RIM continues to be in the news—but for all the wrong reasons

While many are waiting for RIM’s breaking news today—that is, the good news about why this past year’s failures were worth it, and that fortunes are now about to change—I have a few observations worth reflecting on.

RIM’s biggest weakness is not their technology, but their lack of good communication:

1. They fail to communicate consistently their core message—that they have the most secure communications network and device in the market today—even the president of the USA uses it.
2. They fail to respond quickly to the public and shareholders when things go wrong. The most recent blackout demonstrates this point clearly—how many days went by before the co-CEO, Mike Lazaridis made an apology and statement?
3. Upon the release of PlayBook, and while being pummelled by their competitors in the media, RIM was virtually silent—I heard all the negatives, but it was months before I heard the positives about why or where the PlayBook is superior.
4. While attending their Annual Shareholder’s Meeting, co-CEO Jim Balsillie stood for the introductory address, chose to read the introduction rather than engage his audience.
5. At this same Annual Shareholder’s Meeting, an anonymous well written and thought out letter had been circulated that raised a number of issues within the RIM employee/company—the leadership chose to focus on the messenger rather than the message—and with the opportunity to embrace the message, rejected it.

Hopefully, today is really the beginning of a new era—an era where the focus isn’t just on technology but communication.

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