BlackBerry names tech industry veteran John Chen as interim leader

BlackBerry’s new executive chairman and interim CEO is politically well-connected with a track record on turnarounds.

John Chen will replace BlackBerry chief executive Thorsten Heins on an interim basis.

By: Dana Flavelle 

Economy

A well-connected U.S. tech industry veteran with a track record on turnarounds, John Chen has been named to lead troubled Canadian mobile telecommunications giant BlackBerry Ltd., the company announced Monday.

As executive chairman, Chen will be responsible for its strategic direction, strategic relationships and organizational goals, the Waterloo-based company said.

The move came as BlackBerry failed to attract a buyer for the company by Monday’s deadline, throwing its future into doubt.ony Clement says government hoping for BlackBerry turnaround

Its largest shareholder, Fairfax Financial Holdings, along with other investors, has thrown it a $1-billion (U.S.) lifeline through the purchase of convertible debentures.

But more change is coming.

Chen will also become interim chief executive officer when the debenture deal closes, likely in two weeks, while the company searches for a successor to departing CEO Thorsten Heins, the company said.

A Hong Kong native who trained as an electrical engineer in the U.S., Chen has worked at a number of large tech industry firms, including Siemens AG.

He’s credited with leading a major turnaround at Sybase Inc., starting in 1998, that led to its purchase by SAP AG.

Politically well connected, Chen was named by Forbes magazine as one of the Top 25 Notable Chinese-Americans in Business. He served on an advisory board to President George W. Bush on China-Asia relations.

Chen is also an adviser to U.S. private equity firm Silver Lake, a technology investment specialist which had been seen as a potential buyer of BlackBerry.

Silver Lake has been involved in some major tech industry deals, including helping buy Dell with company founder Michael Dell for $25 billion (U.S.). The firm also sold Skype to Microsoft in 2011.

As recently as Sept. 27, Silver Lake said it was not interested in BlackBerry.