‘Focus on being great.’

On today’s special edition of Up To Speed Live, Andy Choi hosted our 1Q Results webcast. Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Hans Vestberg, joined other senior leaders to discuss our first-quarter performance.

After recapping major goals we’ve already achieved in 2022, Hans concluded it was a mixed quarter, but one that reflects lots of overall progress in some key areas, including the five vectors of growth and our four stakeholders.

“We are managing the areas that can improve and we are managing it as a collective V Team,” Hans said. “Going forward, the focus needs to be on execution – continuing to execute as the fantastic V Team we are.”

Behind the numbers

Chief Financial Officer Matt Ellis explained that the bottom-line performance of our 1Q Results shows the strength of our core business to deliver profitability, even during a period of significant investment.

“We are in a really great place in terms of the assets we have, it now comes down to all of us making sure we produce the best possible results with all of those assets,” Matt added. “I’m confident that this is a team that will do that.”

VCG insights

Verizon Consumer Group CEO Manon Brouillette was live from our store in Clifton, N.J., where she joined Kelley Kurtzman, Senior Vice President of Consumer Field Sales, to reflect on our VCG results. Manon said we started the quarter strong with the Launch of Mix & Match 4.0, and saw good growth in wireless revenue and postpaid Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA).

She also elaborated on some challenges this quarter, specifically the competitive landscape. Manon said we’ll continue to respond by promoting the right products, services and solutions for each customer segment.

Manon also stressed the importance of adjusting to fit each customer’s needs: “Today’s consumer isn’t a one-size-fits-all, which is why we leverage what we call our omnichannel strategy of physical and digital tools to ensure we meet their needs.”

Retail express lockers

Kelley shared some examples of improvements we’re making in our retail stores to give our customers more flexibility and options, including our newest retail express lockers. Now at more than 250 Verizon stores across the country, our customer-accessible lockers are expected to expand to more than 900 locations nationwide by the end of the year.

While some stores feature lockers entirely inside the retail store, others have lockers that can be accessed from both inside and outside the store, 24/7, giving customers the option to pick up orders beyond traditional business hours. Learn about how retail express lockers work here.

New retail attire

Expressing the importance of our retail teams not only looking good but also feeling good, Kelley noted that, starting in May, our retail attire will be changing: Store managers have placed orders for ultra-comfortable Ultra T-shirts, just in time for summer work wardrobes.

But that’s not all: Come mid-summer, we’ll be rolling out our brand-new retail attire that will take us through the end of the year. The new gear is not only comfortable, but also made for all seasons, with long-sleeve and short-sleeve options that also pair with our current vests.

Kelley took a moment to thank the V Teamers who made these changes possible. “Your feedback about the need for attire change – through our Pulse survey, your managers, as well as direct to me – was instrumental in making this happen,” she said. “So, please know we heard you, and we share in your excitement to roll these out.”

Credo Award winner

Kelley also surprised Assistant Manager Valerie Cadestin of East Brunswick, N.J., with news that Valerie is our latest Credo Award winner.

Heralded as a compassionate leader who puts her customers and employees first, Valerie recently took on an interim retail manager role at our Westfield, N.J. store, where she played an instrumental role in its success. In the first quarter of 2022, her team outperformed all 10 metrics goals, helping the location become the top-performing store in Central Pennsylvania/Northern New Jersey for three straight months.

Valerie said a key to success is sharing knowledge with others – something she proactively does as a V Teamer. Congratulations, Valerie!

VBG Results/SMB Days

Our SVP of Small Business and Channel, Wendy Taccetta, was live from our store in Clifton, N.J., where she shared insight into Verizon Business Group’s great results and gave a “big shout-out to the entire VBG team and all of the partners who made this possible.”

She added, “This was our best quarterly phone net adds for business since the beginning of VBG 2.0. That is a lot to be proud of.”

She also previewed our upcoming Small Business Days, which kick off April 28 and run through May 4. Throughout those seven days, our Small Business Customers can visit our stores to learn how our resources can help their businesses grow.

Live Q&A

We also hosted a live Q&A from our headquarters in Basking Ridge, N.J. In addition to replies from Hans and Manon, we heard answers from Chief Technology Officer Kyle Malady; Chief Marketing Officer Diego Scotti; Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer Samantha Hammock; and Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer Rose Stuckey Kirk.

+play coming soon

Responding to an employee question about +play, Manon was excited about how we’ll offer our innovative new platform to Verizon customers later this year, providing “a way for them to manage all of their subscriptions and even discover new services, all in one place.”

Early trials are going well, too, she added: “The trial successfully launched on time at the end of March, and we're collecting feedback on an ongoing basis.”

Manon reiterated how HBO Max is the latest streaming partner on the platform. HBO joins a host of partners – including Netflix, Peloton, Disney+ and discovery+ – that were announced on Investor Day.

Green initiatives

While today is officially Earth Day, every day is really its own Earth day at Verizon, as we continue to boost our climate initiatives. Today also marks the release of our 2021 ESG report.

We recently issued our fourth $1 billion green bond, and have accumulated 20 Renewable Energy Purchase Agreements, totaling approximately 2.6 gigawatts of projected renewable energy capacity; that’s enough to power nearly 2 million homes! We also recently announced the winners of the Verizon Climate Resilience Prize, part of an effort to help scale innovative solutions to reduce climate-change impacts on communities.

Ukraine efforts

We continue to support those impacted by the war in the Ukraine. Verizon continues to waive international calling, texting and in-country data charges for consumer and business wireless customers to and from Ukraine, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

Additionally, we’ve made $750,000 in donations to organizations providing relief to Ukrainian refugees on the ground, including the International Medical Corps, Save the Children’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund and USA for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

If you want to get involved in these or any other of our volunteer opportunities, we encourage you to visit the Citizen Verizon Volunteers portal to find and join a cause that matters to you.

Continuing conversation and connection

When it comes to our 1Q Results, Hans offered his advice on how to discuss them with friends and family: Be transparent, and celebrate our commitment to growth, to our customers, and to clear communication with fellow V Teamers.

With some V Teamers permanently working from home, others working in hybrid settings and some solely reporting to in-person roles, Hans emphasized the importance of staying connected to ensure our collective success as a company.

Boston week-in-residence

Andy closed the webcast with a video previewing next week’s Boston week-in-residence. We’ll be heading to our Boston Hub to check out the Innovation Center and catch up with some New England V Teamers.

If you have any questions, email them to live@verizon.com.

Click here for a transcript of the webcast.

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