Every time Research In Motion has been in the news lately, that news is never of the positive sort. This time around things might be looking up for the Canadian company. RIM has a new CEO, Thorsten Heins, though Heins is no stranger to RIM. First, Heins was senior vice president and then he was COO of RIM. Now, Heins has taken the reigns as CEO, and he’s told press that his outlook for RIM is a positive one.

In fact, Heins views all of RIM’s products in a positive light, and he has told press that the actual devices RIM puts out aren’t the problem at all. Instead, Heins believes that it’s the process behind RIM’s devices that put the company in jeopardy time and again. This is a process that he intends to change during his time as CEO of the company. While Heins’ has an optimistic outlook, one has to wonder if his efforts are focused in the right direction.

More Marketing, More Process

You might have noticed lately that RIM has been advertising a lot. In fact, RIM’s device commercials seem to be popping up everywhere these days. If you haven’t noticed a slew of new RIM commercials, hold tight: Heins promises to vamp up RIM’s marketing strategy. Is this a good way of looking at things? Heins believes that a lack of marketing is behind RIM’s product failures. Even though people who work in the business world (mostly) know about RIM, prior to the last month of so, RIM commercials didn’t really exist.

Sure, it will help to get the word out about the products that RIM offers, but is this enough to turn the company around?

Seemingly, the main problem with RIM devices is the actual devices (not the marketing). On this note, Heins has pledged to take more time to go over RIM’s processes and development. By implementing stringent processes, Heins hopes to see RIM flourish. Marketing and process management are two very interesting strategies, but it doesn’t change the fact that RIM just isn’t innovating as quickly as its competitors.

A Lack of Innovation

While companies like Apple constantly move forward, this doesn’t seem to be the case with RIM. The Canadian-based company seems to put out devices that closely resemble the last devices the company created. In short, consumers are tired of seeing new BlackBerry phones that look just like the last set. Will marketing and process changes make a different when it comes to innovation? Some are skeptical, though others believe that Heins has hit the nail on the head.

Then again, RIM just unveiled the new PlayBook OS 2.0 at the CES conference in Las Vegas, and that OS got plenty of positive feedback (this time around, RIM didn’t forget about email or calendar functions). Could RIM finally be moving forward? A change in the ranks and a few changed operating systems might be the magic formula. At the very least, it will be interesting to see where RIM’s new CEO takes the company in the future.