globe and Mail, citing unnamed sources.
The Canadian newspaper, citing several sources close to the company, reportedly said that the next round of layoffs is planned for around June 1-one days before the end of the first fiscal quarter of BlackBerry smartphone maker- but some predict that the announcement could be earlier.
A source close to the company told Reuters that the impending layoffs could affect up to 6,000 people in the legal divisions, marketing, sales, operations and human resources at RIM.
“The strategic question is: will accelerate towards a brighter future or will make a contraction to a specific operation?” Said the source, who declined to be identified by the sensitive nature of the dismissals.
A RIM spokesperson contacted by the news agency declined to discuss the report.
However, he noted the statements made by the new CEO, Thorsten Heins, and Chief Financial Officer Brian Bidulka, during the last conference of RIM on earnings of the company, about plans for greater efficiency in operations and save 1,000 million in the fiscal year.
She said RIM currently has about 16,500 employees globally.
In March, RIM reported a loss for the fourth quarter, when the new CEO announced the initial steps of a strategic reformulation. Heins took command of the hands of the co-executive Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie in January.
Having been a dominant sector emailing over wireless networks, RIM lost market share to the ruthless competition from Apple Inc’s iPhone and phones using the Android software from Google Inc.
RIM has already gone through a round of restructuring. Last July announced plans to eliminate about 11 percent of its workforce, or about 2,000 jobs.
Recently, a number of senior employees have left the Canadian company, including global head of sales Patrick Spence, to assume a position in the audio company Sonos.
Several sources close to the company told Reuters that RIM had been decoupling over lower-ranking personnel for months, in what has become known internationally as “Thursday’s Farewell,” and that layoffs are usually done on that day of the week .
The job cuts have failed to boost the share price of the firm. On Thursday, RIM shares touched a minimum of several years of $ 10.87 Canadian on the Toronto Stock Exchange. In 2008, the title changed hands more than 150 Canadian dollars.
Category: Business News
