Nearly 400 roles will go at KPMG Australia as consulting demand slides and the whistleblower scandal continues to bite
KPMG Australia has confirmed it will cut almost 400 roles – 27 partners and about 360 employees – as the big four professional services firm grapples with a sharp downturn in consulting work linked to its long-running whistleblower scandal.
The cuts, announced today (24 August), are the first stage of a wider restructure that KPMG Australia chief executive John Sams has warned could extend into the 2026–27 financial year.
Consulting arm bears brunt of KPMG job cuts
KPMG's results for the year to 30 June 2026 show total revenue slipped about 1 per cent to $2.26 billion. Consulting revenue, once the firm's largest division, fell 17 per cent to $632 million – down from more than $1 billion three years ago.
Audit and assurance revenue rose 11 per cent to $405 million and tax and legal revenue grew a similar amount, but neither offset the consulting slump. Average equity partner pay also fell 13 per cent, or roughly $72,000, to $645,000.
Most of the roles affected sit in the consulting and internal business services divisions, and further reductions are expected once the firm completes mandatory consultation on award-based roles and its busiest audit period ends in late August.
The move follows earlier reporting that job cuts and partner pay reductions were being prepared at KPMG well before Monday's confirmation.
Whistleblower scandal continues to weigh on the firm
The cuts land against the backdrop of a governance crisis that has consumed KPMG Australia since March, when allegations emerged that audit partners misused confidential client documents – including Lendlease board papers – to help win work from other clients.
The fallout has cost the firm several major audit mandates and driven out a string of senior leaders, including former chief executive Andrew Yates and former chief operating officer Eileen Hoggett.
KPMG had previously said no final decisions had been made on job cuts amid the scandal's fallout, even as reports pointed to reductions eventually reaching as many as 1,000 roles.
Sams, who took over as CEO in July, acknowledged in Monday's statement that the firm's restructure reflects "the challenges created by our own failings" and said rebuilding trust remained an ongoing task.
The scandal has also touched the firm's people function directly, with KPMG's HR chief stepping down amid the broader leadership exodus earlier this month.
What the cuts mean for HR leaders
For HR and people leaders watching the sector, the KPMG situation is a reminder of how quickly a governance failure can flow through into workforce decisions, client retention and employee sentiment.
KPMG said its immediate focus is on treating affected staff with care, dignity and respect, and on making wellbeing support central to the redundancy process.
The firm is also bracing for continued disruption: Sams flagged that economic growth is expected to stay subdued until at least 2028, and that AI is reshaping how consulting services are delivered and priced, adding further pressure to headcount planning across the professional services sector.
Big clients including Lendlease and Macquarie Group are reportedly reviewing their KPMG relationships, and the firm remains barred from bidding for new federal, New South Wales and Victorian government contracts until at least the end of September while related reviews continue.
Sams said the firm would keep monitoring performance and "act when needed" as circumstances evolve – language that suggests Monday's cuts are unlikely to be the last.
