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Three Words That Describe BlackBerry in 2023

Few people in the world have experienced the BlackBerry evolution — from smartphones to cybersecurity and embedded software — the way Neelam Sandhu has. As Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Elite Customer Success Officer, she knows why government agencies, their military forces, and some of the world’s largest banks remain long-time, loyal customers.

Trust. Privacy. Reliability.” Those are the three words Sandhu uses to describe the kind of rare relationships the company has cultivated with its biggest customers over the years.

“Our trusted relationships, built on security, go back many, many years. Those customers evolved with us to now use our software, whether it's our IoT software or our cybersecurity software, or both,” says Sandhu. “And I believe the second tenet after trust is privacy. We have never monetized user data. We believe each customer owns their own data and it should remain that way.”

And then there is the reliability element. “Our solutions are always on,” she says. “Whether a device is online or offline, whether it's an individual sitting in an office and accessing files on the network, or whether it's a soldier in a mission-critical situation in a remote location, the solutions work.”

This is a small part of my conversation with Sandhu during the 2023 RSA Conference in San Francisco, where she recounted some of the highlights and insights gleaned during her 14 years with the company.

Watch our BlackBerry LIVE Conversation, below:


Among her many roles as part of BlackBerry’s “C Suite,” there is one that gives her a particular sense of pride: that of Senior Vice President of Sustainability. 

“We are a carbon-neutral company,” she says. However, in her view, sustainability goes beyond climate. “Another important factor is that we are enabling people around the world to be connected, and is that connectivity secure? If it's not secure, as we're building smart cities and autonomous vehicles — those societies aren't going to be resilient. We are a company that is solving problems and innovating through technology.”

This high level of innovation and integrity, along with steadfast commitment to earning and maintaining the trust of its customers — these are what continue to propel the company forward, decades after it was founded. For a technology company to achieve this kind of longevity, in reputation and operations, is rare, and bodes well for BlackBerry’s enduring and expanding prospects in the years ahead.

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Steve Kovsky

About Steve Kovsky

Steve Kovsky is former Editorial Director at BlackBerry.