Research in Motion Business Level Strategy

Research in Motion
Business Level Strategy
The core strategy of the company was to develop products that would continue to grow the company as a whole as well introduce innovative products. However, the only route they chose for creating and developing innovative products was through their specialized research and department skills.

The company decided to fall into the mobile and wireless communication industry where it would concentrate on providing the customers with a mode of communication that would be available at all times of the day and could be accessed from anywhere. The need for a particular stand alone terminal was now removed from the network concept.
At first, the concept of mainframe networking came up where the major portion of processing was carried out by the mainframe computers. However, with the passage of time, the technologists perceived a new kind of network called the client server network which allowed the computing and the processing of a client to be distributed without having to overburden the server. This is the main concept used by RIM as well, however, instead of using personal computers in their network, they used wireless nodes.
RIM has been dealing in four areas of businesses where it has developed software to providing services as well creating wireless communication modes. “RIM generated revenue through the “complete BlackBerry wireless solution” which included wireless devices, software and services. Revenues, however, were heavily skewed to handheld sales (73 per cent), followed by service (18 per cent), software (6 per cent) and other revenues (3 per cent).” (Mazutis, 2008[1])
The four areas mentioned in the quotation above show that the major portion of revenues for RIM falls into the handheld sales. This means that the majority of revenue is actually dealt with the wireless communication nodes that the company makes. RIM recently faced a success in their BlackBerry innovation. The innovation allowed a customer to access the Internet as well as use all the applications such as email or messaging at any point in time without having to look for a physical terminal that would allow the same.
The introduction of such a business allowed the customers to face convenience and also have the availability of various software applications at any point in time. But one of the businesses of the company is also to produce software applications. This means that they could use up their costs for making unique software solutions for customers, be it business or individual based.
The software applications would have all the features that the research and development department would provide to the designers and this is the concept that the company would bring about. The business of services is also a standing out business for the company because it may provide services such as creating a network for a customer or any other technology based service. Read about network level strategy
Since the awareness of using technology has increased for all kinds of businesses, the customers would look for consulting companies that could assist them in planning their infrastructure and this is what RIM has also considered as a business. The consulting services has become a major source of revenue for the company and has also allowed the company to raise its competition as it continues to use the basis of its research as the strength and the quality embedded in its products and services.
References
Mazutis, D. (2008). Research in Motion: Managing Explosive Growth. Richard Ivey School of Business. The University of Western Ontario, London.
[1] Mazutis, D. (2008). Research in Motion: Managing Explosive Growth. Richard Ivey School of Business. The University of Western Ontario, London.