Respect for Other Stakeholders

Colgate touches people’s lives in a number of different ways, both inside Colgate and outside the Company. All of these people, whom we call stakeholders, have an interest in our Company’s activities. Stakeholders include Colgate People and their families, shareholders, consumers, customers, suppliers, contractors, retirees, neighbors and community groups, regulators and non-governmental organizations.

For external stakeholders, Colgate maintains open communication by inviting questions and comments from anyone interested in the Company’s activities. Understanding our stakeholders’ concerns helps improve our management of the Company. We are interested in their opinions about how we are addressing various issues, balancing meeting their needs while pursuing our business goals.

Colgate recognizes that there is a growing community of investors seeking information on non-financial performance. One example of ongoing stakeholder engagement at Colgate is the HIV/AIDS initiative. Colgate began meeting with a group of socially responsible investors in 2003 and has continued to meet with the group periodically to update the members on our progress and challenges as well as to learn from them.