PwC to create 150 new jobs in Cork as part of expansion plans

PwC Cork assurance partner Declan Maunsell, Tánaiste Micheál Martin, PwC Cork tax partner Nicola Quinn, Enda McDonagh managing partner, PwC Ireland and Ger O'Mahoney, PwC Cork advisory partner. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

Professional services firm PwC announced it would create 150 new jobs in Cork as part of a plan to expand its existing office space at its site in the city.

PwC said the new jobs would be added to the firm’s headcount in Cork by the end of the year as it increases its entire office space at One Albert Quay by 50%, or 9,000sq ft.

The new jobs, that will being PwC’s Cork workforce to 500 staff, were created partly in response to the growing demand for services that improve business resilience, the firm suggested.

“In a world of ongoing volatility and geopolitical uncertainty, we can help business leaders focus on the disruptive forces in their businesses driven by generative AI and other emerging technologies, cyberattacks and climate change,” said Ger O’Mahoney, advisory partner at PwC Cork.

These added roles represent a “significant increase” across all business areas such as tax, advisory, audit including asset and wealth management and risk and compliance.

“Cork is a fundamental part of our business and these ambitious growth plans directly reflect our commitment to the region and to providing market leading services to our clients,” said Enda McDonagh managing partner at PwC Ireland.

There will also be an added focus on supplying services around climate change reporting as sustainability-related disclosures will become mandatory under the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

Tánaiste Minister Micheál Martin said he viewed this expansion "as a clear vote of confidence in Cork”.

PwC has offices in more than 150 countries with about 360,000 employees and is one of the so-called ‘Big Four’ largest professional services networks in the world. The others are Deloitte, EY, and KPMG.

In summer 2023, Deloitte announced plans to double its workforce in Cork, with 300 new jobs, as well as establishing a new technology and analytics hub.

Meanwhile, a global body has recently called for auditing firms to have enhanced roles for responding to corporate failures.

"While auditors are not policemen, they can and must play a role in identifying and responding to material misstatements of the financial statements due to fraud and communicating their work to users," International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board chair Tom Seidenstein said earlier this month in a statement.