Stick to the knitting, RIM
Everybody seems to have an opinion on what RIM should do. Clearly they have some serious problems and last week's blackout was a terrible blow for them.
In my view RIM should ignore the tech bloggers who are obsessed with the latest cool and sexy iPhone wannabe and stick to their knitting.
It's still true that successful companies stick to the things that do well. That doesn't mean they can't be innovate or creative, but they will have certain fundamentals that serve them well in most of the things they do. When they deviate from these fundamentals, they get in trouble.
Apple is a great example of this. They design and build beautiful high margin hardware and software that is a pleasure to use.
IBM is another example. They provide high margin enterprise products and services that businesses can trust.
What RIM need to remember is that they too have fundamentals that have served them well. They design and build high and low margin devices and services that are the best way to communicate and get stuff done.
They can still do these things well. My Blackberry Bold 9900 is by far and away the most productive phone I've ever used (last week excepted). But it's useless without the infrastructure to back it up and the battery life urgently needs addressing (there's apparently a firmware update in the works).
RIM need to get back to their knitting and their fundamentals. Every decision they take should be underpinned by a desire to make the best devices for commuicating and getting things done. This may not appeal to the tech bloggers but it's what RIM were good at and, I hope, still can be good at.
