Thousands of job cuts set for Blackberry
BLACKBERRY maker Research in Motion is this week expected to reveal thousands of job cuts as the firm tries to make up lost ground following a string of changes at the top.
The Canadian firm said at its last results that it hoped to stem costs, and reports last night put the expected cuts at between 2,000 and 6,000.
One source said the impending layoffs could affect RIM’s legal, marketing, sales, operations, and human resources divisions.
“The strategic question is: are you accelerating into a better future or shrinking to a niche operation,” said the source, who declined to be identified due to the sensitive nature of the job cuts.
A RIM spokeswoman contacted by Reuters declined to comment on the report.
But she pointed to comments that new chief executive Thorsten Heins and chief financial officer Brian Bidulka made on RIM’s last earnings call about plans to save $1bn in the fiscal year.
RIM reported a fourth-quarter loss in March, when the new chief executive announced the initial steps in a strategic overhaul. Heins took over from longtime co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie in January.