Advocacy is an activity by which an individual or a group aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions. Advocacy can include many activities that a person or organization undertakes including media campaigns, public speaking, commissioning and publishing research or conducting exit poll or the filing of an amicus brief. Depending on the context and situation advocating the benefits of project management can take different forms. Recently, the Moroccan Project Management Association which was created end of 2015, requested IPMA to advocate the importance of project management among top level Moroccan decision makers in Casablanca. This was considered a critical by the member association to move forward the organisation in the early stage of its existence.

Advocacy can be done with a result-oriented pragmatic approach. Instead of organising a huge event or deliver powerpoint presentations in a workshop, one method that proved to be successful is the following: join forces between IPMA executives and board members of an existing or future member association and have a face-to-face with high level decision makers in the country. Sharing the success story of IPMA since 50 years and the values and competences that inspired the founding project managers of IPMA and the local member association is a unique selling proposition per se. Why?
Top decision makers are not only interested in the core activity of an organisation. To obtain their engagement which can take different forms, high level decision makers are more interested in the vision, values and behaviour they can share with their counterparts.

After having shared the story of how IPMA and MPMA were born and what drives people to engage in project management, some decision makers of the recently visited companies in Casablanca decided to sponsor the upcoming PM conference of MPMA in February 2017 in Casablanca. Others proposed to join the association as members in order to understand the benefits they could get from MPMA and its growing network. They also wish to actively participate in shaping the PM profession in Morocco. Context: Moroccan companies are boosted by the successful COP22, the international climate change conference hosted in Marrakech in November 2016. The conference resulted in 15 more ratifications of countries present at the COP21 conference that led to the Paris agreement beginning 2016. 130 countries herewith reaffirmed their commitment to fight against global warming. This commitment is followed by programmes and projects in which MPMA will have role to play in the future. Advocating this role with the support of IPMA through meetings with high level decision makers is critical for a PM association. This is even more true if it wishes to apply for IPMA membership and organise its own national PM conference in February 2017, with both Moroccan and international speakers.

Advocating the project management profession is essential in a country where the competence-based model of IPMA is well-accepted. With this mind set Morocco can meet the ambitious development goals it has set in strategic sectors such as education, utilities, transport, energy, construction and telecommunication. With this regard and just to mention one example out of several, a meeting took place in Casablanca with one of the three Moroccan mobile telephone service provider, who are undergoing a profound change programme. The company created a transformation division with 150 staff members to meet the strategic goals fixed in the corporate strategy of the company. The company started ten years ago in Morocco following the liberalisation of the telecom sector under the authority of the national telecom regulator.

From right to left: Mustapha Raid (Manager digital transformation), Youssef BAHBOUHI (General Ressources Manager), Younous Hizebry (President of Moroccan Project Management Association), Habiba SARHANE (HR Specialist), Amin Saidoun (Executive Director of International Project Management Association)

The attitude and commitment of the management team that was met is exemplary in many ways. It also showed that these organisations can on their turn advocate the competence based model of IPMA. They act as ambassadors of the profession in strategic sectors where their corporate and private clients benefit from communication services. Finally, advocacy results in a quick win that benefits both the member association, its members and IPMA as a whole. Let’s keep Moroccan Project Management Association moving forward !