Let’s hope BlackBerry CEO John Chen hasn’t already blown through the massive $85.8 million compensation package he received in fiscal 2014. As The Wall Street Journal reports, Chen’s compensation for fiscal 2015 has fallen to “only” $3.4 million, although the Journal notes that all but $1 million of last year’s compensation “was from restricted shares that vest over five years starting from Mr. Chen’s hiring in November 2013.”
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Chen has done a very good job of stabilizing BlackBerry’s finances, which were in free fall when he took over as CEO after the massive writedowns the company had to take from unsold BlackBerry 10 smartphones. Under his leadership, BlackBerry has placed more emphasis on shifting to enterprise mobile security software on less emphasis on hardware sales, which have continued to flounder.
Chen’s next big challenge is to show that his plan will make BlackBerry not just consistently profitable but also a company with growing revenues. Even as BlackBerry’s bottom line has improved under his watch, its overall revenues have continued to slide, which has naturally raised questions about its long-term future.
