A note from Sergio Buniac:

It´s an exciting time at Motorola, a Lenovo Company. With successful product launches, 5G milestones, and strong financial performance, the last fiscal year demonstrates an important turning point for the brand and how we´ve stabilized the business. 

On May 23, we reported that Motorola achieved profitability for the year with three consecutive quarters of operational profitability. The past quarter saw strong performance across the globe, with shipment growth up 41 percent year-to-year in Europe, and Latin America seeing record shipments and 19 percent market share. In North America, year-over-year, Motorola was the fastest growing Android OEM by pure volume for 2018. We also saw this impressive growth globally, with Motorola ranking as the third fastest growing OEM for the quarter. We´re carrying this momentum into this year, with big announcements planned for the coming months. 

Before we look ahead to the future, I want to take a moment to highlight a few of Motorola´s most exciting moments over the last year. 

first to 5G
As the world moves to the fifth generation of mobile connectivity, I am very proud of the role Motorola is playing in bringing this new technology into the hands of consumers. Thanks to key partnerships with Verizon and Qualcomm, we were able to announce the moto z3 and 5G moto mod^TM in August 2018, as the world´s first 5G-upgradable smartphone. This past April brought another 5G milestone, as the moto z3 with 5G moto mod^TM became the world´s first smartphone to connect to the unprecedented speed of Verizon´s Ultra Wideband 5G network. By leveraging our moto mod platform, the 5G moto mod^TM connects consumers to Verizon´s 5G network without having to buy a new smartphone, making 5G connectivity more affordable and accessible. 

the new motorola one family 
This past year also saw the introduction of a new Motorola smartphone family: motorola one. Launched in September 2018, the motorola one family offers consumers a different choice from our other smartphone lines. With stylish design and innovation, the motorola one and motorola one power have proved popular with consumers across the globe. So popular, we have already added a new smartphone to the motorola one family. In May, we kicked off the new fiscal year with the launch of motorola one vision, which features a stunning CinemaVision display and incredible 48MP sensor camera system. The newest member of the motorola one family is off to a great start, and we are excited to watch the device roll out across the world in the coming months.

seven generations of success with moto g
In 2013, Motorola made history with the launch of moto g as the first mid-range smartphone, offering premium features at an amazing price point. Today, the moto g is our most successful smartphone line with 26 devices sold per minute, since its launch six years ago. And, in the beginning of 2019, we continued the successful legacy of moto g with the launch of four new smartphones. Now, in the seventh generation, moto g remains the go-to smartphone for consumers looking for premium features, quality construction, and dependable performance, all at a great value.

We accomplished a lot last year thanks in no small part to our trusted carrier and supplier partners and all of our customers. Motorola is carrying this momentum into the current year, and we´re already on track to surpass the growth we saw this year. I can´t wait for you to see everything Motorola has in the works. The future looks bright. 

Sergio Buniac
President, Motorola SVP, Lenovo MBG ROW

From our products to our employees, our goal is to always make people feel empowered, supported and included. And this Pride Month is no different, as we celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and amplify their voices. 

To learn more about what this month means to them, how being proud has impacted their career and what they’re most looking forward to post-pandemic, we sat down with a few of our very own PRIDE members and allies: 

Q1: What does Pride Month mean to you? 

Johnny Cheganças, Global Brand Marketing Analyst: Pride Month to me means a celebration of diversity, equity, and inclusion. It is a special occasion to honor those who paved the way for us to earn the rights to be free being who we are. 

Nataly Gonzales Molano, Sales Operations Specialist: For me, Pride Month means celebrating diversity and working together to ensure that our society and laws respect and treat everyone the same. Today, there are still people who suffer from discrimination due to their sexual orientation and gender identity and as allies, we can contribute by creating an environment where everyone feels included and can be themselves.

Eduardo Lagreca, Director of Sales Operations: Pride Month, for me, is an opportunity to honor those who came before us and fought for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, to reflect on what has been accomplished, to make plans for what still needs to be done and to celebrate love with friends!

Q2: How do you feel being proud in the workplace has benefitted your career? 

Johnny: It would be overwhelming and exhaustive if I couldn’t be myself in my workplace. It was such a battle for me before I could understand who I am and feel comfortable with myself, that I’d never put myself at a place where I am not allowed to be me. Having a place that is welcoming of me is already a victory. 

Nataly: I believe that when you are proud in the workplace you can be authentic and you are motivated to bring the best of you. In my case, I am passionate about learning, developing new ideas, and participating in different projects. I feel that in this company we have the autonomy to thrive professionally, whilst also having people that guide, support, and encourage us.

Eduardo: I think it must be very hard to go into work every day having to pretend you are someone you are not. Being out and proud has made me a happier, wholesome person and has benefited my life in general, including my career.

Q3: How do you find strength in your community? 

Johnny: Sadly, we have a lack of opportunities in the LGBTQIA+ community and when the opportunities do exist, sometimes we still need to prove that we are just as good as straight people. I have seen this happen with my close friends. But personally, I am lucky to have never experienced this in my workplace or during school and this made me grow up with confidence and strength regardless of my sexual orientation. I think that strength comes from having parents, family and friends that accept/respect who I am and that gave me a “rock” or solid base.

Nataly: Being part of PRIDE LATAM as an ally has been an amazing experience. Here, you can be sure that your peers listen to your ideas and encourage you to be authentic. It is also incredible to contribute to raising awareness on the important issues that affect the LGBTQ+ community and teach others that even if you do not belong to the community you can make a difference and celebrate diversity.

Eduardo: Participating in PRIDE gave me the opportunity to meet and get to know such wonderful people! LGBTQ+ and allies working together, sharing a passion for diversity and inclusion and connecting at a very human level. I’m very grateful to be part of this team!

Q4: What’s something you look forward to doing with the LGBTQ+ community once things start to open back up again?

Johnny: I absolutely would love to travel to visit my friends who live in different countries. We have been apart for so long that I want to be surrounded with all of my friends as much as I can!

Nataly: I would like to continue to actively support the community after Pride Month is over. Since my teenage years, I have dedicated my spare time to several volunteer programs related to inclusion and I learned that if we want to be agents of change and help others, the most important thing is to be an ally in not just some but every situation. 

I am looking forward to continuing to learn and get involved in the initiatives of PRIDE LATAM and building a better workplace for all. I think that empathy, and willingness to learn will help me to be a much better ally.

Eduardo: Face-to-face happy hours! We’ve been working remotely for a long time now… once we get back together the first thing on the list should be to celebrate!

Wishing a Happy Pride Month to everyone celebrating! #hellopride 

MOTOROLA, Stylized M Logo, MOTO and the MOTO family of marks are trademarks of Motorola Trademark Holdings, LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. © 2021 Motorola Mobility LLC. All rights reserved.

Yesterday, Lenovo announced its Q4 and full-year earnings, and our mobile business unit contributed to the company’s impressive results with a record-breaking performance in the fourth quarter. This performance demonstrates the success of our transformation journey since 2018 and positions us for continued momentum as we leverage go-to-market synergies as “One Lenovo.

As we close out the fiscal year, Sergio Buniac, Motorola’s President, reflects on the key highlights of our performance, lessons learned and what’s to come in the year ahead.

#1: What are the highlights from Motorola’s business performance in the past fiscal year?

This past year has been a rollercoaster year with the uncertainty brought on by the global pandemic. However, it brought out the best in our organization by forcing us to focus on our strengths and recover from a tough situation. As a result of our resilience, we succeeded in four key areas:

Accelerating our trajectory: We recovered from initial market slowdowns to achieve Q/Q revenue growth in each quarter while also improving our profitability. We ended with a record FQ4, achieving our highest quarterly profit since the Lenovo acquisition and our highest Y/Y revenue growth in the past 8 quarters. As a result of our strong performance throughout the year, we grew +9% YTY and outgrew the market by +5 pts premium-to-market Y/Y unit growth.

Driving growth in our geos: We also drove broad-based growth with premium-to-market volume and revenue growth across all our markets. In our stronghold markets, we achieved our best market position with a record 20.9% share in LA, and 4 consecutive quarters of PTM growth in NA. In other markets, we continued our hypergrowth trajectory with double-digit premium-to-market volume and revenue growth in Europe, APMEA and India.

Growing profitability: We managed to drive growth across our geos while achieving record profitability for 2 quarters in a row. On top of that, all of our geos were operationally profitable 4 quarters in a row – the first time this has ever happened since Motorola’s acquisition by Lenovo!

Expanding our strategic initiatives: Finally, we continued to drive strategic initiatives. We continued making 5G more accessible than ever with the launch of moto g 5G plus (1st to 5G in mid-tier) and moto g (bringing 5G to $250 price tier), we focused on innovation that matters and introduced new experiences like “ready for” to amplify our smartphone’s capability beyond the small screen, and we launched ThinkShield for mobile to satisfy the needs of our B2B customers and to drive synergies with the broader Lenovo go-to-market.

#2: What are some of the most unexpected lessons you’ve learned over the past year?

This past fiscal year has tested our resilience, patience and adaptability. And I could not be more proud of how our team has handled this uncharted territory together. We worked in entirely new ways to address the novel challenges of the past year while protecting our employees.

One of the key aspects that we had to adapt to is the fact that the strong industry recovery created industry-wide shortages. As a result, we have had to get creative to gain access to critical components and drive innovation.

We accomplished that by leveraging the broader Lenovo strength to negotiate strategically with our suppliers and to be nimble and innovative in the way we bring our products to market.

This agility also involved taking a unique approach with our product development and roadmap, but it is a testament to our ability to innovate.

#3: What are the key opportunities you see in the year ahead and how will your business group leverage Lenovo’s new service-led strategy to drive success?

Going into FY21, we have tremendous momentum in our business with the highest demand for our products and continued improvement in our NPS scores. In addition, we have a wide customer footprint with our 5G products being sold in 80+ partners across 35+ countries. All of these factors have strengthened our reputation as a trusted global brand.

Given our strong performance, and our momentum, we expect to continue our strategy of profitable growth in FY21. On top of these opportunities, we are also excited about the strategy of broader “One Lenovo” and believe we are well positioned to capitalize on leveraging the synergies across the business groups.

To hear from leaders of all Lenovo’s business units please visit the Lenovo Story Hub.

Each year, April 22 marks a world-wide commemoration that has become increasingly important to global citizens: Earth Day. At this time last year, we were all working remotely and canceling international travel amidst lockdowns. While 2020 was difficult, the halt in human activity also caused greenhouse gas emissions to plummet by 7% – the largest drop ever recorded. This glimpse of a greener planet showed us how impactful and interconnected our actions are. One year later, we must double down on our efforts to ensure a lasting, positive impact for future generations as we look to the future.

As a Lenovo company, we are always looking for opportunities to use smarter technology to drive meaningful environmental improvements, inside and outside of our business. To read more, view the full article on Lenovo StoryHub here.

Today, on International Women´s Day, and every day, we celebrate and honor the women who are making an impact at Motorola, paving the way for the next generation of women in tech and leadership and empowering women across the globe to pursue their passions.

International Women’s Day (IWD) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. It´s also a day that marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity globally.

At Motorola and Lenovo at large, we recognize the role we can play in supporting women in and out of Motorola and in creating a gender-inclusive and diverse workforce. That´s why we´re working with a number of organizations worldwide – like GirlUp, the gender equality initiative for the United Nations, and Project SYNCERE, an organization that exposes underprivileged youth to crucial STEM activities. It´ss also why gender diversity is a business imperative at Lenovo and Motorola, with a number of internal resources available including resource groups such as Women In Lenovo Leadership (WILL), discounts for child and elderly care services, and a commitment to increasing women representation across the organization.

To celebrate IWD this year, we sat down with some of the women trailblazers making a major impact at Motorola and in their communities to hear what empowers them as women in the tech industry and the advice they´d give to the next generation of women in leadership:

Happy IWD to women everywhere!