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THE RIGHT MIX2015 CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITYEmployee EngagementResults from Xcel Energy's annual engagementsurvey show that our employees:Have favorable engagementThink safety is a priority at Xcel EnergyBelieve Xcel Energy is a responsible company83%92%78%Our ApproachAs a company, we are focused on building a workforce of people who are highly engaged and bring their best to work every day. A significant partof our engagement effort involves empowering employees to create positive change within the company. By engaging our employees effectively,we can increase productivity, work more efficiently and collaborate across business areas to share best practices and solve problems. We alsoencourage employees to engage in and support their local communities, creating a positive impact in the places where we live, work and serveour customers.

THE RIGHT MIX2015 CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITYEmployee Input and ParticipationEmployee engagement at Xcel Energy continues to steadily rise, as measured through our annual employee engagement survey. In 2015, wereached an 83 percent overall favorable response, up one point from 2014, with 78 percent of employees participating. We saw improved orconsistently steady results across most categories in the survey. Areas that saw the greatest increase in positive responses company-wide includecommunication, both on company plans as well as communication from supervisors, recognition tools for good performance, and empowermentand involvement. Safety continues to be one of our highest-scoring categories, with continued improvement in 2015.We use two primary benchmarks to compare our results, outside of our previous year’s performance. Namely, we leverage a U.S. energy and utilitycompanies benchmark, as well as a U.S. high performing companies benchmark. Xcel Energy’s results are above the benchmark for U.S. energy andutility companies and are continuing to close the gap on U.S. high performing companies.Company managers, who have five or more employees responding to the survey, receive and are encouraged to share results with their teams,leveraging the information to build on strengths and build on opportunities to improve.Beyond the annual survey, employees have several opportunities to share input with Xcel Energy leadership throughout the year. They can submitanonymous comments as part of the engagement survey and ask questions during regular leadership webcasts and face-to-face meetings.Employee Recognition ProgramsEmployee recognition is a powerful tool that can contribute to improved bottom-line results by helping build trust, engage employees and improveproductivity.XCelebrateThe XCelebrate program and website provides Xcel Energy leaders and employees the tools to recognize those whose work supports the value,brand and goals of our company. XCelebrate has two simple, but powerful options to show appreciation for a job well done: animated eCardsand XCelebrate Awards. Animated eCards help show appreciation for performance and achievements that have made an impression, or simply tobrighten someone’s day. XCelebrate Award nominations are monetary awards that can be submitted to recognize more substantial achievementswith significant business impacts. We have a corporate budget of 1.2 million to support this program to ensure our employees are recognized fordeserving efforts. In 2015, there were 10,059 recognition moments.Years of RecognitionOur Years of Contribution program honors employees for contributions and accomplishments during their careers with Xcel Energy. Recognitionoccurs at an employee’s five-year anniversary with the company, every five years after that and upon retirement. In 2015, 1,529 years ofcontribution and 362 retirements were honored.Business Resource GroupsTo help achieve a more productive and inclusive workplace, Xcel Energy supports the formation and advancement of Business Resource Groups.These groups offer employees an inclusive venue for cultural exchange, community outreach and business solutions that contribute to professionaland personal growth. These groups work together to help the company achieve its business goals. More than 800 employees participate in ourBusiness Resource Groups. ECN (Employee Connection Network): Connects new and existing employees and helps broaden all employees’ understanding ofXcel Energy through networking opportunities, meet-ups and community service events. GCEEE (General Counsel Employee Excellence and Equality Committee): Aids the general counsel in fostering a spirit of inclusivenessthroughout the company. GROW: Identifies and implements innovative ideas and strategies for recruiting, developing, promoting and retaining women in nontraditional work roles in our Energy Supply business area.

THE RIGHT MIX2015 CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY MOVE (Military Ombudsmen for Veterans and Employees): Sustains awareness on issues of interest to veterans and active militaryemployees in our workforce focusing on the development, implementation and communication of programs and policies centered on thewelfare of veterans and their families. SAGE (Supportive Association for Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender Employees): Works to help the company become and remaina leader in this area of workforce diversity by addressing issues relating to sexual orientation and gender identification. SOURCE (Strategic Organization Utilizing Resources for Career Enhancement): Promotes career development, continued education,training and cultural awareness with a focus on African Americans. Tribal Wind: Supports diverse workforce initiatives and the Native American population through business initiatives such as recruiting,retention, professional development and cultural awareness. W IN (Women’s Interest Network): Focuses on issues of interest to women, such as professional development and work/life balance. !Xcelente¡: Increases visibility of Latino employees within the company and community, promotes professional development and sharesLatino culture through awareness, inclusion and celebration. X E WiN (Women in Nuclear): Explores and develops programs that help all employees working within our nuclear organization to expandtheir leadership skills, network and create positive visibility for the nuclear industry within the communities we serve.Positive EffectXcel Energy employees are encouraged to be involved and make a “Positive Effect,” both at work and in the community. We can each be an expert,advocate and champion for the company. Throughout the year, employees have the opportunity to learn more about Xcel Energy and to volunteerand support the company’s initiatives through this ambassador engagement program.Xcel Energy has a number of communication tools in place internally to keep employees informed and connected, including: Daily news and an employee news magazine An online knowledge base Executive and other webcasts Business Resource Groups An enterprise social media network Trainings and new employee orientationEmployees are encouraged to support their communities through a number of volunteer and charitable programs, including: Volunteer Paid Time Off (VPTO): Full-time employees are eligible for up to 40 hours per year to volunteer for nonprofit organizations in ourservice area to help strengthen the communities we serve. Dollars-for-Doing: The Xcel Energy Foundation matches each hour employees volunteer with a 10-per-hour contribution to the nonprofit, upto 100 hours annually per employee. Matching Gifts: The company matches dollar for dollar any employee and retiree charitable donations of 50 or more, up to 750 fornonprofit organizations and up to 2,000 for higher education institutions. United Way: Xcel Energy sponsors an annual United Way campaign and matches the pledges of employees, retirees and contractors. Day of Service: The company sponsors a special volunteer day where employees demonstrate collectively their community spirit. Board service: Throughout our service territory, we currently have more than 250 employees serving on nonprofit boards, with someemployees serving on multiple boards.

THE RIGHT MIX2015 CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITYGrassroots advocacy is important to Xcel Energy because our industry is so complex. We can help educate our friends, neighbors and communityleaders by participating in: L egislative Day: We offer employees a special day at the capital in each of our jurisdictions for employees to meet their elected officials andlearn more about the legislative process. Local events and meetings: Employees can represent the company at community meetings and special events. Political Action Committees: Employees can voluntarily participate in six different groups that are organized and run by employees.United Way CampaignXcel Energy has a long-standing tradition of supporting United Way and the community organizations it assists. Each year, we sponsor an employeecampaign that for six consecutive years has raised well over 2.5 million annually in employee and retiree pledges, which the company matches.The campaign also includes a number of special fundraising events—from chili cook-offs to sport tournaments. The campaign is a fun andrewarding part of working at Xcel Energy.The company’s 2015 United Way campaign was one of the most successful, as we topped a number of campaign measures, including: Highest combined total of employee and retiree pledges and event funds Highest average gift donation in history Most number of leadership-level pledges Highest event contribution totalMore than 5,000 employees and retirees contributed 2.8 million, which the company matched, for a total of more than 5.4 million raised. Thefunds will support United Way programs and hundreds of nonprofit organizations throughout Xcel Energy’s service territory.In Colorado, Mile High United Way in metro Denver honored Xcel Energy with two major awards for the 2015 campaign. The company wasrecognized with the Best Employee Engagement and Boots on the Ground award for outstanding achievement in employee education andengagement year-round. We also received the Best Collaboration and Innovation award for the second annual Energy United Duck Derbyfundraising event that we host with other energy companies.Xcel Energy supports United Way at the highest levels, with a long history of company leaders serving on boards and committees. David Eves, XcelEnergy president of Public Service Company of Colorado served as board chair for Mile High United Way in 2015. In 2016, Ben Fowke, Xcel Energypresident, chairman and CEO, will serve as board chair for the Greater Twin Cities United Way campaign. David Hudson, Xcel Energy presidentof Southwestern Public Service Company, will serve as board chair for the United Way of Amarillo and Canyon in Texas, while Mark Nisbet, XcelEnergy principal manager in North Dakota, will serve as the board chair for the United Way of Cass Clay in Fargo.2015 Day of ServiceXcel Energy made a difference in numerous communities during our annual Day of Service held in September. Nearly 3,500 employees, familymembers, friends and even customers volunteered for more than 80 nonprofit projects. Volunteers performed a number of tasks from packingfood boxes to planting trees and park cleanup. In total, the effort contributed more than 10,300 volunteer hours in a single day to support our localcommunities.