PwC reveals Global Revenue, Commits over USD7 million to development of Singapore Team

PwC Singapore has announced its commitment of over USD7 million to digitally upskill its people in line with its global ‘New World. New Skills.’ commitment. In addition, the firm has revealed its global revenue has increased by 4%.

PwC has revealed that, for the 12 months ending 30 June 2019, its global revenue has increase to USD42.4 billion, a 4% increase from the 2018 figure in USD. The professional services network (PSN) has reported a growth in revenue across all lines of business and major markets, attributing the growth in revenue in part to the PSN’s continued investments in quality, technology and people. It has also attributed some of the boosted revenue to the power of the PwC brand.

The PSN has stated that the growth in its cyber security, trust, regulation and strategic workforce planning operations has stemmed from client demand, as the firm’s clients face increasing challenges and opportunities driven by technological advances, stakeholder expectations and other changes, meaning that they require cooperation with PwC across the broad range of our operations the firm offers.

Bob Moritz, Global Chairman of PwC, stated that “Over the past year, we’ve continued to focus on delivering value to our stakeholders, working hard to build trust and help our clients solve their most complex problems. As a result, PwC businesses grew in all major markets around the world. Our strong growth in revenues has enabled us to continue to invest in our businesses and our people. Investments in technology are making our services more relevant and enhancing the quality of our work.”

PwC’s ‘New World. New Skills.’ has been implemented as a product of the PSN’s desire to address the growing mismatch between the skills people have and those needed for the digital world. The firm has stated that there is an urgent need for organisations, governments and educators to come together to fix this growing problem, with businesses having a crucial role to play in reducing the growing chasm between peoples’ skill levels and the skills that they actually require to meet industry stakeholder expectations.

“Over the next four years, we are committing USD3 billion in upskilling globally – primarily in training our people but also in developing and sharing technologies to support clients and communities.” Moritz stated.

PwC’s Singapore operation recently released its Upskilling Hopes and Fears report, which revealed that 31% of Singaporeans felt that they were not well-equipped for new workplace technologies. In an attempt to ensure that the firm’s Singaporean affiliates fall outside this 31%, the Singapore firm is committing over USD7 million to developing their people’s digital skills, across a two-year period.

Yeoh Oon Jin, Executive Chairman at PwC Singapore, stated of the initiative that “We are kick-starting this with a two-year comprehensive multi-platform programme designed to digitally upskill our people. The programme is intended to drive a culture of innovation where each staff and partner is empowered with the right mindset and capabilities in data and automation to determine the path they want to take, and even play a part in shaping the profession of the future.”

Yeoh continued that “The advances in technology also means that there are some who may be left behind. So, as part of our corporate responsibility effort, we are also working with our clients, government agencies and engaging with communities to help close the skills gap in today’s digital world.”

The upskilling endeavour will see 3500 of PwC Singapore’s people systematically trained through classroom and virtual training sessions on data visualisation, analytics and automation; the development of ‘digital fitness’ through PwC’s Digital Fitness Assessment app; easy-to-access internal e-learning platforms and materials; solution-sharing and innovation through our centralised solutions repository and technology collaboration platform; and a committed headcount to help teams utilise insights, automate processes, develop solutions and improve user experience to accelerate digitalisation across the firm.

On a larger scale, the ‘New World. New Skills.’ initiative will see all of the firm’s 276,000 people, with the PSN committed to rolling out different programmes to meet the different needs of different divisions.

PwC is also intent on advising their clients on the challenges posed by rapid technological change and automation, which will include the identification of skill gaps, workforce planning, upskilling programmes and a change in the company’s culture.

The PSN is also committed to working with governments and institutions to reach a much broader group of people; PwC Luxembourg has been named as an example, as it has helped to develop the Luxembourg Skills Bridge, bringing together trade unions, associations and businesses to build digital industries and develop digital skills, including among those populations most ‘at risk’.

PwC has reaffirmed its commitment to quality following a year which has seen good performance around the globe. It has stated that it will continue to invest significant resources in the continuous enhancement of all of its businesses.

Moritz commented that “The quality of our work across the full range of our services is incredibly important. While we are proud to have been the first of the global professional services networks to have published its internal audit quality inspection results, we know we have more to do and are operating with a continuous improvement mindset.”

He concluded that “Both in terms of how we test, measure and enhance quality and also in the levels of investment we need to make to ensure our quality is as high as possible. We have added more detail in our Global Annual Review on audit quality and aim to increase transparency in the future.”