Accounting giant KPMG has cut 195 jobs in its US audit division, constituting a little more than 2% of its audit staff in the country, reported Bloomberg.
The reduction is in response to low staff turnover and shifts in the way the company runs its core business.
In a statement, the firm said: “We are changing what we do and how we work.
“Our multi-year audit transformation is driving changes in how we conduct our audit and assurance services. We are also balancing the need for new skills to meet changing market demands against persistently low attrition.”
The affected employees were informed of the layoffs earlier in the week.
KPMG has committed to providing those who have been laid off with severance benefits, options for extended health coverage, and support for career transitions.
This latest round of layoffs is the fourth in a series of workforce reductions over the past three years, with two rounds of job cuts made in 2023 and one in 2022.
The downsizing coincides with a period of leadership transition at KPMG, with Tim Walsh recently taking over as US CEO and Christian Peo appointed as the audit sector vice chair.
In 2024, KPMG reported US revenues amounting to $12.6bn.
Recently, KPMG faced scrutiny from regulatory bodies.
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) imposed sanctions on the firm and audit engagement partner Anthony Sykes following identified breaches in the audit of the N Brown Group’s financial statements for the year ending on 26 February 2022.
Both KPMG and Sykes have conceded to these breaches, which involved critical audit procedures related to the impairment of non-current assets, a measure to ensure that a company’s asset values are accurately represented in financial reports.
