Layoffs, pay cuts, and dialed-back recruiting: Here's how the biggest accounting and consulting firms are cutting costs and shrinking headcount
Advertisement
Business Insider
Oct 2, 2020, 00:22 IST
FILE PHOTO: The KPMG logo pictured during the Viva Tech start-up and technology summit in ParisReuters
Professional services firms have been laying off employees and cutting pay as the coronavirus pandemic has hit their business pipelines.
Firms have seen clients rein in on spending on consulting and advisory work as economic conditions across industries remain unclear.
Advertisement
The question mark over the economy has also led to less recruiting at these firms, impacting graduates from both undergrad and graduate programs.
Employees are also staying put more than usual because of an uncertain job market, meaning the firms have to take more proactive steps as opposed to relying on people leaving on their own to help manage headcount.
Business Insider has been keeping track of which firms have announced layoffs, pay cuts, and how they're thinking about recruitment.
Do you have information about layoffs or pay cuts at professional-services firms? Reach out to the reporter: sstokes@businessinsider.com or send a message via encrypted messaging app Signal at 646-389-7866.
KPMG laid off 1,400 of its 35,000 US employees from its 35,000-member US workforce in late September.
The layoffs included tax, audit, and advisory employees, the firm confirmed, and additional staff in business process groups, according to a source familiar with the matter. It also cut pay for some employees.
Professional services firm Accenture is cutting up to 25,000 jobs from its workforce, including layoffs in the US and more planned cuts in the UK and India.
Analysts say the proposed cuts — about 5% of Accenture's workforce —are on par with how many employees usually leave the company per year and could affect all teams and industries.
The Big 4 usually extend job offers to summer interns and then recruits additional MBA candidates in the fall to start work after graduating in the spring.
Do you have information about layoffs or pay cuts at professional-services firms? Reach out to the reporter: sstokes@businessinsider.com.
Advertisement
{{}}
NewsletterSIMPLY PUT - where we join the dots to inform and inspire you. Sign up for a weekly brief collating many news items into one untangled thought delivered straight to your mailbox.