--Samer S. Khoury, Consolidated Contractors Company |
The World Bank recently reported that first-time job seekers in Morocco account for 65% of total unemployed youth, and that unemployment rates are 61.2% for those with secondary education or higher. Many graduates of the country’s educational system lack the professional skills necessary for success, and many employers report difficulty in finding qualified, retainable employees that can help their companies grow.
To help address these needs, EFE is providing training and job-placement programs for young Moroccans though its local affiliate, EFE Maroc, a nonprofit organization formed by EFE in partnership with Moroccan business leaders.
WORKPLACE SUCCESS TRAINING AND JOB-PLACEMENT PROGRAM
EFE has completed ten courses of the highly popular Workplace Success Training Program, featuring a professional skills curriculum published by McGraw–Hill that teaches participants how to get and keep a first job. The highly interactive course teaches students crucial business skills like teamwork, communication, goal-setting, and professional behavior.
EFE has placed 68% of its 182 graduates in jobs. The remaining graduates hold internships and/or participate in an active placement process. Additional courses will be offered in coming months, and there has been strong interest in scaling up the Workplace Success program throughout Morocco. BMCE Bank and YNNA Holding, Morocco’s largest private-sector employer, have agreed to sponsor and hire 125 additional graduates over the next year, and a number of other companies are interested in doing the same.
In keeping with EFE’s mission to encourage educational reform in the region, EFE Maroc is also working closely with Hassan II University of Casablanca to integrate Workplace Success into the university’s broader course offerings and make it available to more of its 27,000 students.
SALES TRAINING AND JOB-PLACEMENT PROGRAM
Despite the high demand from Moroccan companies for skilled marketing and sales staff, some 100,000 sales positions remain unfilled. Companies complain of a severe shortage of qualified candidates, both because young people do not perceive sales as a high-potential profession and because business schools teach students theoretical sales techniques but not the practical skills to apply them.
In response, in February 2009 EFE will launch the EFE Sales Training Program to transform motivated, college-educated youth who have been unable to find jobs into ambitious and qualified salespeople who can help Morocco’s companies compete in the global marketplace.
Consisting of 180 hours of training over three months, the EFE Sales Training Program – which is supported by the United States Department of State’s Office of The Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) – will train business-to-consumer salespeople for the automobile, banking, and mass distribution industries, including sector-specific training modules.
EFE has assembled an Sales Program International Advisory Council of sales leaders to develop and execute the Sales program. This team includes Dr. Benson P. Shapiro of Harvard Business School; Frank Cespedes of Harvard Business School (emeritus); Dr. Skander Essegaier of Koç University, Istanbul; and Mr. Alston Gardner of Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina.
“[The Sales program] in its own small way, has the potential to increase economic development in Morocco, put people to work, and increase the level of prosperity for everyone in Morocco.” – Dr. Benson P. Shapiro
