Three firms have confirmed changes to EA support that involve staff based overseas. Here’s what has been announced this year and what isn’t yet known.
KPMG Australia
In February, Accounting Times reported that a corporate gossip Instagram account had leaked KPMG’s plan to offshore three-quarters of its 260-strong EA workforce to the Philippines – in phases, with only state chairs keeping their domestic EAs under that plan.
HCAmag later reported, citing the Australian Financial Review (AFR), that 200 roles were moving through Indian IT firm Coforge, and that the move was expected to save about $17 million a year.
KPMG’s chief operating officer, Eileen Hoggett, told the AFR the firm was moving to a hybrid onshore and offshore EA support model. She said meeting all contractual, legal and regulatory requirements, including those on data security and government work, was a key design principle.
PwC Australia
In May, PwC told Accounting Times that about 58% of its Australian EAs would be based at its Acceleration Centre in Manila, up from 38%, after a review of its 2019 offshoring plan. About 48 Australian EA roles would be affected, with changes to roll out through June.
PwC said it regularly reviews its operations to deliver sustainable performance and growth, and that it will continue to have onshore roles.
Accounting Times also reported that about 140 PwC Australia partners and managing directors were already supported by Manila-based EAs.
Grant Thornton Australia
In October, Accounting Times reported that Grant Thornton Australia had confirmed a “small number” of EA job losses as it moves to a new model using a Philippines-based vendor, with some roles potentially moving offshore. The professional services gossip account The Aussie Corporate had posted about the cuts earlier that week.
The firm hasn’t said how many roles are affected, but said affected staff would be supported through the transition.
What isn’t clear
Grant Thornton hasn’t given numbers and, to our knowledge, none of the firms have said which EA tasks will stay onshore. They describe the changes in terms of growth, competitiveness and a more flexible model.
Executive PA is following this story. If your firm has made or announced changes to EA support, we’d like to hear from you, anonymously if you prefer: editor@executivepa.com.
