RIM Annual Meeting
Posted Jul 10, 2012 02:57:23 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
WATERLOO, Ont. – Research In Motion chairwoman Barbara Stymiest said Research in Motion’s board of directors is “very supportive” of the company’s management team.
In their annual general meeting in Waterloo Tuesday morning, Stymiest said the team has the skills to get RIM past its current challenges and to pursue the opportunities ahead.
She added the company will continue to face challenges but with those challenges come opportunities.
“We understand that the company’s performance this year has not met expectations. It does not represent what we believe RIM can achieve,” Stymiest said. “We do understand many shareholders are frustrated by this.”
Meanwhile, the company’s Chief Executive Officer Thorsten Heins says RIM has changed forever how people communicate and it’s still a proud company with a strong brand.
The BlackBerry maker has struggled in recent months as it as reported losses and delayed the release of its much-hyped BlackBerry 10 operating system and new smartphones.
Two weeks ago, RIM announced it will cut about 5,000 jobs as it slashes costs across the organization to contend with faltering sales.
Shares in the company, which traded for more than $30 less than a year ago, have recently dropped below $8.
“We recognize that this is a difficult period for our shareholders, and that many of you are frustrated with the time it has taken to make our way through this transition,” said Heins, adding that it will take time for the company to rebound.
The words didn’t help to assure one shareholder, who spoke with reporters following the meeting.
“I’ve actually moved monies into real estate because this was a real shock for me, I was really disappointed with what happened,” she said.
A big priority for the company the launch in the first quarter of next year for for the delayed Blackberry 10.
However, the company is warning that there will be another operating loss in the second quarter, and Heins said the number of sites manufacturing the smartphone will be cut from 10 to just three.
Below is video of Vic Alboini of Jaguar Financial outside of this years AGM.
