IBM affected by DOGE cuts, downplays impact during Q1 earnings call

Tech and consulting giant IBM was not immune to the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) cuts. IBM had 15 of its federal contracts cancelled due to DOGE-related cuts during the first quarter of 2025, according to reporting from Reuters and Bloomberg. These cuts amount to $100 million in future payments, per Bloomberg. Federal contracts represent between 5% and just under 10% of IBM’s consulting practice. After being peppered with questions during IBM’s earnings call Wednesday, Arvind Krishna, IBM’s CEO, clarified that the cancellations were related to cutbacks at USAID. Both Krishna and James Kavanaugh, IBM’s CFO, then proceeded to downplay the potential impact of DOGE on the company’s future business. “We’ve had a handful of contracts, either statement of work, or cancel and on our annualized backlog of over $30 billion in total consulting,” Kavanaugh said. “This is like less than $100 million of backlog over a duration of multiple years. So while no one’s immune, we are ab ... Read full article.