Diageo is planning to outsource more of its commercial operations to India, putting some staff at risk of redundancy in Northern Ireland.
The Johnnie Walker brand owner said it was proposing to “consolidate some commercial operations capabilities from Diageo Northern Ireland into our Commercial Experience Centre of Excellence in India”.
The changes could “impact a number of commercial operations roles at Diageo Northern Ireland,” a spokesman for Diageo GB confirmed.
It is understood that around 60 positions could be affected by the move, with the roles mainly falling in Diageo’s customer support teams.
“We are committed to supporting our employees through a comprehensive consultation process and provide support during this transition period,” the Diageo spokesman added.
It comes as Diageo looks to cut costs and generate additional free-cash flow to kick-start sales.
The London-listed company laid out plans to realise $500m in cost savings over the next three years in May. However, it has since upped this target to $625m.
In August, Diageo’s interim CEO Nik Jhangiani downplayed the possibility of major job cuts as part the cost-saving programme, which it has dubbed ‘Accelerate’.
Pressed on whether Accelerate would lead to redundancies, Jhangiani said: “This is really not about job cuts or elimination of roles. Yes, there will be some but that is really not what this is about. This is about freeing up resources and dollars where we can reinvest for the business.
“This could actually be about more numbers in terms of headcount, including here in our home market where there is an opportunity to drive [growth] across not just Guinness but also in spirits,” he added.
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