Name: Stephen deRusett

Occupation: Sales

Twitter Account: @StephenBB81

Tell us a bit about yourself!

I’m 31 years old and married with two kids aged three and two. I attended Lakehead University for Software & Electrical Engineering, and wrestling (a sport I’m still involved in today as much as possible). I’m a first generation Canadian, both my parents are British born, though they met here.

I like trying new beers, wines and ciders. Whenever the opportunity arises, if I find a meal at a restaurant I enjoy, I go home and try to recreate it and add my own touches. My wife says I like shiny things and blinking lights which I guess draws me to my BlackBerry!

Why are you a #TeamBlackBerry fan?

I’m a #TeamBlackBerry fan because of the community. When I was first given a BlackBerry in 2008 (a BlackBerry Curve 8330), I didn’t want it. I went to the Internet to find all that was wrong with it so I would tell my employer to take it back. The community and the device proved to be amazing and helpful. I ended up purchasing my first personal BlackBerry Tour on July 9th 2009.

What’s your favorite BlackBerry app?

I really don’t have a “favorite app” – I’m not an app junky. I like BlackBerry Travel, BBM and Twitter. But, if I was to be asked about my favourite BlackBerry 10 features, I would say the universal message box, now dubbed the “BlackBerry Hub” on BlackBerry 10 and autotext/word substitution.

How do you use your BlackBerry smartphone and BlackBerry PlayBook tablet for work?

I work out of my car traveling around Ontario. Every day I log what I am doing in memo pad and then email it off to my assistant to be entered into our call reporting software. Autotext is also a life saver. I often email one of three large paragraphs out of a feature list. Using the autotext feature, I can generate a few hundred words in seconds. I also often use my BlackBerry PlayBook tablet to bridge to my BlackBerry 9900. I use “open on PlayBook” to view new flyers that I am sent to critique, instead of waiting until I can boot up one of my laptops

What picture is your current BlackBerry wallpaper, and why?

My BlackBerry 9900 wallpaper is this fan created BlackBerry wallpaper I just love it, I like the dark theme (mind you I don’t spend much time ever seeing the wallpaper!).

My BlackBerry Z10 wallpaper is the first picture I took with my Z10 on Jan 30th – I just thought it looked cool!

What’s your favorite BlackBerry smartphone model, and why?

This is HARD to say, but I think the BlackBerry Bold 9790 is my favorite all time model. I have to give honorable mention to the BlackBerry 8330, that device was a beast and just kept going and going and was comfortable to type on.

If a friend were in the market for a new smartphone and/or tablet, what would you say to convince them to join the BlackBerry family?

I always show BlackBerry Messenger and the universal message box. I talk about autotext and with BlackBerry 7 and earlier devices BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) is a BIG conversation point, especially as Canadians we tend to leave our own country to travel and compression is a big dollar saver. The beauty of BlackBerry is you aren’t forced into one form factor, people can choose the BlackBerry Pearl, the BlackBerry Bold, the BlackBerry Torch or the BlackBerry Z10. You have a full range because one phone isn’t right for everyone – heck I carry 2 or 3 phones at any given time!

What are the “Top 5” things you keep in your briefcase or backpack at all times?

• MyChargePeak6000 – Battery pack with enough juice to charge all my phones/tablets when away from a power outlet
• GridIT – a grid board I use to hold 4-6 various cables, a mouse, business cards, etc
• Laptop – either my Lenovo T520 or X220 (sometimes both)
• BlackBerry PlayBook – Before I got the BlackBerry Z10 my PlayBook lived in my pocket, now it lives in my laptop bag
• Product information folder- I always have product information with me – vacation or working- you never know when an opportunity will present itself!

What are some of your favorite blogs and websites that you visit often?

I visit N4BB, Seeking Alpha, LinkedIn, LibriVox and Huffington Post. I also visit the various Inside BlackBerry blogs (Inside BlackBerry for Business, Inside BlackBerry Developers and Inside BlackBerry Help) and spend a lot of time on Twitter!

Any interesting facts people would be surprised to know about you?

I’m a foodie who loves trying new things, YET I also LOVE McDonalds. Those two things don’t usually go together, but I could eat McDonalds every day – and, for a month in University I DID!

Also, I’m a sales guy who doesn’t like golf. If I can find a way to NOT go golfing I will. The only golf course I’ve played a full round on has been Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina.

Thanks for joining us Stephen!

The growth of workplace mobility has increased the demand for business applications and thus the opportunity for enterprise developers. With the BlackBerry 10 platform, we are committed to supporting the development of enterprise-grade mobile apps, as well as the BlackBerry developer community behind them.

Today, we’re pleased to announce the first BlackBerry & SAP Mobile Apps Challenge to provide innovators like you with an opportunity to reach millions of business users. By participating, you will gain access to BlackBerry and SAP virtual boot camps and expert coaching. In addition, finalists will gain valuable marketing opportunities, public exposure and could win up to $10,000 in prizes.

This initiative represents a longstanding partnership between BlackBerry and SAP and our mutual commitment to mobile innovation in the enterprise. Here’s some more information on how you can participate:

If you have an application or an idea that you would like to submit, you can enter the BlackBerry & SAP Mobile Apps Challenge today! Stay tuned to the Inside BlackBerry for Business Blog for updates and announcements – we look forward to your submissions.

What SAP applications does your organization use for business? Share with us in the comments below.

BlackBerry solutions are designed for businesses of all sizes to connect employees to the information that they need. With BlackBerry smartphones, you can take your office with you to stay connected wherever you are. In addition to email and voice, you can maintain access to your files, your colleagues, corporate data behind your firewall, cloud accounts, and more. In addition, communication platforms like BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) and add-ons like BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing make it easy for you to collaborate on the go.

We want to know: how do you use your BlackBerry smartphone for business? Take the poll below, and tell us more by posting in the comments below!

In a bold move (if I do say so myself), we’ve renamed the company to reflect our brand. Research In Motion (RIM) is now officially named BlackBerry. Seconds ago on stage at the BlackBerry 10 global launch event, Thorsten Heins made the announcement to press and advocates from around the world.

“We are now BlackBerry. One brand. One promise. One focus. Around the world, we are known as BlackBerry, so this will come as no surprise to those of you joining us from Paris, London, Johannesburg, Delhi, Jakarta and Dubai. Our customers are BlackBerry owners, we work for BlackBerry, and our partners and investors are supporting BlackBerry.”

To explain this move further, I sat down with Frank Boulben, CMO, earlier this week in New York City. Check out the interview below.

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

As we wrote last week, RIM was founded in 1984 – that’s almost 30 years of heritage built into the BlackBerry brand. Reflecting on this change, I believe Thorsten put it best when he said:

“We are now, more than ever, a company united in our vision for mobile computing and it all starts today with our renaming and with the global launch of BlackBerry 10.”

It’s a new day, a new name and new products. We are BlackBerry – please share your thoughts on the change with us in the comments.

The capability for custom applications is an important element of the BlackBerry Solution. Business applications such as the one developed by DIRECTV in Argentina can improve customer experience and generate further sales opportunities.

DIRECTV needed an innovative solution that allowed customers to access TV programming, request new products and manage their account remotely. The objective of the solution was to deliver quality service through easy, direct customer communication.

To do so, DIRECTV created a custom application called DIRECTV™ Móvil, which offered subscribers in Argentina access to DIRECTV services from their smartphones and tablets, including BlackBerry smartphones – with operating system 5.0 and above – and BlackBerry PlayBook tablets.

The app is designed to let subscribers view a program guide, search for movies, order premium programming packages, rent movies or Pay-per-view programs and check their account status. When customers order a Pay-per-view program or subscribe to a premium channel with their BlackBerry smartphone, they get immediate access to their programming and receive a confirmation of their purchase.

“Our customers don’t need to be sitting in front of a TV or computer to consult the program guide or record a program. If they are out of their home and forgot to record their favorite sports match, or the series program or movie of their choice, they can record directly from their smartphone or tablet,” said Florencia Franchini, Manager of Customer Engagement and New Media, DIRECTV. “DIRECTV Móvil app is as easy to use as the TV remote control. We’re constantly working on developing innovations that make our customers’ lives easier while giving us a competitive edge.”

The company plans to expand the functionalities of the mobile application to include competitions for customers, benefit programs and games, among other ideas.

How does your business use custom applications to connect with customers? Share in the comments below.

When I’ve got questions, challenges, or thoughts about security, I’m lucky to be just a phone call away from Michael K. Brown, the VP of Security Product Management & Research at Research In Motion (RIM). Earlier this month, as we hopped around the globe hosting the BlackBerry® 10 Jam World Tour – Enterprise Edition events, a few questions came up about mobile applications for enterprise and concerns around security – so sure enough, I gave Mike a ring. Check out our chat below:

Hi Michael, thanks for joining me today! In your opinion, to what degree should security be a concern when developers work on creating business apps?

Security is key because it actually enables you to be confident in working with corporate data. When you know that you can rely upon the way data is sent to and from the mobile device and how the data is stored on it, you can let the application access more, process more, and be more powerful in its benefits for a business. So if you choose a platform that is taking care of many of the base security threats, then you’re free to build an even more powerful application.

Will BlackBerry® continue to lead in the area of mobile data security with the upcoming BlackBerry® 10 platform?

From the very beginning, security has been a pillar of how we design and build our enterprise solution, from the handhelds, to the operating system, to the applications. Over the past decade, this has evolved – from our first Mobile Device Management (MDM) controls to let administrators manage the new thing called “mobile”, to more advanced technologies like process separation, stack cookies, and ASLR. We’re very excited to keep pushing the envelope with BlackBerry 10 and do even more! BlackBerry® Balance™ technology is a great example of that continued emphasis on security, and creating a great user experience along with it.

How is the BlackBerry platform unique in helping enterprise developers create secure business applications?

We approach security as key aspect of the entire platform. This end-to-end view makes creating secure business applications that much easier. With BlackBerry transport encryption and MDS-CS, we give the developer an efficient, always-on, encrypted connection to the application back end in the enterprise. With data at rest encryption and strong cryptographic APIs, we give the developer native methods to protect data stored locally on the device. With the upcoming BlackBerry® Enterprise Service 10 and BlackBerry App World™ for Work, developers know that the administrator can easily push an application to all appropriate users. In our developer documentation, we give developers tips on how to write secure code within the Native SDK. And with our emphasis on Security Certifications, the developer knows that they can focus on selling the virtues of their app to the customer, and not have to worry about convincing the customer on the security of the platform.

Do you see BYOD as a threat to the security of enterprise data? How can this be handled?

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) provides a great opportunity for an enterprise in that it helps push the benefits of mobility to its user base. The challenge is in enabling employee choice without compromising the security of corporate data and driving up support costs through complexity of administration. Through BlackBerry® Mobile Fusion and the upcoming BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, administrators can manage the complexity of the entire mobile deployment – BlackBerry smartphones, BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablets, iOS®, and Android™ – through a single console. And with BlackBerry Balance technology, they can provide BlackBerry device users with a best of both worlds in a BYOD solution – strong separation of personal and corporate data but a unified experience for the employee on a single device.

In your involvement with security research, can you highlight any interesting and relevant trends that you’re seeing in terms of security and enterprise apps?

The joy of focusing on the field of security is that it is constantly changing and evolving. We have the merging of traditional desktop computer threats along with the new threats from the more uniquely mobile arena, such as location-based services and cellular radios. An interesting trend right now is around NFC usage. Most often NFC is considered as a credit or debit card replacement, but where it is also coming up is in Physical Access Control – for example, the work we have been doing with HID. Using my BlackBerry smartphone to open a door is hugely powerful, especially since that means you can remotely manage my access card!

Thanks again for the insights, Mike!

Do you have questions about security and business apps? Share in the comments below.

The guide posted below will help developers understand SAP middleware solutions, which can help remove one of the complexities of SAP in the mobile space. Key topics covered are:

• SAP Mobile Continuum
• SAP Middleware
• Deploying and Managing Client Applications
• Securing Enterprise Content

Check out the development guide below and share your thoughts and feedback in the comments.

Latin America is the intended audience for our Twitter Chat on Security, and we are expecting participants from all the Spanish speaking countries in the region, including Central America and the Caribbean.

We’re welcoming questions for Pablo from all of our communities – what would you like to ask him? Simply submit your questions via Twitter during the chat using the hashtag #BlackBerrySeguridad and Pablo will answer as many as he can next Wednesday.

Be sure to join us for a really exciting discussion – we’re looking forward to it! If you’ve never participated in a Twitter chat before or you need a refresher, here are some useful hints and tips to get you started:

What is a Twitter chat?

A Twitter chat is an online conversation that takes place among a group of people on Twitter about a specific topic of interest. A hashtag, created by adding the # symbol to the beginning of any word, is used to keep track of the conversation. In this case, we’ll be using this hashtag to track the discussion: #BlackBerrySeguridad. You’ll need a Twitter account to participate. If you don’t have one, you can sign up at Twitter.com.

How do I participate?

We’ll be asking a list of questions from our @BlackBerryNgcio Twitter handle. Pablo will be answering questions from you! If you have a question for Pablo, an opinion, a story, or advice during the Chat, we want to hear from you! Twitter chats can become a great source of knowledge when people like you share their experiences.

Choosing the Right Tool to Track the Chat

To help you follow the conversation, we recommend using TweetChat, and we will be setting up a page to track the Chat. From this site, you will see the real time conversation of all tweets with #BlackBerrySeguridad. If you are logged in with your personal Twitter account, you will also be able to post all of your tweets directly from the site. Another way to track the chat is by searching #BlackBerrySeguridad in the search bar at the top of the Twitter homepage.

Best Practices

• Remember that tweets are only 140 characters. If it seems a little difficult at first, don’t worry – all participants are condensing their thoughts too.
• Differing opinions are always okay, but express your feelings in a courteous manner, please.
• Retweet great comments and engage with other participants.
• If you still have more information to share or questions to ask, you can always carry on the discussion on our BlackBerry for Business LinkedIn® group.

Please stay in touch! We’re always here to help, so feel free to ask us questions or share resources leading up to this exciting event.

Check out the video below to get a quick overview of the Gala:

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

To learn more about Research In Motion’s commitment to the small business community, check out our Q&A with Bryan Lee at the event. We’re very excited to continue working with all of the incredible small and medium businesses in the community, and are looking forward to sharing how the upcoming BlackBerry 10 platform will impact the way that all of us work. Sign up to receive updates about BlackBerry 10 to stay tuned on all of the latest info.

Did you attend the 2012 SMB Influencer Awards Gala? What was your favorite part of the event? Share in the comments below.

Because government agencies deal with some of the most confidential information in the world, IT leaders in the government sector face unique challenges with data protection, device management and security accreditations. Mobile solutions for government must improve productivity without compromising security requirements.

To find out more about how government agencies are using BlackBerry solutions, we spoke with several government IT leaders. Here’s what they had to say about their experiences with BlackBerry services and products like the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet:

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

Visit www.upgrademyagency.com to learn more about how BlackBerry can provide your government agency with a complete solution for mobile security, manageability, productivity and collaboration. And stay tuned for an upcoming blog post on BlackBerry solutions in public safety and law enforcement.

Do you work for a government agency that uses BlackBerry solutions? Tell us about a mobility challenge that BlackBerry has helped you resolve.