Accenture: An insider guide - Gymkhana

decade, it introduced successive waves of layoffs and
slowed down its recruiting efforts. Employees worked
longer and networked harder to make sure they wouldn’t
find themselves “unstaffed,” or without a project and
thus more vulnerable to getting laid off, for too long.
Says one insider, “In the bad times, you get a sense of
your internal worth. The best people, in theory, wouldn’t
ever be available for a project because if you’re out there
networking, you’ll never be unstaffed.”
“ ”
Accenture can be a
great place to have a
career—you’ll have
the resources and
clout of a huge
company behind
you—but it’s not for
everyone.
The Company
Since mid-2003, insiders report that the mood has
changed. The firm has “turned the taps back on,” for new hires, says an
insider, and skilled analysts and consultants again find themselves in demand
for projects.
Increased hiring stems directly from a rebound in the economy and, in particular,
the industry sectors Accenture serves. Communications and technology, financial
services, products (companies ranging from health care to travel services), and
resources are all growing at double-digit rates. For its 2004 fiscal year, the company
expects net revenue to rise 15 to 16 percent, up from 2 percent in 2003.
When corporations slashed their spending budgets during the downturn, contracts
with government agencies helped. They continue to buoy earnings. In the first
6 months of 2004, operating profits from its government sector made up 14.5
percent of total revenue. Meanwhile, it’s increasingly focused on outsourcing,
taking over whole IT or human resources functions for clients. In the last
year, Accenture has inked outsourcing deals with big firms such as Best Buy
and Deutsche Bank. Outsourcing now contributes nearly 40 percent of total
revenue. And in keeping with the trend rippling throughout the rest of Corporate
America, it’s helping companies move some of their operations offshore.
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