1. What are Morocco’s strengths and challenges for a company like yours?
Established in Morocco in 2007, Leyton initially started as a sales and client support hub, mainly targeting French-speaking markets. Over time, the company evolved significantly by expanding into Engineering Service Outsourcing (ESO), strategically repositioning itself toward English-speaking markets such as the United Kingdom, North America as well as Scandinavia. Morocco’s competitive landscape is changing with the help of highly qualified, multilingual professionals who increasingly work on complex international projects.
Although this paradigm shift creates numerous opportunities, it also presents new challenges. Highly skilled profiles, especially high-potential junior candidates, are increasingly sought after by local and international players. To address this, Leyton has adopted a proactive strategy of investing in recruitment, training and supporting young graduates, enabling them to develop their skills rapidly and sustainably. This approach not only meets our business needs but also contributes significantly to enhancing the employability of young talent in Morocco.
2. Why did you choose to train recruits before onboarding them?
We adopted an early integration model to address talent shortages. The approach relies on strong academic partnerships with local and international universities, helping us identify and prepare high-potential profiles. Students at the end of their studies join a six-month programme that integrates their final-year projects with technical training and soft-skills development. This allows them to gain practical experience while also ensuring compliance with international consulting standards. This reflects our corporate social responsibility commitment: enhancing youth employability by offering them a first structured experience. Results are clear: most participants join our teams on permanent contracts, with rapid, sustainable skills development and higher retention rates than in traditional recruitment.
3. What role does Invest for Jobs play in your skills development strategy?
Invest for Jobs provides technical and financial support through its job-creation programme in Morocco, the Challenge Fund II. This support enabled us to set up a training programme focused on two priorities: client relations and operational efficiency. It also helped us design modules that were tailored to our needs and aligned with international quality standards. Beyond funding, Invest for Jobs provides specific expertise, especially in pedagogy and knowledge transfer, which significantly enhances the value of our programmes.
4. What concrete results have you achieved with this approach?
While our initial goal was to train 50 young people, a total of 96 participants ultimately benefited from five days of intensive training.
The modules, co-designed with Invest for Jobs and the trainers, cover cross-cutting themes such as interpersonal communication, conflict management, priority management, and emotional intelligence.
This program enables young graduates to take their first steps into the professional world under optimal conditions. It enhances their adaptability and significantly increases their chances of success at the end of their probation period.
Building on this momentum, we will collaborate with more than 35 public and private academic institutions and associations across the Kingdom to support a wide range of young graduates. Through workshops and practical training sessions on both soft and technical skills, the initiative aims to strengthen the employability of young job seekers in Morocco.
Through this project, the company aims to mentor more than 250 young graduates and recruit 165 laureates.
5. What is your vision for the future, and what advice would you give Moroccan companies?
Our ambition is to pursue responsible growth. We strengthen our academic partnerships with institutions like Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) and Al Akhawayn University (AUI) to bridge academia and business and prepare the next generation. We are also committed to diversity and inclusion, through collaborations with Handicap International and our adherence to the Women’s Empowerment Principles. For the future, we see Leyton Morocco as a company anchored in its territory but firmly looking ahead: able to develop and retain local talent while meeting international standards. To Moroccan companies, my advice is to adopt an integrated HR approach: anticipate needs, train early, and build strong bridges with higher education institutions. This alignment of performance and social responsibility is key to addressing tomorrow’s challenges.
The project with Leyton Morocco is being implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH as part of the Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition" of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).