BlackBerry loses CMO
BlackBerry maker RIM (Research in Motion) is to lose its marketing chief, just weeks before the launch of its first tablet device.
Keith Pardy is leaving RIM for “personal reasons” after almost two years at the Canadian-based mobile company.
His resignation comes just weeks before the launch of the BlackBerry Playbook which RIM hopes will compete with the iPad 2, revealed by Apple last week.
Despite stepping down, RIM says Pardy will continue to help the company with the transition over the next six months. It is not yet known whether RIM will look for a replacement CMO.
Pardy joined RIM in 2009 and oversaw the launches of some of BlackBerry’s most popular devices such as its Torch smartphones.
Prior to working at Blackberry, Pardy worked at Nokia and was at Coca-Cola for 17 years, holding the role of vice president and managing director of global brands.
BlackBerry is the UK’s biggest smartphone vendor and has more than 28% market share across all the country’s smartphones, according to January sales figures.
RIM’s UK managing director Stephen Bates said in January its success was due to its transition from being a business-focused brand to becoming more younger-facing.
