BlackBerry has hired Alex Thurber as Senior Vice President for Global Device Sales with the aim of “accelerating sales of the company’s Android-powered PRIV, BlackBerry 10 smartphones and future devices”.
BlackBerry is focusing on higher-margin security software and services used by businesses and government to handle their mobile networks in an attempt to fuel its turnaround. The company aims to push further into the area by offering handsets that foster worker security.
Earlier this month, the company revealed that its sales from software and services more than doubled from a year earlier, but its smartphone operation has continued to struggle, despite the launch of the Priv, the first-ever Android-powered phone by BlackBerry.
For the fourth quarter ended Feb. 29, BlackBerry’s handset sales were disappointing. From 700,000 smartphones in the third quarter, the company recognized revenue on 600,000 units in the fourth quarter.
The company blamed in part slowing demand for high-end smartphones for the drop. Meanwhile, the company plans to release two new, lower-priced Android phones this year.
Thurber has a stellar track record as a sales executive with a deep history in technology. Immediately prior to joining BlackBerry, he was VP of worldwide sales for advanced security solutions vendor WatchGuard.
Before that, he held a similar role with software security company Tripwire and headed worldwide channels and commercial sales operations at McAfee. He also held multiple positions with Cisco Systems and founded network solutions and security company, Thurber Works.
