RIM Contemplating New Chairperson: Report

Research In Motion could dismiss Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie as co-chairmen of their company’s board, according to reports circulating widely online.

Barbara Stymiest is the figure being cited by Canadian publication the National Post as RIM’s potential next chairperson. The newspaper, which attributed that information to unnamed sources, described her as an independent director who joined RIM’s board in 2007.

Whether she ends up taking the reins of RIM’s board, analysts are already weighing in on whether she can help a company struggling to maintain its market share in the face of significant pressure from the likes of Google Android and Apple’s iPhone.

“We would view such an announcement positively as we believe she will initiate a formal strategic review, possibly trim costs in the hardware business, and possibly announce additional partnerships,” Peter Misek, an analyst with Jefferies & Co, wrote in a co-authored research note Jan. 4. “However, we continue to see an outright sale in the near-term as unlikely and see near-term results as challenged.”

Stymiest currently serves as group head of strategy, treasury and corporate services for the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). According to Misek, she is also often cited as a successor to RBC’s current president and CEO, Gordon Nixon. That could complicate her role at RIM, should she become chairperson.

To read the original eWeek article, click here: RIM Considering New Chairperson: Report