Colgate-Palmolive Interview Questions & Reviews

Interviewed Jan 2009 in New York, NY (took 3 days)

I was initially screened by a HR manager over the phone. After that I went in for a ~4 hour interview where I met 1 on 1 with employees at different levels including co-workers, middle management, upper management, and HR. After that, I was called in for another ~4 hour interview of the same format but I met with different people.

My word of advice would be that while co-workers, HR, and middle management seem to be looking for the typical things you would expect (are you competent in the skills needed for this job, will you get along with others, how much training will you require, etc), upper management is definitely more interested in whether or not you will fit into Colgate's corporate culture and whether you can cope with your place in the chain of command. I found that it might have actually been to my detriment when I emphasized my self-starter and critical thinking abilities.

Also, everyone is very interested in your abilities to be a team player (at least in Marketing). Everyone I spoke with mentioned this and emphasized the need to be able to hold your own in a meeting and consensus based corporate culture.

Final tip, do not dress casually to your interview as the dress code there is suits every day.