BlackBerry's press release introduces us to its new executive

WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 17, 2014) - BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ:BBRY)(TSX:BB), a global leader in mobile communications, today announced that it has named Howard Stevens as Senior Vice President of Global Carrier Sales. A proven leader with 20 years of telecommunications sales experience, Mr. Stevens will be responsible for developing and implementing go-to-market strategies supporting BlackBerry's expanding product portfolio, including devices, enterprise software and value-added services offerings.

"BlackBerry is in the midst of executing on a strong product roadmap with well-received offerings - from BES12 and BBM Protected to BlackBerry Passport and, very soon, BlackBerry Classic," said BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO John Chen. "Under Howard Stevens' leadership, we will work more closely with our carrier partners to put these innovative products into the hands of more customers and position BlackBerry for faster growth."

Based in BlackBerry's Slough, UK office, Mr. Stevens will report directly to Mr. Chen and starts work immediately. Mr. Stevens most recently served as general manager of the Global Telecom business unit at SAP. He also held sales leadership roles at Amdocs, a global leader in customer care and billing software for the communications industry, Vallent, a provider of performance management tools for wireless service providers, and Chernikeeff Networks, the first Cisco Systems reseller in the U.K. He also has a strong track record for revenue and margin growth, leading large organizations as well as building sales teams and processes in entrepreneurial start-up environments.