Tear and Boulben, as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer, are key additions to the executive preparing to launch the company’s next generation of smartphones later in the year, BlackBerry 10. The devices have seen repeated delays.
They will complement new CEO Thorsten Heins, who replaced co-chairs and co-CEO’s Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie at the beginning of the year following a series of failures at the company.
"Kristian and Frank bring extensive knowledge of the rapidly changing wireless global market and will help RIM as we sharpen our focus on delivering long-term value to our stakeholders," said Heins.
"Most importantly, both Kristian and Frank possess a keen understanding of the emerging trends in mobile communications and computing."
Tear comes from Sony Mobile Communications, where he served as Executive Vice President. He brings 25 years of wireless experience in general management, sales and marketing, services and operations within the telecommunications, infrastructure and consumer industries.
He previously held a variety of operational leadership positions with Ericsson in Europe, Asia and Latin America. At RIM, Mr. Tear will serve as Chief Operating Officer overseeing all operational functions for handhelds and services, including research and development, products, global sales, manufacturing and supply chain.
"RIM is an important player in the mobile industry and I am excited to be a part of its future," said Tear.
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"I look forward to working with the talented RIM employees and harnessing their ingenuity and creativity for the benefit of more than 77 million BlackBerry users around the world. I also look forward to helping RIM attract a brand new generation of BlackBerry users."
Mr. Boulben is the former Executive Vice President of Strategy, Marketing and Sales for LightSquared. He joined LightSquared after serving as Global Director of Commercial Strategy for Vodafone Group and Executive Vice President of Brand and Consumer Marketing for Orange Group. Mr. Boulben will oversee global marketing efforts at RIM – a key role since marketing has often been pointed out as one of RIMs major failings in the last 12 months.
"RIM is a pioneer in the mobile world and the BlackBerry brand is a global icon," said Boulben.
"We all know how fast the mobile arena evolves and with the BlackBerry 10 platform, I believe RIM will once again change the way individuals and enterprises engage with each other and the world around them. I could not resist the opportunity to be part of that transformation."
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