The company, which owns popular cigarette brands such as Dunhill, Rothmans, and Newport, tapped Accenture last year to support its outsourcing and AI integration efforts.
- Accenture has taken over certain roles from the company’s offices in Costa Rica, Mexico, Poland, Romania, and Malaysia, as well as from its supply chain in the U.K. and Singapore.
- Certain high-level jobs from Poland and Romania are being outsourced to ITC Infotech in Bangalore, India.
- British American Tobacco has struggled to grow in recent years, with revenue falling by more than 7% from 2022 to 2025.
British American Tobacco (BTI) said Monday it will eliminate roughly 5,500 international jobs and move about 3,500 jobs to its partners.
According to reports by The Guardian and Bloomberg, the latest move aims to streamline the business as it deploys artificial intelligence and seeks to maximize cost savings.
At the time of writing, BTI stock was down just under 2% in early premarket trading.
British American Tobacco’s Fit2Win Initiative
The reductions are being implemented as part of its “Fit2Win” restructuring initiative, launched in 2025, through which it targets roughly £600 million ($792 million) in annual savings by 2028. The latest move is keeping the company on track to achieve its savings goal.
“These changes affect many of our colleagues, and we are focused on supporting them through this transition with care and respect, as we position the business for the future,” said CEO Tadeu Marroco. “Whether through strategic partnerships or a more focused operational footprint, we are creating a simpler, faster BAT.”
British American Tobacco Outsources Jobs
BAT, which owns popular cigarette brands like Dunhill, Rothmans, and Newport, tapped Accenture last year to help with its outsourcing and AI integration efforts. The professional IT services firm has taken over certain roles across the company’s offices in Costa Rica, Mexico, Poland, Romania, and Malaysia, as well as in its UK and Singapore supply chain.
Last year, BAT said it would leverage Accenture’s analytics and agentic AI capabilities to help employees upskill across the globe.
Additionally, a group of roles in Pakistan has transitioned to a local IT firm, and certain high-level jobs from Poland and Romania are being outsourced to ITC Infotech in Bangalore, India.
The company and ITC Infotech will also collaborate with technology hubs in Malaysia to strengthen BAT’s technology operations and identify areas to maximize efficiency. Jobs in the U.S. are insulated from the latest cuts.
Tobacco Companies Struggle: BAT Is No Exception
British American Tobacco has struggled to grow in recent years, with revenue falling by more than 7% from 2022 to 2025, as global smoking trends continue to decline, according to the World Health Organization.
The change in consumer behavior has resulted in lower production volumes, which tobacco companies have been counteracting with price increases.
Moreover, global markets are also being flooded with duplicate smoking products, eating into the profit share of incumbent tobacco companies. British American Tobacco said it recently shuttered its manufacturing plant in Heidelberg, South Africa, citing an “unsustainable level of illicit products” dominating the market.
What Retail Traders Think About BTI
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment about the stock turned ‘neutral’ from ‘bearish’ over the past 24 hours.
BTI stock has gained nearly 11% so far this year and over 30% over the past 12 months, outperforming the S&P 500.
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