Unilever outsourcing financial transaction services to IBM, job cuts possible |
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Sun, 25 Dec 2005 15:10
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LONDON: Unilever Plc has signed a seven-year contract with IBM Corporation to outsource significant parts of its financial transaction services, the Anglo-Dutch consumer products major said in a press release Friday.
The agreement will cover more than 20 European countries and is part of the One Unilever programme to increase competitiveness and step up growth, it said. IBM will provide the services, including Purchase to Pay, General Accounting and Bill to Cash, which will be delivered from the company's centres in Portugal, Poland and India. The deal will bring in cost savings to Unilever and will contribute to the overall targeted 700 million euro annual savings of the One Unilever programme.
The deal will be implemented in a phased manner over two years, starting in the first quarter of 2006. It may affect around 750 jobs.
Unilever Europe's president Kees van der Graaf said the proposed the changes envisaged as a result of the outsourcing contract will affect quite a number of the company employees in Europe and the company will do its best to find alternative employment for the affected.
Unilever has some 50,000 employees in Europe.
The company had revealed in October that it was talking to Accenture Ltd. and IBM on outsourcing some jobs, including human resources and information technology functions.
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