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Qantas to outsource 850 local jobs with most roles moving to India

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Seeking to overhaul more than 1,000 legacy applications and accelerate its adoption of artificial intelligence, the airline has partnered with Accenture to manage several corporate functions. The multi-year operational shift will see positions across finance, marketing, and human resources transferred predominantly overseas starting in mid-2027. This modernization drive unfolds as the carrier grapples with elevated fuel expenses that could trigger flight reductions and higher passenger fares. To support these ongoing operational upgrades, Qantas currently directs more than AU$1 billion annually toward its technology investments.

Key points

  • Corporate functions transferred to Accenture will ultimately undergo deeper operational t…: Corporate functions transferred to Accenture will ultimately undergo deeper operational transformations through automation and artificial intelligence.
  • The major restructuring arrives alongside carrier warnings regarding potential flight red…: The major restructuring arrives alongside carrier warnings regarding potential flight reductions and fare hikes caused by climbing fuel costs.
  • While most impacted procurement, finance, people, and marketing roles will relocate to In…: While most impacted procurement, finance, people, and marketing roles will relocate to India, some positions will remain in Australia.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

- Published

Qantas will outsource 850 local corporate jobs to consulting giant Accenture with most roles moving to India as the airline fast-tracks AI investment.

In an internal email to staff on Tuesday, the Australian company's CEO Vanessa Hudson said "this is hard news for some and I'm sorry for the uncertainty it brings".

The job cuts will begin mid-2027, she said, and start with finance, procurement, people and marketing roles shifting "mostly" to teams in India and "some in Australia" as the firm seeks to modernise its IT systems.

Hudson said the "scale and speed of change in technology and AI is something none of us has seen in our lifetime", and it was in talks with unions and staff on the plans.

The move comes days after the airline provided a market update, flagging fare increases and flight cuts amid higher fuel costs.

On its new multi-year deal with Accenture, Hudson said it was about "modernising" the airline's IT systems to become "more efficient".

Qantas spends more than AU$1bn (US$691m; £514m) a year on technology, she said, and…

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