Good morning, everyone. Before I introduce our next speakers, I'd like to take a moment to recognize some of the individuals behind this conference and behind the CAGNY organization these past many years. One of the unique qualities of CAGNY is that it's an all-volunteer organization, and this conference has grown, thanks in large part to the efforts of the people who have given their time to keep it going.
In that vein, I'd like to have the past presidents of the organization please stand. Then please join me in thanking them. I also want to make special recognition of our current president, Steve Strycula. Steve, will you please join me on stage? Steve has gone above and beyond to make this year's conference one of our best ever.
Many of you know Steve, and he is one of the nicest and smartest people in our industry, and the CAGNY organization has been better for having him steer us over the past year. On behalf of the entire CAGNY community, we just wanted to say thank you, and Steve, I'd like to present you with the President's plaque. Thank you, Steve.
Thank you.
Thanks for everything. All right. With that, it is my pleasure to welcome Procter & Gamble-
This discussion will include a number of forward-looking statements. If you will refer to P&G's most recent 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K reports, you will see a discussion of factors that could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from these projections. Additionally, the company has posted on its investor relations website, www.pginvestor.com, a full reconciliation of non-GAAP and other financial measures.
I forgot the voice of God, so hopefully you all got to hear that. So with that, it is my pleasure to welcome Procter & Gamble back to CAGNY this year. We have with us Shailesh Jejurikar, who is joining us for the first time as Procter's President and CEO, along with CFO, Andre Schulten, and CIO, Seth Cohen. So with its focus on irresistible superiority, Procter remains one of the most resilient HPC companies, delivering over 4% organic sales and 7% EPS growth on average over the past decade, with periods of significant outperformance, a testament to its strong execution and a likely core holding for many of you in this room.
Having said that, Procter hasn't been immune to the broader end-market challenges faced by HPC companies over the past year or so with growth slowing. However, Procter has been making interventions such as rolling out strong innovation, which should really ultimately drive an acceleration in growth going forward. With that, I'll hand it over to Shailesh and team to hear more about Procter's strategy and how it's evolved to create the CPG company of the future. Andre, the floor is yours.
Thank you so much, Bonnie. Morning, everyone. I will start with a review of our results before turning it over to Shailesh to discuss P&G's strategy, near-term interventions to accelerate growth, and long-term transformation to invent the CPG company of the future. Seth will then share progress on the digital assets and AI capabilities critical for category leadership and growth and value creation in the next decade.
So starting with results, the front half of fiscal 2026 was impacted by base period dynamics, including trade and consumer pantry loading, driven by port strikes and hurricanes in the second quarter of fiscal 2025. These headwinds were concentrated in the U.S. market. The balance of the company grew front half organic sales over 2%, with almost all regions outside the U.S. growing or accelerating through the front half of the fiscal year.
Organic sales in focus markets were flat, and enterprise markets grew 3% fiscal year to date. Following several years of consistent mid to high single-digit top-line growth, recent periods heavily reflect underlying trends with softer consumer markets, aggressive competition, and a dynamic geopolitical landscape. Global market growth was around 2%.
Growth in the first half of fiscal 2026 has been broad-based across categories, with eight of 10 categories growing or holding organic sales. 25 of our top 50 category country combinations held or grew share in the first half, with global aggregate value share down 20 basis points, but sequentially improving. In the front half of fiscal 2026, core EPS was +2%, following the top line and reflecting our commitment to prioritize full investment in the business.
Although a challenging start to the fiscal year, we expect sequential improvement in the second half, which enables us to maintain fiscal year 2026 guidance ranges across organic sales, core EPS, and adjusted free cash flow for activity. The growth rate embedded in our near-term guidance should return us to the lower half of our long-term growth algorithm as we exit fiscal year 2026 and head into fiscal 2027.
We continue to invest in creating superior propositions for our consumers and retail partners with relevant innovation, powerful brand campaigns across every touch point, and continuously improving in-market execution across all channels and platforms. We are fully activated, it's working. So we have more confidence in the sequential improvement over half two. Now, I will hand it over to Shailesh to talk more about both our short and longer term plans.
Good morning. It's a pleasure to be here for my first CAGNY conference. As Andre said, I will share some perspective on our near-term interventions to accelerate growth and the longer-term reinvention of P&G we have underway. Before we do that, I want to start with strategy. We remain committed to our integrated growth strategy, a portfolio of daily use products where performance matters, superiority across product package, brand communication, retail execution, and value.
Productivity with multi-year visibility to fund superiority and deliver financial results at the levels you and we expect. Constructive disruption to stay ahead, and an organization fully engaged, enabled, and excited to serve consumers. This strategy has enabled us to deliver significant growth and value creation over the better part of the past decade.
While we believe the strategy continues to be right, we need to adapt our execution in light of the changes in the external landscape. There are three important changes in our operating context I want to highlight. The first is media fragmentation. It is much more challenging to get consumers' attention and educate them on the benefits of our brands in today's fragmented media landscape.
Consumers have more sources of information, more sources of influence, and more ways to engage or disengage. A decade ago, when I was in North America Home Care, we could get about 30% awareness on an initiative within 6-12 months. Today, it's probably high single digits. A significant change and challenge for every marketer in every industry. The second change is inflation across food, energy, healthcare, and many other areas of spending. This has taken a toll on the consumer.
Even the consumers who have money are much more disciplined and thoughtful about how they spend it. How consumers assess affordability and value will continue to evolve. The third change is the retail landscape. Consumers are shopping differently. Think about Agentic AI, Quick Commerce, and Douyin. In the U.S., some channels like e-commerce and club are growing exponentially, while traditional formats are consolidating.
In addition, retailers are becoming media platforms, and media platforms are becoming retailers. In summary, the consumer path to purchase is changing every day, is nonlinear, and littered with millions of possible distractions. To adjust for these changes in the external landscape, we are making interventions with urgency. We are already seeing strong results in the parts of the business that have made these interventions. The first intervention we are making is to have a deeper, more complete connection with consumers.
Nothing matters more than putting the consumer first in everything we do. Consumer is boss isn't a slogan, it's a belief that has shaped P&G for generations. Our opportunity now is to apply this belief with greater consistency and precision end to end. Each decision we make must be based on how it will be received by the consumer, so we deliver a superior consumer experience at every touch point.
Let me share two examples that demonstrate the power of deep consumer connection. Greater China Baby Care was one of the first categories to make a step change and lead the growth of the premium and super-premium segments of the market behind consumer insight innovation, insight-driven innovation, and brand communication. Chinese parents want only the best for their baby: softness, comfort, and dryness.
The China team created a diaper that delivers on this insight, from first seeing and touching the package to feeling the diaper on their baby. They leveraged the long Chinese history with silk. The shiny, soft, yet strong, luxurious material has been a status symbol for more than 2,000 years. Pampers Prestige is the only leading diaper brand that has silk materials in the product, delivering the ultimate experience of skin comfort and protection.
The shiny, soft feel package conveys superiority at first touch. Let's see the ad. [Foreign Language] Reframing our super premium line has driven Greater China Baby Care to double-digit organic sales growth over the past 18 months and increased share by nearly 3 points. Mexico Fabric Enhancers is another great example. The team has disrupted a sleepy category through deep consumer understanding.
Mexican consumers describe the gold standard smell of clean as rich, tasty, fruity, and floral, like the scents from shampoos. They then developed a product against this powerful insight. Downy Intense leverages our internal perfume innovation expertise to create a new high-intensity perfume. The packaging highlights the intensity of fragrance blooming on the bottle. Brand communication drives awareness of the 24/7 smelling like freshly washed hair experience, and in-store execution with stopping power is increasing trial. Let's watch the ad.
[Foreign Language] The new line Downy Intense leaves my clothes smelling rich and perfumed. It gives me a feeling like, like I've just taken a shower in the morning, because it has a unique technology of capsules with pure essence that release an intense and delicious perfume that leaves me smelling rich 24/7. Try the new Downy Intense line.
Deeper consumer insights, driving innovation amplified with sharper brand communication, retail execution, and value, has spurred Mexico Fabric Enhancers category growth and led Downy to double-digit Organic Sales growth and over four points of value share growth since launch. Next, we need to transform brand building. How we build awareness of our advertising messages, how we drive consumer engagement, and how we reduce the time and steps from awareness to purchase.
A great example comes from Brazil Hair Care. Brazil is the third-largest hair care market in the world. 90% of Brazilian consumers suffer from hair damage due to heat, styling, and coloring. Pantene was growing sales, but the market was growing faster, and we were losing share. The team framed Pantene back to its heritage as a treatment-centric brand that offers complete hair solutions, not just shampoo.
They then developed a plan which heavily shifted brand communication to user-generated content and passionate influencers. Let's watch a reel of user-generated content. Within months of the intervention, the business turned to share growth, now growing value share 1.4%, with sales growth of 30% versus year ago in the October to December time period. U.S. Personal Care is another great example.
They are one of our more successful businesses over the past three to five years, with double-digit sales growth, which has driven market and share growth. An important reason is they adjusted early to the changing media landscape. They significantly increased their volume of influencer, user-generated, and ratings and review content. They leveraged in-house creatives plus AI to rapidly generate traffic-driving assets, and they pivoted to campaigns with direct links to enable consumers to buy.
U.S. Personal Care is growing 6% fiscal year to date. The opportunity ahead is improving and scaling these brand-building techniques across all country and category combinations. The next intervention is to build holistic partnerships with retailers across the entire value chain, not just in their traditional role as merchants.
This is critical as we see the convergence of retail and media, including digital commerce and how shopping agents and AI-based search will affect how consumers shop. Let's take a look at the most recent Walmart, w ho knew campaign that features Old Spice as one example of the holistic partnerships we are building.
Walmart Express Delivery comes in as fast as an hour. That new.
I lost my bag again.
This came faster than his ride from the airport. Your friends will thank you.
The Walmart you thought you knew is now new.
This is a great example of how our brands are leveraging holistic partnerships in a meaningful, shopper-led way to grow the business together. This campaign followed our successful NFL partnership with Walmart. It included exclusive product lineups activated in store, in the Walmart app, and more broadly, in social and other media.
These are clear examples of bringing a holistic, integrated brand and retail strategy to life and market. This complements the integrated value and supply chain work we are doing with our retail partners to make the end-to-end value chain more efficient and deliver the highest service to the shoppers and our consumers. Finally, we need a stronger core and a bigger moat. One of P&G's biggest strengths is our portfolio of established brands, the core of our business.
We need to make sure the core is healthy and growing through truly impactful innovations that elevate superiority and represent a good holistic value for consumers. By bigger more, we mean that when we create something new to address new consumer needs, it needs to be big enough to justify the investment needed to build awareness and distribution.
A stronger core and bigger more is critical with how media fragmentation has affected awareness. It is also important in channels like club, that are limited assortment or e-commerce, where the first two pages of results are all the consumer sees. Tide is a great example of both core and more. Tide did their biggest upgrade in over two decades on the Tide Original Liquid detergent, which represents about one fourth of all Tide detergent users, significantly improving the product for the same price. Let's watch.
Hey, Mom! Sam is taking the Tide boosting test. Oh, yes, I am. What did I get? Ooh, looks like the whole buffet. Wow! I don't pack her lunch, but I do always know what she had. Those are some serious stains. And this isn't going to cut it. Try Tide. It's boosted. The other stuff can't match Tide's boosted clean. This is a game changer. Looks like we passed. Thanks, Mom. Try to keep it clean. Tide is. It's cleaner, whiter, brighter, and fresher. If it's got to be clean, it's got to be Tide. Look good!
Since launch, Tide Original Liquid has gone from declining to double-digit growth in the past three months. On this size of business, to get that inflection is simply amazing and gives me tremendous confidence of what can happen if we activate the core much better. Tide's biggest strength is Tide, so this is a very powerful example of strengthening the core.
A great example of a bigger moat is Tide Evo. Tide Evo represents the biggest innovation in laundry, crafted by concentrating active surfactant ingredients into a mixture that is spun into individual fibers. This sophisticated process ensures each functional fiber delivers the powerful cleaning performance of Tide, while also enabling the creation of the convenient Tide Evo unit dose form, which is more sustainable, given no plastic bottles and no extra water.
This new to the world formulation and assembly process is proprietary to P&G and protected by over 50 granted patents, making it a truly unique technology. Here's the ad airing now.
Imagine if Tide disappeared.
Wait, what?
Not like that. Like Tide Evo. Imagine if the heavy laundry load disappeared. Imagine if that pile of stuff to clean.
Disappeared?
Yes, and it all cleaned up here. Introducing the revolutionary new Tide Evo. So clean, it disappears.
The national expansion of Tide Evo is on track, with presale currently available through select retailers and product expected in stores in the coming weeks. These interventions are making a difference. The business is inflecting where we have put these in place. A number of examples I shared are from Latin America, as they have more broadly and completely implemented many of these interventions.
The business is growing high single digit, growing share in nearly every market, and driving market and profit growth. There are many other markets where these interventions are leading to growth, and more where we are just starting to make these interventions, including the U.S. That is why we have confidence in sequential improvement of the business. Ultimately, these interventions are aimed at improving the vectors of superiority to win the consumer value equation. One simple check: Are we growing users of our brands?
If not growing users, some element of the consumer value equation needs to be adjusted. The simplicity of linking superiority to user growth in this way increases the urgency to adjust the vectors as needed, versus assessing each element individually. When we get the value equation right, we grow users, lead market growth, and grow market share, sales, and profit. I talked the external changes we are dealing with across media fragmentation, inflation, and retail landscape.
These changes are as much a short-term issue as they are a long-term opportunity. While the pace of change has been significant so far, we expect an even more intense pace of change in the next three to five years. We will adjust to and leap ahead of these disruptions to invent the CPG company of the future. The way to break through consistently is to build the strongest brands in the industry.
P&G has the unique strengths and capabilities to redefine brand building, to deliver consumer relevance superiority every day, every week, every month, putting the consumer first in everything we do. Let me highlight P&G's unique strengths. We have some of the most well-known and iconic brands in the world, brands with large consumer bases. The equity of these brands is unmatched.
We know how to build brands rooted in deep connections with consumers. We have an enormous wealth of consumer data and understanding. We connect with consumer across more touch points than anyone in our industry: product research, shopper research, connected homes, ratings and reviews, social media posts, brand fan clubs, and many more. We transparently mine for insights that lead to new product innovations, brand ideas, performance claims, and marketing campaigns.
Now we are building the consumer connectivity, the integrated data platforms, and the technologies that will enhance our team's ability to do this work better, faster, and even more consumer-centric than ever before. Next, we have a unique set of innovation capabilities in our industry: substrate technologies, formulation chemistry, devices, and biology.
We already have years of experience integrating these capabilities to launch new platform technologies and innovations, and we see many more ways to bring combinations of these technologies to life in new consumer products. Tide Evo is just one current example. Technologies like AI-enabled molecular discovery will enable faster and more powerful integration of innovation capabilities for faster growth. In addition, we have tremendous supply chain capability.
Supply Chain 3.0 is driving a more complete system connection from purchase signal back to inventory solutions and systems to our production planning and material ordering to ensure consumers find the product they want each time they shop. We know how to automate, digitize, and autonomize our operations, and more importantly, we have qualified a financial framework to pay out these investments.
Finally, we have built a structured data lake stocked with petabytes of relevant data. We have built data platforms, AI capabilities, programmatic shelf tools, and media creation and evaluation systems. We have supply chain platforms that can run autonomously, reacting to retail demand signals, consumer innovation needs, or productivity opportunities faster than ever before.
The next step is to connect the dots, to integrate the pieces from identifying the consumer friction point, to product idea, to product design, to supply, to creative concept, to purchase transaction, to usage in home, to post-use evaluation. We will close the loop. We believe this will create a different S-curve for our future growth and value creation centered around our consumer. Let me hand over to Seth, who will share more about the work we're doing to constructively disrupt P&G.
Thanks, Shailesh. As we continue to navigate this evolving landscape, it's evident that a dramatic transformation is occurring across our entire value stream, from consumer to retailers, to work processes, to suppliers. This shift demands scaled capabilities to lead construction to social disruption and accelerate both growth and profitability. The results of our effort are becoming increasingly evident.
To mitigate risk, one might consider exploring AI via extensive pilots. However, the biggest opportunity lies in our ability to scale. With our investment in data and platform structures, we are now actively and successfully scaling, enabling both top line and bottom line growth across our entire value chain. We are proving and further increasing the payout of these technologies across all areas. While everyone is talking about artificial intelligence, let's be clear, AI without data is just A, artificial.
P&G stands in a very unique position, and it starts with our exceptional mastery of our data. You may recall, we highlighted our core data lake at P&G Investor Day back in 2022, which serves as a foundational asset for the company. Imagine millions upon millions of data points that come from different sources in different formats, different timestamps, and different levels of quality.
This involved an incredible effort over a decade to structure and organize the data in a way that proved to be usable, actionable, and valuable to the organization. We have been leveraging this data in a very broad capacity, including consumer research data that helps us better understand and identify consumer needs. Material formulation data used by both R&D and purchasing that enables performance optimization and better cost.
Manufacturing data that continuously streams from sensors, devices, and high-speed vision cameras to ensure our quality at every unit that we produce. Consumption data that enables demand planning and forecasting, allowing the orchestration and adjustment of material flow in real time to meet retailer and consumer. Financial data for better resource allocation and to close our books faster and more efficiently with less human intervention.
In short, our core data lake is a critical platform to enable breakthrough business results. In addition, our operational data is unparalleled. P&G employs one of the most standardized systems ever compared to any of our peers. The most significant benefit, the ability to common data definition across the majority of our value chain. The data collected and standardized are AI factory that embodies a platform approach to our digital products.
It empowers the teams to build tailored capabilities on common workbenches versus developing independent solutions. This agility allows us to connect data to these platforms quickly, ensuring our digital products can scale across the entire organization. Whether it's a central solution, like our automated media buying tool, or a customized solution addressing specific customer or consumer needs, we have a versatile framework in place that supports innovation and efficiency.
Encouragingly, nearly all of our employees who are reliant on data use these platform capabilities, highlighting the significance of these large-scale tools in our work. Each year, our teams manage over 2 million consumer research touch-points, transparently collected via in-home visits, consumer surveys, social engagements, connected homes, and more. This equates to many petabytes of data that we can model and use effectively.
We have the capacity to create thousands of digital representations, enabling us to model consumer preferences and rapidly generate concepts that we can refine with actual consumers. Further, we are forging new partnerships with agency providers, leveraging the latest technologies to further enrich our consumer understanding and overall consumer journey. With our robust data asset and capabilities of foundation, we are strengthening our integrated strategy.
Utilizing a data, plus human, plus technology approach, we have transformed and accelerated our entire process for unlocking consumer insights and delighting them with superior products. Here's a concrete example from haircare. Starting with the consumer insight obtained from interviews, that the number 1 growth driver for skincare during the summer months was sun protection, we saw that there was no offering in haircare. Our Pantene Europe team sought to solve this need quickly so that they would not miss another season.
To move forward, the team leveraged AI to create and validate on three vectors. First, superior product. We needed a UV protective spray for hair that protected it from sun, bleach, and chlorine. Second, superior packaging. We needed a design name claim that communicated this benefit. And third, superior communications. We needed an exceptional advertising and retail execution to drive awareness across every touchpoint.
Starting with product and concept, the team leveraged our vast database to create twins of our targeted consumers and brainstorm concepts in real time. Nothing can replace engaging with consumers directly. However, these proprietary tools allow us to test and iterate concepts quickly before engaging and validating with real consumers. Our AI-driven tools enable the team to focus on a benefit that is consistent with Pantene brand positioning. Pantene Sunk iss Glow Spray, for hair stronger than the sun.
We accomplished this in a few days instead of weeks and rounds of revisions. Within a day, the package mock-up was created. We then combined digitally created package designs with existing visuals to create advertising prototypes. From there, we had a production shoot and used generative AI to create a wide variety of assets for use of in social and in the store.
The entire process cost less, was 5 times faster than traditional initiative timelines, and was executed with greater quality and consistency across formats. Importantly, we were the first to market with this unique UV protection treatment, a superior product in a superior package with superior brand communication and retail execution. We're scaling these tools quickly. To highlight a few examples, in Latin America, Secret leveraged the tools at every stage to accelerate their scent lab collection.
In the U.S., customer teams like Kroger created the home gating idea for Super Bowl using AI in about 20 minutes during actual meetings with the customer. The Metamucil team utilizes AI to create their current TV advertising. Moving to our unique innovation capabilities. In research and development area, we continuously look for new ways to accelerate innovation, embracing cutting-edge digital solutions like modeling and new predictive testing tools.
Discovery of new molecules is at the heart of innovating irresistible, superior products. Traditionally, molecular discovery has been a very costly and time-consuming process due to the needs to meet numerous technical, safety, and regulatory requirements. Typically, this process can span six to eight years of development. Our AI-powered molecular discovery suite has revolutionized this process. This groundbreaking tool, in the hands of our master scientists, allow us to identify new molecules in as little as six months.
Downy Unstopables number 26 is a hit. It is currently our second highest selling product in our Unstopables portfolio and our top driver of fabric enhancer sales growth in the United States. We also applied this very same technology to the Tide Evo and Downy Intense innovations that Shailesh had referenced earlier. Another area that we are disrupting with advanced capability is in supply chain.
Supply chain has historically been a competitive advantage for P&G. In 2025, we were recognized for the 11th year by Gartner as one of only four supply chains globally in the elite masters category. Supply Chain 3.0 places a strong emphasis on automating and digitizing manufacturing processes to improve security, long-term efficiency, service quality, reliability, safety, and environmental responsibility. We shared previously the Berlin Gillette unattended night shift example.
Touchless operations are now being scaled to nine different sites, including plants, warehouses, planning command centers across multiple regions and operating units. For instance, our Hongkou, China, site has launched four unattended pilot lines covering different business units, demonstrating that this approach extends well beyond grooming. Let's take a look at one of the lines in haircare. Similarly, our Aalbeek plant in Germany recently completed a record-breaking 13.5-hour unattended injection molding shift on our power toothbrush line.
Supply chain automation projects like these deliver very strong returns on investment, in addition to improved quality, safety, supply resiliency, and overall better work environment for our manufacturing employees. So let me recap. Better innovation, more flexibility, more efficient supply chain, better decision making and resource allocation, and a more external focus. Expanding on the diversity of our data will enable even better insights and automations across the value chain going forward.
With our robust history of process transformation, we have the systems in place to make the work even more effective and efficient while maintaining the standards our consumers know and trust. And we're just leading constructive disruption to stay ahead. Based on third-party benchmarks, we are considered digital leaders in our industry, and we're just beginning to scratch the surface as to what's possible. Our focus is on linking various elements across our unique capabilities, and as we do, driving a new trajectory for our future growth. I'll now turn it back over to Shailesh.
Thank you, Seth. Let me take a minute to step back and recap what you heard today. First, we have the right strategy, portfolio, superiority, productivity, constructive disruption, the organization. Second, we are making the interventions to restore growth, putting the consumer first, transforming brand building, building more holistic partnerships with retailers, and stronger core, and bigger, more innovation.
Where we are making these interventions, we are seeing strong results. Third, we are constructively disrupting P&G to create the company of the future. We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to leverage the landscape and our strengths and unique capabilities to set P&G apart as a company to lead the growth of our industry. We are confident we have what it takes to win in the short, mid, and long term. With that, we're happy to open to questions.
Okay, we'll start. Lauren, do you want to start? I've asked you, please just keep it to one question. We don't have a lot of time in this one. Lauren? Now they're bringing the mics.
Great. Thank you. So I thought it's really interesting that where you've highlighted examples of intervention really working are Latin America. Latin America, enterprise markets. So I was just curious, as we step back a little bit, and I know it's my last enterprise markets report an issue, when you were COO, thinking about org structure and what it is, is there something about the enterprise market approach, structure, accountability that is different and is a learning for the focus market as you think about, you know, how you're going to change the game a little bit?
Yeah. Yeah, I think that's a great question, Lauren. I would say what we learned when we moved from focus on enterprise was having clear accountability. So as we have organizations where that is more clearly established, we are seeing. In focus markets, we are taking it to another stage of accountability. Particularly, what we are finding is more of the horizontal aspect of it, changing the way we work so that there is less horizontal movement. People have roles that can expand across more. So I would say we're applying that, but in a different way in focus markets, where we're cleaning up a lot more of the horizontal interactions that happen. Yeah.
Daryl?
Shailesh, it was helpful to hear about all the interventions to drive growth and the examples. Just could you put a bit of context for us, the restructuring internally and how that's positioned you as an organization, to reaccelerate growth and, and relate it to the interventions?
Yeah. Sure. I think first let me just say the organizational interventions we had planned to make are on track. So those are underway and happening and have gone off very smoothly so far, and we expect that to continue. If I combine your question with a bit of, Lauren, what you were asking, fundamentally what we are doing is as we see the landscape emerge, we have to change the way we work.
And that is really where we are putting a lot of the effort, where there needs to be fewer internal transactions, much more external focus. That's where putting consumer first becomes important. Some of the tools that Pat was talking about, there is no need for multiple people doing the same thing. So what we are trying to do from an organization standpoint, the productivity plan is on track. Where we are putting a lot of energy is how we change the way we work, to get more outcome focused, to get more consumer, focused. That's where the effort is right now.
Kevin?
Great. Thanks. Kevin Grundy, BNP Paribas. Shailesh, just sticking with the intervention, because it's, it's topical and of great interest to investors, can you maybe talk about the scope of what you think needs to be addressed within the portfolio, within the focus markets? Is it an additional 30%, is it 40% within the portfolio timing that you think you're trying to set the organization to achieve it? And then was there any discussion about accelerating the pace of investment to get there, maybe outside the bounds of current guidance, but sort of stepping up to accelerate the top line? Thank you.
Thanks, Kevin. The interventions are underway in pretty much all places. I think there's a difference in when who got started, depending on when they ran into slowdowns. So I think that probably explains the big part of the variation. The second part, which explains the differences, particularly when we take U.S., which is one of this market where the interventions are only getting started.
Do I wish we had started earlier? Yes. But an important part of the interventions in U.S., we have to design them so that they are market accretive. Given our share position, given our desire to grow the total market, which results in the sales growth, it is important we design those interventions in ways that grow the market size. That then has an impact on timing, because very often that then needs to come with innovation.
I gave you the example of Tide Liquid. We needed that innovation to significantly improve the value while keeping the price the same. So it just takes, we could not, the quick way to fix value would have been change price. But no, if you want to grow the categories, then we have to do it with an innovation that is significantly better than what we had before.
So that is now underway in each of the categories. There are some which are having programs going in in January, March, t here are some in April, May, June. On the question of investment, these interventions are factored into our sequential improvement plan, both on the top and bottom line. I don't know if you want to add.
No, I think you said it. I think the only clarification or emphasis is we will continue to invest in the business, but we believe that's in the range that we have identified. And that, as Shailesh, both the sequential improvement, both on top line and bottom line, we want to see the back half of this year and then we're running the algorithm in that direction, the following year. We do not hold back, so we have active conversations with every sector, with every market, to ensure they understand there's no limit to the investment if the plans are right.
Okay, with that, we're going to move to the breakout session. Let's go.
Thank you.