Accenture urges staff to forgo August vacations as CEO pushes sales drive

Accenture announced a one-time policy allowing employees to roll over unused vacation days after September 1, aiming to keep workers on the job through August while CEO Julie Sweet calls for a strong Q4 sales push.

Accenture has introduced a temporary rule permitting employees to transfer unused vacation days to the following fiscal year starting September 1, in order to reduce time-off during the crucial August period. CEO Julie Sweet used an internal communication to urge staff to increase effort on client projects and pursue new sales opportunities, describing the need to deliver a strong fourth-quarter performance for shareholders.

The move comes after the firm reported a 2% decline in new bookings for the quarter ending May 31 and issued a revenue outlook that fell short of analyst expectations, causing an 18% one-day drop in its stock. Investors have expressed concern that the company's consulting model could be disrupted by artificial-intelligence advances, despite Sweet’s view of AI as a growth catalyst. Accenture’s shares have since recovered but remain down more than 36% year-to-date. The vacation-rollover policy is part of a broader effort to stabilize results and reassure the market as the company heads into its new fiscal year.