Accenture To Cut Jobs And Lower Revenue Forecast Amid Global Economic Downturn In IT Services

Accenture Plc on Thursday announced a reduction in its annual revenue and profit forecasts, as well as plans to cut 19,000 jobs, equivalent to about 2.5 per cent of its workforce. 

This move highlights the continued impact of the deteriorating global economic outlook on corporate spending in the IT services sector. 

The majority of the job cuts will be concentrated in non-billable corporate functions, and the announcement caused Accenture's shares to rise by more than 4 per cent before the start of trading. 

The company has now revised its anticipated annual revenue growth to be in the range of 8 per cent to 10 per cent, down from its earlier projection of an 8 per cent to 11 per cent increase.

In a similar vein, last month, Cognizant Technology Solutions CTSH.O indicated muted growth in bookings, referring to deals that IT services companies have in their pipeline, for 2022. 

This came after its first-quarter revenue forecast fell below market expectations. Following suit, Accenture has now revised its expected earnings per share to be between USD 10.84 and USD 11.06, down from the previous estimate of USD 11.20 to USD 11.52.