Coles has expanded its partnership with Accenture in a move that will reshape parts of its corporate workforce, with around 1,000 Australian roles expected to be affected as work shifts to Accenture in Australia and overseas.
As a result of the new deal the Australian Financial Review has reported the supermarket giant will outsource marketing, finance, human resources and technology jobs to the Ireland-based tech consultancy. The purpose of the agreement is to bolster Coles’ technology, digital and specialist capabilities as the supermarket giant responds to growing competition and changing customer expectations.
The changes will primarily affect corporate and back office functions rather than frontline retail operations.
A Coles spokesperson said the retailer needed greater access to global technology expertise as the retail landscape continued to evolve.
“The retail sector is becoming increasingly competitive as new global players entering the market and technology reshapes how customers shop and what they expect from retailers,” the spokesperson said.
“To meet our customers’ growing expectations for seamless, personalised, digital experiences, Coles needs access to the global skills and resources essential to delivering those experiences.
“This partnership will give Coles access to that capability at a greater scale and pace, allowing us to better support our teams, move faster, and deliver for our customers.”
The spokesperson also said the deal would help lower operating costs.
“The partnership will also help reduce costs in order to continue delivering value for our customers at the checkout.”
As part of the agreement, some corporate work currently performed by Coles employees will move to Accenture, both in Australia and overseas.
While the company has not confirmed exactly how many positions will be affected, the AFR is also reporting that around 1,000 workers as roles are transferred offshore, including to India. It is also understood that marketing will be affected. But when B&T put this to the supermarket juggernaut, it declined to comment.
Coles did however say it would attempt to minimise job losses by redeploying affected employees where possible.
“We recognise the impact this has on individuals and our wider team, and these decisions are never made lightly,” the spokesperson said.
“We will redeploy as many affected team members as possible, including reskilling opportunities and pathways into other roles across Coles.”
The supermarket giant stressed the changes would affect only a small proportion of its workforce of approximately 115,000 employees and would not impact the vast majority of staff working in stores.
The announcement highlights the increasing pressure on Australia’s major retailers to invest in digital capabilities while keeping costs under control. Partnerships with global technology firms have become a common way for large businesses to access specialist skills, although they can also result in work being shifted to lower-cost offshore markets.
This closely follows the news from earlier this week that alleged “advanced discussions” are being had between Qantas and Accenture over another potential offshoring deal that could see up to 1,000 back-office roles moved out of Australia as part of an AI-led transformation project.
Coles biggest competitor Woolworths, back in June also announced it was offshoring some jobs to Asia in a bid to “remain competitive with the rapid expansion of international players in the market”.
