Accenture is slashing 19,000 jobs in the next 18 months and has also lowered its revenue guidance at the upper end for the 2023 fiscal year, an indication of the worsening stress in the IT services sector as clients pull back on spending with an increased focus on cost optimisation.
Accenture has over 3 lakh employees in India, and its results — which come just days before Indian IT reports its Q4 numbers — signal how the results of Indian IT companies are likely to shape up.
Of the 19,000 employees it will lay off, Accenture said over half will be in non-billable corporate functions. Speaking to analysts, Chief Financial Officer KC McClure said nearly half of these layoffs will be in FY23, or before August 31.
Chief Executive Officer of Accenture Julie Sweet said the company is seeing wage inflation as none of them has ever experienced, which they were addressing so far through a combination of improved pricing and cost efficiencies.
