Recognizing diverse talents.
How we're doing just that throughout Disability Pride Month. Plus, more on an award that further proves our commitment.
On today’s edition of Up To Speed, host Raquel Wilson shared a full news rundown.
Celebrating Disability Pride Month
July is Disability Pride Month, a time for us to honor the history, achievements, experiences and struggles of the disability community.
Our Employee Resource Group ADVANCE, which stands for Advocates for Disability, Accessibility, Neurodiversity and Caregiver Empowerment, has programming all month to recognize Disability Pride Month.
To help kick off the month on the right note, we shared a video featuring executive sponsor Jim Gerace, Verizon’s Chief Communications Officer. Jim reminded us how we can support and advocate for the disability community.
Black Enterprise Award
Verizon was recently recognized as a 2023 Best Company for DEI from Black Enterprise.
The Black Enterprise survey looks at workforce composition, senior management, board representation, supplier diversity and tracking corporate racial equality pledges. Traci Sanders accepted the award at an event in New York City. This award recognizes our commitment to DEI and the Black community.
To learn more about the award, click here.
Closing the digital divide
Perhaps you’re familiar with the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), a government program run by the Federal Communications Commission to provide eligible households affordable internet service.
With digital inclusion being a core tenant of Citizen Verizon, our responsible business program, Verizon is a proud participant of ACP with the Verizon Forward Program. This provides qualified customers free Verizon home internet service without hidden fees or annual contracts, and no equipment charges or data caps.
To spread awareness of ACP and this valuable program, the Virginia VEC and WNO Team partnered up for a series of ACP interactive events at low-income properties throughout Northern Virginia, where they signed residents up for ACP and Verizon Forward and shared more about our wireless offerings.
The team also used the event as an opportunity to invest in the digital literacy of the younger generation, educating them on the history of telephones and offering fun activities to understand copper connections, how fiber transmits and even see our bucket trucks and pretend manholes to demonstrate the backend of how our technology works.
If you know someone who could benefit from ACP and the Verizon Forward Program, click here for more information on eligibility.
Investing in our future generations
Recently, we hosted our Tech Voyagers Summer Immersion Technology Program, organized by the Global Network and Technology team.
For an interstellar week, over 1,000 middle school- and high school-aged children of GN&T V Teamers were sent to galactic heights, learning and immersing themselves in the very technology that their parents work on to shape the future of tech.
The students of Tech Voyagers participated in a variety of ID tech classes that taught them how to code with Python, create their own 3D games, experiment with artificial intelligence and more.
V Teamers took the time to teach these future stars the components of the phone, 5G 101, cloud gaming, how we’re innovating sports, a tour of the Boston Innovation Lab and a look at our public safety assets.
The Tech Voyagers even heard from guest speakers, including our CEO Hans Vestberg, President of Global Networks & Technology Joe Russo, and Chief Technology Ambassador Nicki Palmer, who championed the program and shared her wishes for the students to understand how we help drive innovations and push the boundaries of technology -- all with an open invitation for the younger generation to explore their interests in STEM and join us in building the future.
Thank you to all who volunteered their time to make this year’s event happen.
#1 in Customer Satisfaction for Small Businesses Overall
For the fifth year in a row, JD Power ranked us #1 in Small Business Wireline Customer Satisfaction.
Thank you to all V Teamers who put our customers at the heart of everything we do, every day.
It’s important to note that in 2022, we won the #1 ranking for customer satisfaction in Small Business Wireless Services – so we can proudly say that we are first in customer satisfaction for small businesses overall.
If you have any questions, email them to live@verizon.com.
