Research in Motion
When this industry was in its infancy, Research in Motion, the owner of Blackberry was at the top of its engineering. It launched the first smart phone which provided email access for the very first time in 1999. Smartphones then became part of peoples life in which consumers started to depend heavily on these products for services such as internet, email, social networking and communication Holub et al. (2010). As pointed by Stephen and Davis (2009) normal mobiles and desktops became obsolete and the landscape changed into ‘smartphones due to consumers convenience.
In 2007, before the launch of the first apple iphone, Research in Motion, producer of the BlakcBerry, was one of the most knowledgeable and acute technology companies in the globe. It dominated the smart phone industry for a good few years. It was profitable and popular, two of the most important things required to be successful as a business (Hudson, 2010). In 2006, a Websters dictionary word, “CrackBerry was linked with blackberry and became the word of the year.
Since the launch of the first iphone, blackberrys global market share has plunged from 44% in 2009 to a mere 10% last year, according to one estimate. Stock price has plummeted by 75% in the past year. The easiest way to explain this would be to blame Apple for running over RIM, however this report will analyse and dig deep into company strategy formulation and implementation, to identify what actually went wrong. Mintzberg (2000) defines strategic planning as a process of balancing the organisations strategic objectives, available resources and opportunities around it. This report will also include the future path, or strategic goals the companies should follow in order to sustain and grow in this competitive market.