As a company that manages a portfolio of consumer brands, our ongoing business model includes a certain level of acquisition, j oint venture and divestiture activities. We must be able to successfully manage the impacts of these activities, while at the same time delivering against our business objectives. Specifically, our financial results have been, and in the future could be, adversely impacted by the dilutive impacts from the loss of earnings associated with divested brands or dissolution of joint ventures. Our results of operations and cash flows have been, and in the future could also be, impacted by acquisitions or joint venture activities, if: 1) changes in the cash flows or other market - based assumptions cause the value of acquired assets to fall below book value, or 2) we are not able to deliver the expected cost and growth synergies associated with such acquisitions and joint ventures, including as a result of integration and collaboration challenges, which could also result in an impairment of goodwill and intangible assets. Our business results depend on our ability to successfully manage productivity improvements a nd ongoing organizational change, including attracting and retaining key talent as part of our overall succession planning. Our financial projections assume certain ongoing productivity improvements and cost savings, including staffing adjustments and empl oyee departures. Failure to deliver these planned productivity improvements and cost savings, while continuing to invest in business growth, could adversely impact our results of operations and cash flows. Additionally, successfully executing organizatio nal change, management transitions at leadership levels of the Company and motivation and retention of key employees, is critical to our business success. Factors that may affect our ability to attract and retain sufficient numbers of qualified employees include employee morale, our reputation, competition from other employers and availability of qualified individuals. Our success depends on identifying, developing and retaining key employees to provide uninterrupted leadership and direction for our busin ess. This includes developing and retaining organizational capabilities in key growth markets where the depth of skilled or experienced employees may be limited and competition for these resources is intense as well as continuing the development and execu tion of robust leadership succession plans. LEGAL & REGULATORY RISKS We must successfully manage compliance with current and expanding laws and regulations, as well as manage new and pending legal and regulatory matters in the U.S. and abroad. Our business is subject to a wide variety of laws and regulations across the countries in which we do business, including those laws and regulations involving intellectual property, product liability, product composition or formulation, packaging content o r corporate responsibility after consumer purchase, marketing, antitrust and competition, privacy, data protection, environmental (including increasing focus on the climate, water and waste impacts of consumer packaged goods companies' operations and produ cts), employment, healthcare, anti - bribery, anti - corruption, trade (including tariffs, sanctions and export controls), tax, accounting and financial reporting or other matters. In addition, increasing governmental and societal attention to environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters, including expanding mandatory and voluntary reporting, diligence and disclosure on topics such as climate change, waste production, water usage, human capital, labor and risk oversight, could expand the nature, scope an d complexity of matters that we are required to control, assess and report. These and other rapidly changing laws, regulations, policies and related interpretations as well as increased enforcement actions by various governmental and regulatory agencies, create challenges for the Company, including our compliance and ethics programs, may alter the environment in which we do business and may increase the ongoing costs of compliance, which could adversely impact our results of operations and cash flows. If we are unable to continue to meet these challenges and comply with all laws, regulations, policies and related interpretations, it could negatively impact our reputation and our business results. Additionally, we are currently, and in the future may be, s ubject to a number of inquiries, investigations, claims, proceedings and requests for information from governmental agencies or private parties, the adverse outcomes of which could harm our business. Failure to successfully manage these new or pending reg ulatory and legal matters and resolve such matters without significant liability or damage to our reputation may materially adversely impact our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Furthermore, if new or pending legal or regulatory matters result in fines or costs in excess of the amounts accrued to date, that may also materially impact our results of operations and financial position. Changes in applicable tax laws and regulations and resolutions of tax disputes could negatively aff ect our financial results. The Company is subject to taxation in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Changes in the various tax laws can and do occur. For example, in December 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the U.S. Tax Act). The changes included in the U.S. Tax Act were broad and complex. Under the current U.S. presidential administration, comprehensive federal income tax reform has been proposed, including an increase in the U.S. Federa l corporate income tax rate, elimination of certain investment incentives and a more than doubling of U.S. residual taxation of non - U.S. earnings. While these proposals are controversial, likely to change during the legislative process and may prove diffi cult to enact as proposed in the current closely divided U.S. Congress, their impact could nonetheless be significant. Additionally, longstanding international tax norms that determine each country’s jurisdiction to tax cross - border international trade are subject to potential evolution. An outgrowth of the original Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project is a project undertaken by the approximately 8 The Procter & Gamble Company