Qantas HQ to outsource 850 jobs to Accenture

“Today we’re announcing a new multi-year partnership with Accenture and changes that will affect parts of our corporate functions,” the memo told staff.

“I know this is hard news for some, and I’m sorry for the uncertainty it brings.”

The airline later confirmed in a statement that it has signed a “strategic partnership” with Accenture to “modernise its back-end systems, processes and data, as it steps up investment in technology and AI alongside the largest fleet renewal in its history”.

It also confirmed that, under the partnership, some roles will be offshored to Accenture’s teams in India, some will remain based in Australia, and others will “in time be transformed further with automation and AI”.

The first roles are expected to be impacted in mid-2027, with more to be rolled out “over the coming years”.

Qantas said in its statement that AI and technology are “rapidly transforming how businesses operate, what customers expect and how people do their jobs.”

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“Like every airline, Qantas runs on technology built up over decades for a different era, including more than 1,000 legacy applications that were never designed to work together,” it said.

“Modernising these systems and connecting the data across them is the critical next step to remove complexity, unlock innovation and accelerate the Group’s use of AI, with lasting benefits across the business.”

The airline said the partnership with Accenture builds upon the “significant work already underway”, in developing the airline’s digital, technology, and AI strategy.

“The scale and speed of change in this space is unprecedented and unlike anything businesses have seen in generations. Leading organisations around the world are well progressed in using technology and AI to completely transform how they work, and standing still is not an option for us,” said Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson.

“We need to reinvent the processes, platforms and data behind our business so we can innovate faster and deliver a better, more connected experience for our customers and our people. That means fundamentally redesigning how the work behind our airline gets done, so it is simpler, more connected and keeps getting better, with automation and AI built in from the start.

“Accenture has a global track record of doing this work for large organisations, including other airlines. It brings the capability and talent to design this hand-in-hand with us and the capacity to help us deliver it.

“We know this will be difficult news for some of our people and this decision is not a reflection of their contribution or commitment. We are focused on providing redeployment into other roles across the Group where possible, including new roles we’re creating in Australia, as well as on reskilling, retraining and ongoing support and care.”

The internal memo to staff confirmed that the individual roles to be removed “have not been determined”, and that the airline will work closely with the affected employees and their union in the coming months.

An earlier internal memo, sighted by the Australian Financial Review in August, discussed the possibility of outsourcing up to 1,000 jobs via the Accenture partnership, potentially through a combination of AI use and offshoring.

At that time, the airline pledged to be “open and transparent” with its staff about the impact on their roles, as the airline looks to “modernise”. It said it will “work closely with the teams affected”, and arranged for a team to travel to India with Accenture to investigate further.

In January, Hudson revealed that Qantas had been “laying the foundations” to scale its AI usage “across the business” and said that Australia needs to move quickly on the “unprecedented” opportunities it represents.

“Despite all the doomsday scenarios about the impact on jobs, the reality is AI isn’t going to replace most jobs needed to operate an airline,” Hudson said at the time. “For us, AI is about working smarter and delivering a better experience for customers, and providing the tools to set our employees up for success.”

She added: “AI has the ability to unlock efficiencies that weren’t possible before, and will help us provide a better experience for customers and better support for our employees.”

“There’s no doubt that as we implement more AI across the business that it’s going to change the way many of our teams work, just as email, computers and iPads have over the past few decades. From predictive maintenance to flight planning to HR functions, the opportunities are enormous.”