Hasta La Gadget!

As gamers might have heard, Sony announced last month that they will be released a remastered version of God of War 3. This is good news for gamers who loved the franchise but would have loved to see it in a higher resolution and smoother framerate, and Sony’s announcement was basically a wish come true.

That being said for those looking forward to it, Sony has recently announced the game for Japan and in the process revealed two new screenshots which you can see in the images above and below. The screenshots were released in Full HD so that gamers will be able to see it in all of its glory, although upon first glance we have to admit that it already looks pretty good.

The Japanese press release did not reveal anything new apart from the screenshots and the release date for the game which is set for 2 days after it has been released in North America, which according to Sony is set for the 16th of June, so gamers in Japan will have to wait until the 18th of June to get their hands on it.

Apart from the Full HD resolution, Sony is also expected to give the remaster the 60fps treatment as well, so not only will it be sharp, it will run smooth as butter as well. Unfortunately for gamers who are hoping to see older God of War titles remastered, Sony previously confirmed that there are no plans for future remasters, so God of War 3 will have to do for now.

Two New God Of War 3 Remastered Screenshots Released , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Are you looking forward to Treyarch’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 3? If you are you might recall that a report not too long ago pegged the game for a release on the 6th of November 2015 and for those who are looking to get in on the beta, you will also be able to get in on the multiplayer beta whose launch date remains unknown, but presumably it will go live before the game’s release.

That being said for those who are wondering how much the game will cost, the standard version of the game will not deviate too far from regular prices and is set at $60. However for gamers who want more than just the game, there is a Deluxe version of the game that will also be available and it will cost gamers $100.

While the $100 price tag does seem a bit much, the Deluxe version will see players have access to additional digital content which will be revealed at a later date. It will also include the DLC season pass which according to a listing on Steam, the season pass itself is valued at $50 so by buying it as the Deluxe version, you’d essentially be saving yourself $10 and will gain access to additional content in the process.

In the meantime the developers have confirmed some of the specs for the game, such as the fact that it will run at 1080p Full HD resolution @ 60fps for the Sony PlayStation 4. It is unclear as to what the Xbox One version of the game will offer, but we’ll keep our eyes and ears peeled for more info.

Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3’s Deluxe Version Will Cost $100 , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Founder, President & CEO of SPLICE Software, Tara Kelly, has a passion for enabling clients to engage in a meaningful, Data Driven DialogTM with their customers. As a serial entrepreneur who has developed three companies, Tara’s expertise is multi-dimensional but focused on creating businesses that use technology to enhance operations, service and the customer experience.

How has your life experience made you the leader you are today?
I learned early on that taking the road less traveled can be rewarding. My father was an entrepreneur who struggled to build a business. After a lot of hard work, he succeeded – building a company that was eventually sold to IBM. From his example, I learned that it is okay to take a chance. Both of my parents told me the world doesn’t owe you anything, that we are here to contribute and that, if you work hard, you can make a difference – but it won’t always be easy. These were valuable lessons to learn, and they were important in shaping my development as a leader.

As a teenager I was involved in Girl Guides of Canada, which was a great early leadership experience. From my family’s example and my experience volunteering for organizations like Girl Guides, the Multiples Society, Hockey Canada, Montessori Alternative School Society, Calgary Soccer Association, Alberta ICT Council, and Canadian Cloud Council, I’ve learned the value of giving back to the community. I have further built upon those experiences volunteering as a mentor to my fellow entrepreneurs and serving as a host to underprivileged children at executives – an event which grows their knowledge, interest and love of the business world. These were experiences and lessons that I have carried over into my business leadership experience.
My personal dedication to giving back has translated over to SPLICE’s company’s culture. Giving back is deeply engrained in our team dynamic at SPLICE. We regularly volunteer at local not-for-profit organizations, donating our time and skills to organizations such as The Mustard Seed and GROW Calgary. Just last summer, the SPLICE team helped GROW Calgary reach their goal of growing 100,000 pounds of produce to ensure that low-income families had access to fresh and locally sourced food.

How has your previous employment experience aided your tenure at SPLICE?
The knowledge I gained about markets and technology through my early career experience helped me learn to shape value propositions and spot new opportunities. When I was 21, I founded the Kelly Center of Wellness, which included a retail health food store and professional alternative health services. I needed a reminder system and set out to develop software to personalize customer phone calls for my clients. The internal system I built evolved into my next venture, Simply Health Systems, which then licensed the software to small businesses.

In 2006, I had a bad experience as a customer during a phone interaction with a company, despite that company having tons of data about me. This was a failure to use that data properly. Although cloud computing allowed real-time interactions, my customer experience was terrible – and I knew it could be better given the data and technology available. I set out to prove it, applying the technology to a different service model. This became SPLICE Software, my third company. SPLICE’s competitive advantage lies in its ability to change the way people feel. We use our patent-pending technology to linguistically optimize each customer experience with accurate data, tone, language and dialect – just to name a few factors. This process ensures that our voice files create higher levels of an emotional connection and deliver superior results.

What have the highlights and challenges been during your tenure at SPLICE?
At SPLICE, our motto is “It Can Be Better,” and we’re committed to improving voice experiences and customer communication. We help financial, retail and insurance companies create and deliver highly engaging, data-driven, proactive customer communications in the most timely, agile and cost effective way – using the power of the human voice to connect with customers. Witnessing our how our clients improve their customers’ lives and hearing their success stories has been a true highlight. SPLICE has made it a primary goal to celebrate each customer success story, showing how levels of customer engagement have increased and churn rates have decreased for our clients. One of our most recent success stories was Baer’s Furniture. This year, Baer’s received bronze in the 2014 Retail Touchpoints Customer Experience Award for their use of the SPLICE Opt-In Program.

Entering the industry as a small company, SPLICE’s biggest business obstacle was gaining credibility within target verticals. The SPLICE team strategized to target large companies that were household names and had a strong market share. One of the most important things we learned was that these large companies tend to be risk-averse. Large enterprises need data so they can make decisions with confidence. Thus, one of the first things SPLICE did was offer a proof of concept, or pilot, that took over a single 1-800 number for a single outbound notification.
Once companies were able to see how clients responded – for example, going to corporate websites to update personal information in response to the outbound message’s request – they became more willing to buy our services on a larger scale. Once the companies were on board, SPLICE received referrals and translated the results into case studies. This enabled SPLICE to build our reputation and gain the trust of other companies within those industries. This strategy has proven effective in expanding the SPLICE brand into our target verticals.

What advice can you offer to women who want to start their own business?
Follow your heart, use your head and go with your gut, … and accept help.

There are many programs available to support women in the technology and business world; the Canadian Centre for Women in Science, Engineering, Trades and Technology (WinSETT), for example. WinSETT is a non-profit committed to advancing women in science, engineering, trades and technology, by providing a venue in which to network and learn from each other’s experiences. I would strongly encourage women entrepreneurs to take advantage of these programs and the network of support that is available.

I think being a woman has helped me build SPLICE to what it is now; and as a woman, I champion success stories and serve as a mentor in the technology space. Women have traditionally excelled in communication skills, which are incredibly important in business. SPLICE is all about communication – combining the human voice with technology to improve the connection between customers and companies.

What is the most important lesson you’ve learned in your career to date?
As a serial entrepreneur with three successful companies under my belt, unless you count my smelly felt business, then I would say 4. I have learned the power of a team and the true meaning of synergy. As a leader the importance of motivating and inspiring people within my company and community is critical. One thing my mother told me when I was a child that has stuck with me ever since is that, while people might forget what you say or do, they’ll never forget how you make them feel. I’ve applied that principle as a leader throughout my career and, in fact, SPLICE is built on that principle: We help companies improve their emotional connection with their customers.
I’ve learned to give people room to be awesome, and to ensure that they understand how their job contributes to the mission and goals of the organization. I am so lucky to have the team of staff and partners I do today, and I want to know every day that I have done everything I can to give us every possible chance to succeed at the highest level.

How do you maintain a work/life balance?
I think flexibility is a game-changer in business and in life. My philosophy is that if you’re clear on your values, it’s easier to make decisions. When I started travelling a lot for business, I gave my kids a ranking system that I’ve always used at work: On a scale of one to 10, how important is this? How strongly do you feel? One day my son called when I was on a business trip and said, “Mom, this is a 10.” He was playing a hockey game for city championships for a peewee league, his team was a long shot and when I booked my trip it didn’t look like they would make city finals at all, but they had. I had to spend over $1,000 to get home, go to the game and fly back on a redeye, but I did it because my son said it was a 10. My staff were psyched that I did it and worked hard to cover my meetings because they saw me as a human being who was willing to walk away from things and reprioritize. Life is about those decisions and balance is for yoga.

What do you think is the biggest issue for women in the workplace?
Women obviously still face many barriers in the workplace, but we’re doing brilliant work, and we’re changing the world. We can overcome our challenges if we play every card in our deck and stop focusing on the obstacles we face, and concentrate instead on the possibilities. We need to support each other and work hard to address injustices but, as a woman, I refuse to play with a handicap.

How has mentorship made a difference in your professional and personal life?
Mentorship is a powerful vehicle to maximize potential, and I’ve benefited from it professionally and personally. In 2013, I had the opportunity to participate in TechWomen Canada in Silicon Valley. The program focused on providing Canadian women leaders in the ICT sector with the opportunity to expand business and professional networks to Silicon Valley. For three days, I connected with tech leaders and potential corporate partners through one-to-one meetings, workshops, panels and networking events. I had the chance to work directly with industry experts and receive advice and guidance to enhance my business plans, technology strategies and overall company growth.

Participating in TechWomen Canada helped grow my cross-referral network and enabled me to connect with global brands, including Adobe, Twitter and LinkedIn. These successes can also be attributed to the mentorship program from the C100, a non-profit, member-driven organization supporting Canadian entrepreneurship.

Which other female leaders do you admire and why?
I admire Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, who was at one time the youngest self-made female billionaire. She reinvented a category – foundation garments – an old-fashioned idea that had lost market share. Using her own idea, she completely revitalized an industry, and took it to a new level.

I also admire Angela Ahrendts, the former CEO of Burberry, who champions communication and serves as an exceptional model for achieving the work/life balance. I got to meet her once at an event, and she expressed the same idea my mother once told me – which is that while people might forget what you say or do, they never forget how you make them feel. I called my mom and told her about that after the event, and she was thrilled to find out that she shared a philosophy with such an accomplished business leader. My mother was a stay-at-home mom when I was growing up and I think she often felt devalued because of that; but she did a lot of things right, and I told her that.

What do you want SPLICE to accomplish in the next year?
We want continue to challenge the world to expect more from automated voice experiences and to look to brands to provide a connected customer journey.

We’re focused on finding resell partners closer to home in North America and Europe. We’re looking at ways to integrate our technology with more call centers and expand relationships with existing customers. We’re expanding our U.S. team and looking for additional well positioned expansion opportunities and partners.

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This spring, we know that skirts are in, swimwear has changed and there’s a resurgence of ultra-casual pieces like jogger pants. How are we so certain? Google’s annual fashion trends report. The tech giant’s research unveils what trends people are searching for online, and which ones are going out of style.

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As Vice President of Global Consumer Products at PayPal, Carey Kolaja is responsible for upholding PayPal’s global product vision in service to hundreds of millions of consumers around the world. Carey leads an international team charged with designing, deploying and operating global products and commercial strategies for all of PayPal’s products to effectively serve the local needs and interests of customers in each of the 203 markets that PayPal serves.

How has your life experience made you the leader you are today?
My parents lived a life serving others. My father as a doctor and my mother an educator. Bettering the lives of those around them was evident in their life choices, behaviors, and relationships; it was omnipresent growing up. One can only improve the lives of others, when you have a deep understanding of yourself. It’s a journey that never ends, but motivated me to be constantly curious about the world around me and to remain humble no matter any successes. I have vivid memories of my mom engaging in intellectual conversations with individuals who others never would have noticed, always taking away something meaningful. Title, role, job, accomplishments, and wealth didn’t matter, there was something to learn from them.

How has your previous employment experience aided your tenure at PayPal?
Diversity of experiences – from developer to consultant, from sales to design, from technology to finance, from customer to provider – taught me the importance to nurture one’s capacity to be empathetic for my partners, functions, customers, etc. Organization boundaries, people boundaries, cultural boundaries are all artificial, the only boundaries that exist are the ones in your own mind, and therefore, I believe individual’s creativity is endless. This experience has given me a deep understanding of how to drive innovation in the payments industry. I’ve also learned the value of powering potential by embracing and celebrating diversity in the workplace, which helps transform organizations for the better and empower talent to reach new potentials.

What have the highlights and challenges been during your tenure at PayPal?
Two factors have particularly affected my job in the last few years.

First was the focus within PayPal to bring more relevant and innovative products to market globally. The global product team was tasked with encouraging innovation across payments (mobile, online and in-stores) and shipped more products than ever before: 58 new products within an 18-month period (more than the last five years combined).

The second was the increasing global focus, which I championed. While PayPal had a broad international footprint, the company’s previous policy was to build solutions for customers in the U.S. first and then the “rest of the world.” I strategized and made recommendations that resulted in the introduction of 200+ new products and experiences for my regions in two years. The spectrum of products that resulted from my efforts range from PayPal’s entrance into new markets [Russia], introduction of leading experiences such as Check-In in Brazil, Mexico, Germany, Japan and Australia and chip and PIN readers in the UK, to free return shipping in 22 markets, to developing new funding instruments around the world. In 2014, under my direction, we expanded to 15 new markets. Payments is very personal, it is local, it is wrapped in consumer behaviors that touch geo politics, economics, regulation and cultures to name a few. The global focus I had allowed me to travel for work to see where the similarity and the nuances were, enabling us to solve for market needs at scale.

The focus on innovation and global business have been positive for us. PayPal’s international business generated $1.1 billion in revenue in Q4 2014, and international revenue grew at a rate of 17% YOY. I believe much of this was due to well-crafted, innovative, globally inspired product experiences my team launched.

What advice can you offer to women who want to work in your industry?
My advice to women is to never give up, be comfortable leading change and give yourself permission to go for what you want and voice it. If you embrace the need to be patient to pace your ambitions and create the white space for opportunities, the possibilities and opportunities will be endless. Being in Silicon Valley during the Dot.com boom was hard as I saw my generation seeing global success overnight and achieving their career aspirations in the blink of an eye. But being patient and knowing that building a career brick by brick creates a more solid foundation, and allowed me to pace myself. I encourage more and more women to join technology companies – it’s a fascinating and lucrative time to be in this industry.

How do you maintain a work/life balance?
Based on the traditional definition of work/life balance, I don’t, period.

However, I do believe we have embarked on a new balance: Virtual vs. Physical Existence. For the last six years, I have been working virtually. For me “work/life balance” is no longer about personal and professional. The balance we need to strike as women and men is about how we balance our virtual and physical existence. I believe if you are passionate about what you do, you leverage technology productively, and you create the space for your mind to wonder, why does there need to be an artificial line between work and life? I found a path that allows me to be where I need to be, work from anywhere and live the life I want. Technology has afforded me the opportunity to do just that. I was in an Uber the other day and the driver asked me, “When do you start work?” “I never stop,” was my response. It isn’t work that gets in the way with my family, it is when I live in the digital space with my loved ones in the same room. Once I accepted the importance of an integrated life, I learned to use it to my advantage to create a new balance between the Virtual and the Physical.

For me, a typical day begins when I wake up around 5:30 a.m. to start my day and read current events through Flipboard, while checking emails from my teams across the globe. But then I take some time for myself, for a solid twenty minutes with no distractions. This time helps me prepare for my day and think about what needs to get done.

Another stress reliever is working out. I work out for about an hour almost every day – typically a mix of boxing and running.

I also love spending time with my family, of course, and always make time for my sons.

I believe that while it’s important to be the best executive you can be, you still need to remember to take time for yourself and do what makes you feel valued and happy.

What do you think is the biggest issue for women in the workplace?
Today’s working women still face a number of challenges when advancing their career. However the one that I continually observe is women who wait for others to give them permission to speak out vs. giving themselves permission to speak. I used to be terrified to speak in public or in large group meetings. Years ago someone said to me, “When you speak, people listen, give yourself permission to speak in the first three minutes of every situation.” That was the catalyst for me, to never keep my mouth closed, as my team continues to learn.

How has mentorship made a difference in your professional and personal life?
I haven’t had many formal mentors in my career, although the ones I have had the privilege to work with were amazing. I have always believed in this statement, “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.” It is in this statement, where I learned from my mentors to be comfortable making myself and my job obsolete.

Success has always been defined for me. I have had the privilege of having a handful of men and women leaders who believed in me far before I believed in myself. They gave me opportunities to explore areas where my resume didn’t technically give me the right too. For this reason, I have committed to pay it forward, giving others an opportunity to test the waters in roles and areas where others may have not have allowed them to. For me, it is about the individual’s potential to create connections that is a predictor of success.

But honestly, my biggest mentors are those that never knew. Members of my team and my professional community that opened my eyes, who gave me feedback, who took as much interest in me being a great leader as I did in them.

Encouraging more and more women to join the technology industry is an ongoing effort of mine. And it is also important to mentor up and coming female leaders as well.

To this end, I am an active member in mentoring young female entrepreneurs. I was President of eBay’s Women in Technology Organization (eWIT) for three consecutive years, where I grew the Women in Technology organization from 50 North America members to 1800+ globally, built an enduring organization and foundation from which three other presidents presided and over 2000+ women are members of globally. Under my leadership, eWIT sponsored the first non-HR lead employee mentoring program, which remains intact today.

Such efforts have helped eBay Inc. to more than double the number of women in leadership roles, as well as increase the share of leadership positions held by women in the last three years.

Which other female leaders do you admire and why?
There are a number of inspiring female leaders that I admire, from Christine Lagarde and Arianna Huffington to Meg Whitman and Oprah Winfrey, and for all different reasons. But I don’t find inspiration and admiration in one gender, but in individuals. So I could add to that list Leonardo da Vinci, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Jackie Robinson, and my father.

However, in spirit of the question, the women I admire the most are my mother and grandmother. Two individuals who are the most unselfish people I know. Their unconditional love to their family and friends are only second to their commitment to living life to its fullest. At 68 and 89, they have more energy than my two sons. They have found the balance of being a matriarch, teachers, and friends. They have shown me the importance of adapting, accepting, and exploiting the challenges that are put in front of you. To deal with adversity head on, to embrace aging, and to not artificially limit yourself before life naturally does it for you. Growing up with these two women have made it clear that strength comes from adversity and the ability to handle the truth. If you couldn’t take feedback [literally every day] in my family, you wouldn’t survive.

What do you want PayPal to accomplish in the next year?
I believe that at PayPal, we have the power to really help people by transforming money. We want to democratize the movement and management of money. We’re focused on developing new services and products that will help people solve every day pain points and give them a product they care about. My goal, is to make our vision a reality.

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