TORONTO (Reuters) – The head of global sales at Research In Motion Ltd (RIM.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) has resigned to take on a leadership role in another industry, the BlackBerry maker said on Wednesday.

Patrick Spence was a 14-year RIM veteran widely considered a rising star. A spokeswoman for RIM said Spence’s last day with the company will be June 15.

Spence was promoted to the global sales role in July last year after serving as managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

RIM has seen a steady stream of departures in the past year as its once-dominant market share has slipped amid fierce competition from Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and phones running on Google Inc’s (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Android.

London-based Spence helped launch a range of BlackBerry 7 devices last year and had also worked to decentralize RIM’s sales planning so it fit better with regional sensibilities.

RIM spokeswoman Tenille Kennedy said the sales function will report directly to Chief Executive Officer Thorsten Heins on an interim basis before coming under the purview of Kristian Tear, RIM’s new chief operating officer, when he starts work this summer. RIM did not name a replacement for Spence or say where he was going.

Heins replaced longtime co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, who stepped down in January. Other key executives have also exited the company in the past year.

TORONTO (Reuters) – Along with firearms, radio and other standard-issue gear, Constable Ken Koke’s police cruiser comes equipped with portable technology made by Research In Motion Ltd (RIM.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) that he says has become an important tool in policing rural Canada.

Koke, with the Chatham-Kent police force in southwestern Ontario, uses RIM’s PlayBook to run checks on vehicles and suspects. Unlike his old laptop, the tablet is portable enough to take out of the car to record evidence at crime scenes.

But for law enforcement officers like Koke, the big draw is RIM’s acclaimed network security, a feature that Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and RIM’s other competitors can barely match, and cannot beat – at least not yet.

Police, along with insurers, the military and thousands of government agencies, remain important customers for the struggling BlackBerry maker as a data breach could invite litigation, compromise reputations or even endanger national security.

“Despite the adversity and displacement RIM is experiencing across its enterprise customers, it’s obvious that a hardcore contingent still see no solution better than BlackBerry,” said John Jackson at CCS Insight, which advises wireless companies.

The loyalty of that core customer base is a rare bright spot for RIM as it fights a tide of defections to flashier devices.

Its still-unrivaled leadership in secure communications could also pique the interest of a potential buyer for the Canadian company, whose shares have sunk 80 percent since February 2011.

TORONTO, May 22 (Reuters) – Along with firearms, radio and other standard-issue gear, Constable Ken Koke’s police cruiser comes equipped with portable technology made by Research In Motion Ltd (RIM.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) that he says has become an important tool in policing rural Canada.

Koke, with the Chatham-Kent police force in southwestern Ontario, uses RIM’s PlayBook to run checks on vehicles and suspects. Unlike his old laptop, the tablet is portable enough to take out of the car to record evidence at crime scenes.

But for law enforcement officers like Koke, the big draw is RIM’s acclaimed network security, a feature that Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and RIM’s other competitors can barely match, and cannot beat – at least not yet.

Police, along with insurers, the military and thousands of government agencies, remain important customers for the struggling BlackBerry maker as a data breach could invite litigation, compromise reputations or even endanger national security.

“Despite the adversity and displacement RIM is experiencing across its enterprise customers, it’s obvious that a hardcore contingent still see no solution better than BlackBerry,” said John Jackson at CCS Insight, which advises wireless companies.

The loyalty of that core customer base is a rare bright spot for RIM as it fights a tide of defections to flashier devices.

Its still-unrivaled leadership in secure communications could also pique the interest of a potential buyer for the Canadian company, whose shares have sunk 80 percent since February 2011.