IT Management Slideshow:
10 Things CIOs Can Expect From RIM's New CEO

Worried investors have for months been calling on BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion to replace co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie. On Jan. 22, 2012, the company has finally done so, appointing Thorsten Heins as RIM’s President and CEO . Heins joined RIM in 2007 from Siemens Communications Group. After a stint as senior vice president for hardware engineering, he became RIM’s chief operating officer for product and sales in August 2011. As with any other company that has a change in leadership, RIM will undergo a quiet period of sorts as its new chief executive assesses some of the things that might be wrong with the firm, and sets out to change that. The company faces a Jan. 31 deadline to report the findings of a review of its management structure, according to Bloomberg News, and Heins has said he’ll be seeking a new marketing chief for the company. Among the 75 million BlackBerry users are many enterprises that have made deep investments in RIM products, so it’s fair to say you’re probably wondering about the fate of the firm at this stage, and how the leadership changes will affect the company’s future. According to the Wall Street Journal, Heins assured industry analysts that he isn’t looking to sell the company. Yet, some industry analysts are making dire predictions about RIM’s fate , which largely hinges on the new BlackBerry 10 platform and future products featuring the QNX-based operating system. Until then, RIM is relying on a product line running BlackBerry OS 7 to retain customers; the upside, of course, is that IT administrators and others who manage BlackBerry devices for businesses have several months before RIM wholeheartedly embarks on major changes. Here’s what you need to know about Heins and the future of RIM.