BlackBerry Executive Eric Johnson Leaves Company

Eric Johnson, the executive in charge of BlackBerry Ltd.'s enterprise software and services sales to government and business customers, has left the smartphone maker, as it struggles to reignite revenue growth by targeting its traditional customer base.

Mr. Johnson recently left BlackBerry, a spokeswoman for the Waterloo, Ontario-based company confirmed in an email. She declined to specify the date of his departure or provide a reason.

Mr. Johnson couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

His departure comes after BlackBerry named Cisco Systems Inc. sales veteran Carl Wiese as head of global sales in July. BlackBerry has faced continued challenges after a failed attempt to compete against Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. in the consumer smartphone market.

Relying on cost-cutting and other moves, BlackBerry Chief Executive John Chen has stemmed losses since joining the company in November 2013. Now he is betting on new mobile device-management software, new smartphones—including BlackBerry's first ever Android-powered device—and acquisitions to bolster revenue.

Still, revenue remains under pressure, falling 47% in the fiscal second quarter ended Aug. 29. BlackBerry reports its third-quarter results on Dec. 18.

Mr. Johnson, a former executive at business-software giant SAP SE, was part of the original executive team assembled by Mr. Chen to help spearhead the company's turnaround effort. That group also included John Sims, another former SAP executive. He was head of global sales, but left when Mr. Wiese took over that role.

Write to Ben Dummett at [e-mail]

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November 24, 2015 14:15 ET (19:15 GMT)

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