Coles Outsources Hundreds of Office Jobs to India in Major Accenture Deal

Coles is set to move hundreds of corporate roles to India as part of a new partnership with consultancy giant Accenture, following a trend among major Australian companies to cut costs and boost online operations.

The supermarket chain aims to reduce expenses and invest in its digital capabilities to meet changing customer expectations. While most positions will relocate to India, some will be handled by Accenture locally in Australia.

"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," a Coles spokesman said, adding that the retailer would create hundreds of jobs as it opens new stores.

This move mirrors Woolworths' recent decision to offshore hundreds of corporate jobs, primarily in finance, HR, and technology, to remain competitive against international players like Amazon.

Accenture is aggressively pitching its technical expertise to Australian firms, offering access to knowledge at a scale not available locally. The expanded partnership with Coles will likely include overhauling the supermarket's online customer interaction, where it faces intense competition from Amazon.

Coles and Woolworths still dominate the Australian grocery market, but they have lost share to Amazon in high-margin categories such as health, beauty, and baby products sold online. Amazon is investing heavily in Australia, including a $750 million robotic fulfilment centre in Queensland.

The Coles board includes several former consultants, with CEO Leah Weckert having worked at McKinsey, and director Wendy Stops having spent 16 years at Accenture.

Meanwhile, Qantas is also exploring a similar partnership with Accenture under "Project iQ" to improve head office functions and allow the airline to hire more customer-facing staff. Telstra has already entered a $700 million partnership with Accenture, giving it access to specialised AI knowledge.

These moves highlight a growing trend of Australian companies leveraging global expertise to stay competitive, but they also raise concerns about the impact on local jobs.