If, most of the time, we talk about creating a company and an activity of one’s own to “work in Morocco”, it is because it is often difficult for a European or a MRE returning to Morocco to find a position in a local company, when it is not a question of “high level” functions. The different work habits, the low delegation (sweet euphemism), as well as the salary requirements and the ANAPEC procedure, are responsible for many failures.
There is one sector that escapes this, and which is, on the contrary, one of the branches hiring the most professionals with between three and ten years of experience. Moroccans wishing to return to the country after training and a first job abroad or foreign consultants with the same level of experience are extremely sought after by a rapidly developing consulting market.
Why is consulting developing so much in Morocco?
To support the economy and businesses.
From the beginning of his reign, Mohamed VI launched major development projects, the fight against poverty (National Initiative for Human Development), against illiteracy, etc. but also plans for the development of economic activity, without which no human development can be achieved in the long term.
Several vital sectors have been selected, including agriculture and tourism. Beyond these sectoral plans, the administration and “support” companies (in particular banks and insurance companies) must evolve.
Moreover, Morocco has turned a lot towards Africa. This has enabled the country to balance the weight of its various partners, instead of being almost exclusively dependent on the former colonisers. Today, Morocco is a bridgehead for French-speaking Africa. Moroccan companies are developing there, and many foreign companies use their Moroccan subsidiary (or create one) to be able to develop more easily in Africa.
Morocco’s international development requires the еѵоlutіоn and modernisation of companies, whatever their size. Large companies, such as banks or insurance companies, are directly confronted with international competition, as well as with increasingly restrictive normative requirements.
But smaller companies also need support to strengthen both the domestic and export markets: certification, process quality, marketing or strategic support, etc.
Morocco needs experts and consultants.
Which consultant profiles are most in demand?
Large companies are more interested in consultants who have already acquired experience and expertise, typically profiles with three to five years in consulting, and if possible international experience.
National strategic assignments are generally carried out by large international consulting firms, such as McKinsey or BCG. At the level of large clients, assignments are shared between European firms [it’s quite seldom a practice in the US/Canada directly operates in Morocco], Moroccan firms associated with European firms (subsidiaries or cooperation agreements), and, to a lesser extent, purely Moroccan firms. SMEs, for budgetary reasons in particular, will tend to choose Moroccan firms, whether they are associated with an international network or not.
Many missions are focused on рrосеѕѕ орtіmіѕаtіоn, reorganisation, change management following the implementation of new tools, as well as the consequences of mergers or acquisitions.
Human resources management, for a long time totally non-existent in Morocco (yes, yes…) is starting to become a subject, as highly qualified resources are rare, and therefore precious.
Highly technical profiles are also sought after in agriculture as well as in certain industrial sectors, notably new energies.
Finally, in the field of strategy and finance, real knowledge of Moroccan specificities is necessary.
The field of Islamic finance, which is called here “participative finance” is in full development, with a demand for good technicians.
Marketing consultancy
For marketing consultancy, it is necessary to make a difference between marketing for Morocco (the sector is crowded, for a market which is finally quite small and still very traditional) and marketing for export. Here Moroccan companies need to be accompanied, both in the preparation and implementation of marketing actions, and in the cultural discovery of foreign markets, such as Asia or Africa.
Yes, if Morocco is on the African continent, working in black African countries requires adaptation and taking into account local particularities. Some Moroccan companies have learned this to their cost.
This is even truer for Asian markets, particularly Chinese, and there are few consulting firms with real experience of these markets that are capable of supporting Moroccan companies.
The salary level of a consultant in Morocco
After a time when salary levels were almost equal, which mеаnt a much better standard of living, the market has become more streamlined. Salary levels can vary from simple to double between very large firms such as MacKinsey and Moroccan firms integrated into international networks, to simple to triple when it comes to solely local firms.
The important points :
- training in a good school (Europe, USA, Canada)
- an excellent level of French (yes, most of the work is done and reported in French, not Arabic. You could find offers for English speaking people, but a basic knowledge of business French is a must)
- a first experience in a consulting firm, in the sectors in which your future employer operates
- live (or want to live) in Casablanca, the heart of the country’s economic life, which concentrates almost all the headquarters of the major consulting clients
In this case, a senior consultant could earn between twenty and twenty-five thousand dirhams net in the first year, plus a bonus on objectives. (Never forget: in Morocco, we only talk about net salary after social charges and income tax). The salary for a project manager will be between twenty-five and thirty thousand dirhams.
How to get hired as a consultant in Morocco when you are abroad?
Whether you have a Moroccan passport and are looking to rеturn to Morocco, or whether you are a foreigner who wants to move to the sun, the main difficulty remains finding interesting positions in a country where recruitment is not very structured, and where a very large part of hiring is done through a network, informally.
Generally speaking, looking for a job in Morocco without being there physically is difficult.
LinkedIn is of course an essential social network, but (a big BUT) the return is very low for recruiters: many people respond without matching the position, which generates a “tsunami” of applications, which overwhelms the recruiter. Moroccan groups are only advertising spaces, and rarely survive more than a few weeks.
There are, of course, online advertising sites, either dedicated to job offers, such as Rekrute, Bayt, Maroc Emploi, Emploi.ma, or in the sections of the large generalist advertising sites such as Avito. These ads are often copied from other sites, and consultant offers are in the minority.
Facebook remains the essential social network in Morocco. By joining expatriate groups, you can get information and make contacts. In the same vein, forums like expat.com can be useful. Forget about traveller’s forums altogether, though.
Alumni associations are a good channel, especially when they have a special Morocco section. But even without that, they offer a directory where you can find alumni in Morocco and contact them.
Ask all your contacts… I know a соnѕultаnt who found a great job thanks to a CV left by his mother in a restaurant…
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