Winning.

From celebrating a RootMetrics win to being named a most-admired company and cheering on our own Olympic hopeful, see all the ways the V Team is stepping up our game.

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On today’s edition of Up To Speed Live, host Diana Alvear shared the following updates:

Week in review

Monday: We showed you why 5G Ultra is changing the way we experience big games and big events. Crowds? No problem.

Tuesday: We celebrated the start of Black History Month.

Thursday: We met an extraordinary V Teamer whose journey is creating a more accessible and diverse world for all professionals.

Here comes Valentine’s Day

It’s hard to believe, but it’s already the first week of February, and Valentine’s Day is fast approaching. What’s the greatest gift you can give someone you love? Connection! That’s why it’s so great that new and existing Verizon customers, as well as Verizon employees, can use our special Valentine's Day promotion to buy a 5G phone and receive an identical gift phone on us! You can choose from the latest phones, including the iPhone 13 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, and Google Pixel 6 Pro.

All you have to do is activate at least one of the two lines on a new 5G Get More plan. (The second line can be an upgrade from an existing plan.) Get ready to cuddle up on the couch and stream a romantic movie on Hulu or Disney+; create a special playlist on Apple Music; and, for sports lovers, stream football documentaries on ESPN+ leading up to the Big Game.

‘Root’ for us

When we show up time and again for our customers, it gets attention. That’s why it’s not surprising that RootMetrics has once again named Verizon the most reliable 5G network in the United States. They recognized us for having the best 5G reliability in the overwhelming majority of American markets tested. Congratulations to our amazing network team!

Making travel to Australia safe and easy

As Australians gear up for the further reopening of international travel lanes, proof of COVID-19 vaccination is a necessity. To provide this proof, Verizon Business Australia worked with the Australian Passport Office in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to develop the country’s International COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate.

The international certificate features a Quick Response (QR) code that is digitally signed to help protect against tampering. The process uses private digital keys that are certified using the Australian Country Signing Certification Authority (CSCA), managed by Verizon and accredited under the Australian Gatekeeper framework.

Unloc Challenge

Remember the Unloc Challenge? It’s the annual online tech-entrepreneurship competition for young people across Europe that we highlighted on Up To Speed in October. This week, the top five finalists were announced. These impressive individuals will compete in this year’s Young Entrepreneurs Challenge showcase on March 1. Good luck to each of you!

Bringing 5G to the lab

5G Ultra Wideband is now at two more university research labs. Caltech is using 5G and Edge Compute to test how smart drones can navigate weather patterns in real time, and Penn State is exploring 5G use cases in manufacturing, education, training and workforce development. They join Arizona State University, University of Illinois and University of Michigan's Mcity.

Most admired

Apparently, our V Team pride is rubbing off. Fortune ranked Verizon as the No. 1 telecommunications company on its 2022 list of World’s Most Admired Companies. Rankings are based on Fortune's poll of some 3,700 corporate executives, directors and analysts.

Keeping PACE with the tiger

Happy Year of the Tiger to everyone celebrating Lunar New Year! This week, our PACE (Pan-Asian Corporate Excellence) Employee Resource Group organized several events, some of which were hosted by our own Andy Choi. Diana shared a video of PACErs wishing everyone a happy and prosperous year ahead.

By the way, be sure to check out the fantastic article on VZ Web explaining hongbao, a beautiful tradition of giving red coin-filled envelopes to children on Lunar New Year. It’s a symbol of positive energy, happiness and good luck in much of Asian culture.

5G Ultra Challenge prize

We’re only days away from the moment we crown a new football champion and a new 5G Ultra Challenge champion. And to sweeten the pot, we’re announcing today that the winner will receive a big game-themed prize package. We’ll choose the winner at random next week, just in time for the big game. And, of course, we are still accepting entries, so you still have time to rep your store or your business group. So get cracking!

Here’s how you can submit your videos: If you’re uploading from a personal device, please upload your video using this link. If you’re using a Verizon device, please use this link. Don’t forget to label your video submission with your full name and business group. To maximize your submission potential, check out our resource page on VZWeb with all of our 5G Ultra info.

California, here we come

We’re taking Up To Speed on the road! Andy and Jess will be in Los Angeles next week, showing us the best of Verizon and 5G UW in the run-up to the big game. Tune in to Up To Speed throughout the week, and remember: it’s always available 24/7 on the Inside Verizon app.

Touting 5G Home in Phoenix

Golf fans, our teams are taking the power of 5G Home to the Waste Management Phoenix Open for an experiential event to raise awareness and generate excitement about this innovative, affordable and reliable home broadband solution.

Take your Pulse

It’s that time again! Here’s what to do to share your feedback: Check your inbox for an email from Gallup (at support@mail.gallup.com) and click the link in the email. You can also access the survey link via your "To Dos" on VZWeb or via text messages sent to your work device.

Note: If you are a TracFone employee, you were scheduled to receive this email on Feb. 2.

Olympic hopeful

We’ve got a V Teamer competing in the Olympics! Anna Kjellbin is a defenseman for the Swedish women's ice hockey team. Anna works for Senion, which Verizon recently acquired, and works on our Location Technology team. Her Swedish squad plays the Czech Republic on Saturday, and China on Monday. Good luck, Anna!

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

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