In a topsy-turvy world, RIM is making plenty of acquisitions while the very positions of co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie have been called into question

It's a situation that makes the decision to lay off up to 2,000 members of staff less shocking as it might otherwise have been, especially given BlackBerry's sinking share in most major territories around the globe.

The move, billed as a 'cost optimisation program', will result in superfluous positions disappearing or being merged with others, while executives at the top of the company will broaden their roles to fill the void.

Doubling up

COO of product engineering Thorsten Heins, for instance, will now take on similar responsibility for the product and sales department. Current COO Dan Morrison is set to retire after a period of medical leave.

"All product engineering functions, including both hardware and software teams, are being consolidated under Thorsten’s direction," RIM said in a statement.

"This consolidation of product engineering functions is expected to both produce greater efficiencies and help to accelerate new product introductions in the future."

RIM has also confirmed that current European head Patrick Spence will take on the role of MD of global sales and regional marketing.

Revolving RIM

Whether this is all the result of an orderly evolution co-ordinated from within, or a company pulling in all manner of directions in reaction to outside forces is up for debate.

Interestingly, the changes feel similar to what new CEO Stephen Elop has been attempting at Nokia. 

The layoffs and executive shifts come days after RIM purchased Swedish video editing tool provider JayCut – a move CTO David Yach billed as an attempt to "enrich customers' multimedia experience with BlackBerry".

RIM also recently acquired social gaming network Scoreloop for an undisclosed fee.

In contrast, the company recently had to bow to shareholder pressure and grant an evaluation into its management structure, owing to concerns voiced about the company's dual-CEO roles by investor NEI Investments.

[source: TechCrunch]