Royal London Taps IBM for IT Outsourcing as Staff Face Redundancies
AI-generated image · US National Wire
The insurance giant plans to shift technology operations to India despite reporting rising profits in the first half of 2026.
Royal London is planning to outsource a significant portion of its technology operations to IBM, a move that as The Register first reported could result in hundreds of IT jobs being shipped to India.
According to The Register, Royal London's chief technology officer, James Sandell, informed IT staff in September about the partnership with IBM. While the company has not confirmed the exact number of roles at risk, a Glassdoor review from October 6 claims hundreds of positions in the technology operations division are being eliminated. Redundancies are expected to take place by the end of December.
In a statement to The Register, a Royal London spokesperson said the company appointed IBM as a strategic technology infrastructure partner to gain access to IBM's scale and specialist capability. The company noted it remains accountable for regulatory requirements and service delivery.
Internal dissent has surfaced via Glassdoor, where employees have questioned the company's commitment to its mutual values. One reviewer on October 12 criticized the "sudden outsourcing," while another on October 20 noted that this follows a previous decision to move servicing jobs to South Africa. A reviewer on October 6 further warned that a "vast amount of knowledge" is being lost due to previous recruitment freezes and high workloads.
These cuts come as the company sees financial growth. Royal London reported an adjusted group operating profit of £187 million for the first half of 2026, a 13 percent increase year-on-year. Chief executive Barry O'Dwyer previously highlighted that £199 million was distributed to eligible customers through ProfitShare in April, emphasizing the benefits of the company's customer-owned mutual structure.