Can you imagine running a business without communication? If yes, then you may have serious efficiency problems that would lead to money out of your company’s pocket. It’s therefore essential to note that communication has a vital role in all aspects of your business. As a feature of socially defined people, everyone is in communication with the others in the social context. Whatever the content is, individuals should exchange and share thoughts, news, in other words they should communicate. In this regard, especially in organizations where formal and informal communication exists, communication within organization plays a vital role in structuring the organizational activities, objectives, company policies and strategies. Communication plays a fundamental role in balancing individual and organizational objectives.

Effective communication is nothing but the presentation of views by the sender in a way best understood by the receiver. The communication is said to be perfect when both of sides assign or understand the same meanings to the message and listen very carefully to what all have been said. Being able to communicate effectively and fluently is the most important of all life skills. You only have to watch a baby listening attentively to its mother and trying to repeat the sounds that she makes to understand how basic the urge to communicate is.

Just delivering a message is not enough, so what makes the communication effective? The sender should transmit a clear, simple and meaningful message and of course if the information is incomplete, it can lead to wrong decisions that’s why it should be a complete and precise, also the information must be free from errors and grammatical mistakes, the sender should take in consideration the attitude, language, education level and position of the receiver and finally the message must send back the sender’s courtesy and respect towards the receiver.

Business negotiation is a conversation that takes place between at least two workers in an organization or two organizations discussing every part’s needs and interests to gain mutual benefits. The good negotiation in business communication must lead to satisfaction to both parts and we can realize that through some skills:

• • Interpersonal Skills: it’s the ability to communicate effectively through verbal communication and non-verbal communication
  • Active Listening: before talking the negotiator must listen well to what others say and pay attention to non-verbal messages to interpret their talk and try to identify underlying causes of conflicting situation
  • Emotional Control: it refers to the ability to control, understand and manage the own and others emotions also to express them appropriately
  • Collaboration and team work: it’s the ability to be creative, participative and accepting other’s views in a team or group
  • Empathy: it’s the ability to share someone else’s feelings or experiences to realize win/win relation and finding mutually agreeable outcome
  • Patience: it’s about responding rather than reacting with impulsive way, resolving disagreements and conflicts positively to carry out a peaceful conversation
  • Confidence: every part should talk with confidence like he is sure of what he says.

Good negotiations are very important as they contribute much to business success and build better relations and the aim of any negotiation is to reach to an agreement that results in mutual benefits. Negotiation is a give and take process which means giving concessions to the other party which means little to you but means a lot to them.

The Important Factors that affect the process of business negotiation  are authority and credibility. Let’s start with authority which is the first key factor affecting any negotiation. Negotiation may start with deliberation but to be effective, it has to end up in a conclusion or settlement. For this, both the parties should have the power or authority to conclude the deal. Last and not least, credibility in the way that trust and mutual confidence are very relevant in any process of negotiation.

The secret of effective communication is understanding others as well as ourselves; we can then employ positive influences in our business negotiations and relationships that make agreements valuable for the teams involved.

For good negotiations we are supposed to have what ‘s called continual communication, which can be considered either an asset or an obstacle to establish an good founding relationship, solves problems and facilitates the process as well as to reach an agreement; by avoiding unproductive behaviors like competition or avoidance, one of the most necessary qualities for a good negotiator is to know how to listen carefully and with reflection whatever he/she is told.  One must accommodate his/her speech to those to whom they talk and that everything they say contributes to the final goal, which is  convincing the intelocutor.

All negotiators, whether they are in the process of drafting a contract or solving a conflict, must communicate responsibly to ensure the success of their efforts. The success of their communication rests on an active balance between listening which means the ability to understand and share the feelings of another (empathy) and speaking using persuasion or the art of influence.

Authors

• ABBAZ AMAL
• AIROUD MANAL
• ATIK MOHAMMED
• BALGHZAL AMINE
• BENSAID OUMAIMA

1- Work from home

You are more efficient and less stressed and you no longer need to move with public transport and face the traffic jam, now you can enjoy your moment with your family while doing your tasks safely from home.

2- Save money

With the lockdown we can no longer have the opportunity to go out and eat outside or doing shopping, because all activities are suspended, even our groceries are prepared in advance which helps us save some money.

3- Spend quality time with the family

Before lockdown we surely spent more time outside than with family (shame on us!) doing shopping or having “important” meetings.  Actually with lockdown we have to stay at home and enjoy time with our family and do a lot of activities together.

4- No more hypocrisy!

Let’s see the bright side of things, the Coronavirus has forced us to no longer kiss or touch someone to avoid the virus, so we can say goodbye – at least for now – at these times of embarrassment where you have to greet and sympathize with  people you don’t like, best excuse in the world and especially effective! “Sorry! Coronavirus”.

5- The environment thanks us

With limited travel, canceled trips and suspended activities, the earth has FINALLY been able to rest – hallelujah! – and even rare resources are no longer as threatened as before and no one can deny that Covid- 19 was able to help the environment.

6- Learn and do new things

You have certainly much time to spend, so you have to take advantage of it and learn as many things as possible: Playing the piano or the drums (without annoying your neighbors), learning new languages, registering for new courses, reading lots of books, start a career on Youtube … etc

7- Develop E-learning skills

Before lockdown everyone – or almost – would have asked the question: What is e-learning? Now everyone knows about it and all countries have been able to develop and use it easily to allow students to learn and acquire new skills safely.

There are certainly other advantages to this pandemic but let’s not forget that the virus is still there and it is necessary to be careful and avoid unnecessary meetings; we must wear your masks which has its own advantages too! To be mentioned in the coming article.

#STAY_HOME #STAY_SAFE

Author

• Naaoui Wassima

References

• https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/coronavirus-check-what-benefits-you-can-get/
• https://www.policycenter.ma/opinion/impact-coronavirus-environment#.X072zdwzaM8

H&M communicates

Hennes & Mauritz commonly known as H&M is one of the most famous clothing companies in the world as it is ranked the second largest global clothing retailer just behind Spain based Inditex which is the parent company of Zara.  This Swedish multinational clothing retail company has stores in 74 countries counting over 5000 stores.

The company has made it easier for online shoppers by the availability of their products online in 33 companies. H&M strategy focuses on three main factors of business:

Price:  H&M controls price by limiting middlemen, buying in outsized quantity and appropriate merchandise and sustaining effectual distributing process.

Design:  The designing of the products is done in-house and the production is totally outsourced.

Quality:  The main focus is on superiority with widespread testing and warranting, less environmental harm.

The communication strategy of this company has as a pillar the “total communication domain” model by Aberg L, which relies on four sections:

• H&M conveys all the newly made products to the customers by the medium of Newspapers, Magazines, and Websites etc.
• H&M doesn’t  have any industries but it works with 800 suppliers and around 2700 production units.
• H&M keeps transparency by publishing monthly, quarterly, half yearly and annually the financial reports.
• It organizes general meetings annually.

H&M and its external relationships:

Towards their customers

H&M is committed to always deliver fashion and quality at the best price. Their customers are always their focus, from the design process to the shopping experience. Understanding and meeting their customers’ needs is at the core of their work. H&M offers fashion with high attention to quality to everyone. The company wants their customers to feel confident while shopping at H&M.

Towards their suppliers and other business partners

H&M believes in long-term cooperation with their suppliers. They believe that well-managed business relationships have the potential to turn into successful strategic alliances based on shared risks and shared rewards.

H&M also believes that such alliances can eventually result in a great sustainable business performance.

Towards their stakeholders

Long-term high profitability is essential for H&M and also for their shareholders. A high level of solvency guarantees long-term stability and security for their employees. Profits and a strong financial position make it possible for H&M to fulfill our responsibilities.

#Stay Home #H&M Adapts

The Swedish brand is now involved in preventing Covid-19 through its social networks. H&M will aid international organizations, such as the Red Cross, to use its social media to spread messages about health and safety and how to fight the effects of the pandemic.

Since the start of the health crisis, the group has closed more than 4,000 stores around the world. H&M is also planning to downsize to cope with economic losses. It also altered its shipping policy so that the deliveries will be free without a minimum of purchase and the return of products can now reach 100days. And the style of clothing is now following the stay at home movement being cozy and home adapted.

Authors

• Charbanou Nada
• El Idrissi Mohamed Ayman
• El Hamdouchi Hamza
• El Habti Mouad
• Chainane Meryem

Resources

• https://m2.hm.com/m/en_us/life/culture/inside-h-m/how-h-m-helps-communities-affected-by-covid-19.html
• https://fashionunited.fr/actualite/business/h-m-utilise-ses-reseaux-sociaux-pour-sensibiliser-contre-le-covid-19/2020032623504
• https://www.ukessays.com/essays/business/h-m-and-its-communication-strategy-business-essay.php
• https://www.chegg.com/homework-help/questions-and-answers/h-m-hennes-mauritz-ab-swedish-multinational-clothing-retail-company-known-fast-fashion-clo-q25207186

Because of containment measures that were taken by the government transport, many companies are suffering from certain difficulties. A return to normal is not expected before 2021, or even 2022.

The sudden cessation of several activities in Morocco and around the world, means that Moroccan exporters are faced with a new and even unique situation. All air, land and sea supply chains are influenced by the spread of the new coronavirus-Covid19.

The economic sectors that have been impacted by the COVID-19

• The exporting pharmaceutical sector suffers from a stockout in the African market, explained by the fact that each export of medicine is now subject to authorization and a study on a case-by-case basis.
• The fishing sector is itself doubly affected by two factors: first, the biological rest at the start of the year and currently, the negative impact of the virus on the supply chain of raw materials upstream, which has a direct impact on export capacities.
• The agri-food sector, has just begun to stabilize in recent weeks after several problems concerning the drop in demand, late deliveries and the cancellation of several orders.

How to overcome the Covid-19’s impact on the supply chain management

In the future, the exporters must develop  their abilities to be fast, reactive and efficient and plan for uncertainties, they  must have a flexible business model to be able to change products if necessary, target markets to focus their  efforts on a particular segment, and diversify sources of supply to reduce uncertainty.

Investors also have to secure the production chains as much as possible and reduce their foreign dependence.

All sectors must invest in research and development to study all aspects of this crisis and put in place corrective measures to overcome its consequences.

Investors must also innovate and come up with interesting plans to continue to operate and improve the country’s economy.

The Moroccan government has to support small businesses, as it had put in place strong measures to fight the pandemic; these companies suffer currently from significant losses and cannot continue to operate.

Covid-19 remains a virus that has a very significant impact on logistics activities around the world, the global economy will recover soon, if the right decisions and commercial strategies are  well implemented, to improve the performance of these various sectors.

Author

OUAHDOU Yasmine

Between a health and economic crisis, the world is living a real ordeal passing through the commercial sector which endures a significant drop in trade (import and export) with 13% currently and 32% for the coming months. After the crisis experienced in 2008, the world economy opened its doors to each other to revive a perfect globalization, the covid-19 comes in this case to change things once again. This latter did not neglect the financial market with the creation of a financial storm causing the value of the shares to fall. How can this fall be explained? Firstly, as being a major or very influential element, the decline is explained by uncertainty, the markets abhor uncertainty, this doubt is simply the consequence of this pandemic; can the world predict the end of this pandemic? No response can be predicted.

Second major problem is related to the non-stability of the interest rate, a means on which the banks were relying to revive the financial sector is in sharp decline, which no longer allows the authorities to revive the economy, this is similar to entering to another world war signaling the protectionism animated by the United States that proves once again its egoism vis-à-vis other countries and more precisely China, its major competitor which is at the origin of the pandemic but also the Latin American and even its allies the European countries.

The logistics sector could not escape this crisis, and it is going through its most difficult moments, with the blocking of flight blockades and containment measures that are spreading worldwide, transport companies are encountering certain difficulties. A return to normal is not expected before 2021, or even 2022. For road transport, the confinement and closure of factories and shops have led to the stopping of most trucks and even to partial unemployment for their employees. Aside from food transportation, most companies have reported a drop in activity since containment, according to the National Road Transport Federation. For maritime transport, most countries in the world note that the activity of the main ports is generally normal. Except that incoming vessels must be identified according to their origin. The disruptions in maritime travel due to the health crisis have serious consequences for world trade. And that is measured by hundreds of thousands of containers. For air transport, it is considered among the first victims of Covid-19. It is noted that it suffers from the precautionary measures applied and the drop in demand. Since the beginning of April, most airlines around the world have been almost stopped. Air transport had not experienced such a slowdown for a long time. And in this situation, airlines around the world have turned to their governments. Several governments have announced strong measures, such as deferring the payment of taxes and fees for a specified period. Or grant direct aid to pay wages and pensions.

Tourism too has had its share of the poisoned cake: canceled trips, reservations, events and concerts, closed travel agencies and a lot of other damages. Asian tourism was naturally the first to be impacted and experienced huge losses in bookings since the virus first spread in China, particularly in Whuhan, an economic drama for these countries, since they live a lot from tourism, European countries have also been affected by this epidemic and therefore have also experienced a fall in the tourism sector, particularly in France, Italy and Spain which have become countries deserted by tourists. A concern which has also been pierced in Arabic countries who directly stopped the flights and closed the borders in order to avoid any sign of vulnerability and limit the intensive spread of the virus, and it is not just about travel but also the most important events, professionals meetings, public forums, etc. This stopped certain companies, or even prohibited them from performing their normal activities which brought down the economy of the countries.

Revenues from global tourism due to the Coronavirus have dropped to at least $ 22 billion and this is only the optimistic scenario because if the epidemic continues to spread for a long time it will cause a loss of up to 73 billion dollars and a drop in revenues for airlines of $ 30 billion. With all the efforts made by the governments of each country and the permanent presence of a sector which does not belong to the economy but makes enormous sacrifices to save humanity, which is the most important thing currently in all these difficult conditions that the world endures. When will the world see the light of day? When will the world economy once again blow out its candles not for birthday but for peace, cheerfulness and liveliness?

#STAY_HOME #STAY_SAFE

Authors :

• NAAOUI Wassima
• NAJI Rajaa
• NAJEM Salma
• NAJEH Amal
• NAHIL Youssef

References

• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_of_the_COVID-19_pandemic_on_tourism
• https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/03/11/coronavirus-travel-industry-could-lose-24-billion-in-tourism-from-outside-us.html
• https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/news/impact-covid-19-global-supply-chains
• https://www.iru.org/resources/newsroom/covid-19-where-road-transport-stands
• https://www.maritime-executive.com/editorials/the-impact-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-on-shipping

One of the definitions of communication would be “the exchange of messages between two or more participants, which is characterized by the intentional, conscious (at some level of consciousness) the use of mutually understandable systems of symbols”. This definition excludes the possibility of communication without conscious intentions and is therefore not widely accepted: habits and emotions are generally considered sources of communication that do not include conscious intentions. Besides, if other cultures interfere in the communication it will produce what’s called “Cross-Cultural Communication” which concerns the exchange of information between people from different cultural backgrounds. It is a well-studied field of research in several disciplines, including psychology, speech and communication, sociology, anthropology and business.

Communication and culture have a great impact on each other. Along with changing times, the socio-economic conditions of individuals also change. The impact of these changes is reflected in people’s communication behavior. Past experience, perception and cultural background have a big impact on how people speak and behave. Culture plays an important role in shaping the style of communication. In general, people respond to what and how we speak rather than what we say. This analysis examines the relationship between culture and intercultural communication style, and verifies the independence of culture and communication.

Communication across the African Culture

African culture differs significantly from European and other cultures. There is a strong connection between communication and the culture in the African environment, it is important to point their symbolic relationship. Culture in Africa determines the code, meaning and context of communication.

The two major systems of communication, verbal and non-verbal, are very operational in the African communication environment. Elders have the right to communicate verbally while the youth and younger generation are expected by tradition to mostly communicate non-verbally; because of their lack of adequate experience in life, they are expected to watch, listen and act according to what is told to be best for them by elders. In an environment full of elders, young ones are not expected to talk, start conversations, or express an opinion during a discussion unless required. An example of this is Senegalese proverb which says, “The child looks everywhere and very often sees nothing, but an elderly man while sitting sees everything.” Transmission of culture in most African societies is almost entirely through interpersonal communication carried out in small groups (family meetings) and large meetings (village or community meetings). The market-place, school, social forums and funerals serve as important channels for disseminating cultural information. Additionally, story tellers and singers relive the exploits and experiences of past and present generations to help educate the youth.

Certain African cultures use various musical instruments as a tool for communication depending on the occasion. Examples are the flute, gong and drum which can be used to deliver a political message, express sorrow or prepare the community for war. Musical instruments are a vital tool of communication in most African cultures. As stated earlier, communication in traditional African communities is a matter of human inter-relationships. In such a setting, it is based on one’s attitude towards his/her neighbor. Communication in such societies follows hierarchical socio-political positions within the community. What a person says is as important as who he is.

Historical, Geographical and Cultural Impacts on Communication

In Eastern Europe there is a variety of languages and language groups, as well as two alphabets: the Latin and the Cyrillic scripts. Eastern Europe is composed of many different ethnic and religious communities too. In this way it is impossible to define a common Eastern European cultural model. In terms of geography, culture, and communication modes, at least three basic cultural communities can be outlined: northeastern European, Central European, and southeastern European. However, despite the big differences between the countries, there are some common discourses due to the fact that all the Eastern European nations are post-communist societies. The first discourse is focused on the social and cultural trauma experienced in the period of socialism and often triggers hate speech. The second is based on nostalgia about the “good things” in the era of communism. And the third discourse is underlined by the constant questioning of “who we are.” This can make the communication complicated between the northeastern, central, southeastern European countries due to their history and background. The second thing is that the communication cannot always be flexible due to the multiple languages and to the education received by the elders, which can create some sort of tension in workplaces, or if group of people from different countries had to communicate. In fact, Europeans have to do some efforts to make the communication effective between the multiple cultures.

Intercultural Communication in Europe

Effective cross-cultural management and communication between the countries is essential in order to work efficiently together and build a strong union. How do Europeans manage to communicate in a context of cultural differences at home and in their foreign and development policies?

In an age of migration fluxes, raging conflicts and rampant populism, managing relations with those whom we think “are not like us” is paramount. Cultural differences between people tend to increase and there is no sign that values will converge towards a global cultural citizenship. Anglo-Saxon countries, including Britain, tend to show more individualistic features. As an example, individualist oriented societies educate their people to be independent. It is quite common for young people in Britain, for instance, to move out of the parents’ home when starting university, whereas in more collectivist oriented cultures, for example in Italy, this is far more unlikely as the family plays an extremely important role here. In collectivist societies group goals are far more important than the individual’s own interests. Individuals do not want to stand out from the group and therefore will avoid achieving better goals, quality or effectiveness than the other group members. This dimension plays a more important role in communication between different European cultures.

Also, some cultures like to break down information, to consider details, while others prefer to see a process as a whole and take a more holistic view of a situation or problem. This certainly can create conflicts in working environments if several different cultures are working together, as some people will concentrate on one specific problem or area whereas others will try to see everything in its context.

There is an obvious overlap concerning the culture of Africa and that of Europe, notably due to a shared history especially after the 18th century, the scramble for Africa was a major turning point which cemented the place of European culture amongst the newly acquired colonies, however it wasn’t a one sided relationship between the conqueror and the conquered, the share of multitudinous tradition between both continents which in turn ensured the growth of the multicultural paradigm we know today. North African migration for instance has caused a surge in the appreciation of Islamic tradition; it is now known that Islam is the fastest growing religion in Europe which serves as a testimony of the significance of the exchange between both civilizations. It’s safe to say that communication across cultures should not be taken lightly, since it can contribute to the alienation of a party or the sense of superiority of another, the emphasis should be put on mutual respect when exchanging with a different culture. We can only look forward with interest as to where this exchange will bring us in the near future.

Authors :

• BENTAYBI MOUHCINE
• BENARBIA IMANE
• CHISULO MARK
• DRISSI WALID
• EL BAOUDI MED AMINE

REFERENCES

Websites

• https://www.slideshare.net/mehravishal84/communication-across-culture
• https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/12356665.pdf
• https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311589252_The_Intercultural_Communication_in_European_Union_A_few_significant_aspects
• https://www.grin.com/document/5075
• https://ecdpm.org/talking-points/intercultural-integration-communication-europe/
• https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781118783665.ieicc0131

Books

• Matsumoto, D. (2000). Culture and Psychology: People around the World. Belmont, CA:Wadsworth.
•  Yunxia, Z. (2005). Written Communication Across Cultures: A Sociocognitive Perspective on Business Genres. Amsterdam ; Philadelphia: John Benjamins.

There’s a very fine line between being helpful and flogging stuff on the back of a crisis” Ian Henderson, chief executive of ad agency AML Group.

Marketing Communication referes to “The means adopted by the companies to convey messages about the products and the brands they sell, either directly or indirectly to the customers with the intention to persuade them to purchase” (Businessjargons, 2016). It can also be described as all the messages and media brands deployed to communicate with the market. These communications include advertising, direct marketing, branding, packaging which are all influenced by ongoing trends in the world and require efficient marketing communication. This brings us to the era of Covid-19 in which Moroccan brands have to adapt and stay up to date with the new consumer behaviors which will be instrumental in leading fruitful marketing strategies. As this pandemic grows, combined with the quarantine state it brings, in-home, online, and TV activity will increase in favor of physical advertising;  advertisers can reach their target users by investing more heavily in online digital advertising.

We will discuss how Moroccan companies are adapting their marketing efforts in this period of crisis, and shed light on some successful examples: What strategy did these brands put in place to ensure continuity while taking the situation into account? What made these brands maintain the link with their customers in times of social distancing? How are they helping out during this crisis?

It’s not just the government and public figures who are raising awareness of the need to stay at home during the Coronavirus crisis, in order to stop the spread of the virus and protect those at risk; companies have also, remarkably through Ads, urged their customers to practice social distancing and stay at home. They also helped medical workers, provided meals, distributed masks, and disinfectant gels. Let’s take a look at some examples!

Mio distributed disinfectant liquids

Ama detergent, a brand specializing in the production of detergents and disinfectants and known for its famous Moroccan brand of cleaning products Mio, has distributed 30 tons of disinfectant liquids and gels free of charge. The action started from El Jadida, the brand’s hometown.

Jumia Morocco declares the introduction of “contactless” delivery for prepaid packages on the platform via JumiaPay

Jumia continues to serve its customers and provide Moroccans with access to online shopping while supporting social distancing, a protected shopping environment and the “contactless delivery” option that has been set up on JumiaPay, the payment platform. It allows consumers to pay for their products online and have them delivered without physical contact with the delivery person or exchanging cash for the transaction.

They have also taken a few measures to guarantee the security of purchases during this period, ensuring that social distancing is respected when the sellers deliver orders and that they take all the necessary precautionary measures, supplying them with cleaning products and distributing a total of 10,000 gloves.

Over 120,000 meals are distributed by McDonald’s Morocco

McDonald’s Morocco launched the # Mta7dine operation, serving meals consistently in 19 cities in the Kingdom to support citizens in difficulty and healthcare workers.

Inwi launches “Inwi money”

Inwi money offers free transfers of money regardless of the amount of the transfer. New Inwi money customers benefit from 1 GB of data offered. Users can, from their home and in compliance with sanitary confinement rules, access many financial services via a single click. They can transfer money from their phone, recharge their phone line, pay their bills or make purchases from partner merchants such as Marjane.

Renault Morocco donates vehicles

Renault Morocco and its network of dealers have donated 50 ambulances. They made available a set of services intended for the medical institutions in order to support the national effort to overcome this pandemic.

This pandemic has shown another side of marketing communication skills.  Moroccan companies were obliged to keep the business going and find a way to avoid the impact of the crisis caused by Covid-19. By moving from sales marketing to hope marketing, they prioritized the need for community content. With uncertain future, we can only wait for a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel.

“It goes without saying that we are in an extraordinary situation globally with Coronavirus. The scale of this pandemic and its far-reaching effects will reshape society in many long-lasting ways. It’s already changing the way we eat, travel, shop, how we think about our health, and even how we interact with one another.” – Brandon Brown, CEO of GRIN.

Written By :

• Benjelloun Meriam
• Baillade Hajar
• Abouricha Salma
• Kassim Abdel-kader
• Ammari Rajae

REFERENCES :

• Businessjargons.com (2016). What is Marketing Communication? Definition and meaning. Accessed (2020, April 10) at https://businessjargons.com/marketing-communication.html
• Medias24.com. (2020). Ama Détergent: l’industriel Marocain au service de la lutte contre le Covid-19. Accessed (2020, April 4) at https://www.medias24.com/ama-detergent-l-industriel-marocain-au-service-de-la-lutte-contre-le-covid-19-9362.html
• Medias24.com (2020). Jumia publie un guide d’achat en ligne, avec livraison à domicile. Accessed (2020, April 4) at https://www.medias24.com/jumia-publie-un-guide-d-achat-en-ligne-avec-livraison-a-domicile-9144.htmlMzaghrani,
• Mzaghrani, N. (2020). Coronavirus: companies that are making a contribution. Accessed (2020, April 3) at https://maroc-diplomatique.net/coronavirus-ces-ent

How did Covid-19 impact the workers all around the world?

Coronavirus has impacted millions of employees around the world in a very significant way causing many issues such as the increase of unemployment and job losses. In this direction, some workers showed more flexibility and started working from home, others decided to keep the work as it is, while few already lost their jobs. Workers are not only worried about their financial and physical problems, but they are also concerned about their psychological wellbeing during this crisis. Penalized by this spread of the novel Coronavirus, more and more Moroccan companies are resorting to partial unemployment for their employees, they are stuck at home, with no work and no payment, others are obliged to opt for the Telework that has been implemented lately, but the worse is about the other category which their  companies still refuse to resort to partial unemployment, favoring  other measures such as encouraging employees the taking of leaves without pay, or part- time work, and the most serious were the employees exposed to the dismissal.

The current situation is not an easy one, and particularly critical either for small businesses that have been hit hard by the pandemic and the workers in informal employment that is estimated at almost 80% of the work force they are undeclared or precarious, lacking social protection, they fear not the Coronavirus, but how they will survive emergency measures that have cut off their livelihoods. So, with this crisis going on, Morocco, among any other countries, is forced to embrace the remote working. Many employees have to do their jobs from their homes now, as it may sound nice to stay at home not working about having to wake up early in the morning, workers from some sectors cannot do their jobs unless they go out.

As we all see that the sector of education managed to continue giving lessons from home, teachers trough many platforms like zoom, Microsoft…kept the courses going on, as well as some companies business and financial operations are done and discussed by virtual meetings, accounting offices are also starting to work from home. There’s a big chance that Covid 19 may change human resources trend permanently as employees are becoming more familiar with remote working.

So, what is it like for employees who are unable to execute their tasks with Telework?

How can the government protect those people?

In respond to this situation and in order to face and reduce the rate of people in need during this critical period, the Moroccan government has set up a number of facilities to help. The government has founded a charity fund, also known as, Corona fund, in which all the Moroccans are able, in a voluntary way, to donate to face this pandemic and help people in need; these donations will be deductible from the tax result as a reward from the general directorate of tax. The CNSS has also helped to facilitate the task of remuneration of employees who have temporarily stopped their jobs due to the pandemic, by creating a portal dedicated to them, so as to declare their temporary work stopping, in a specific deadline and with smooth procedures.

As this situation will not be permanent, it may take time, but everything will slowly get to the process of reviving their previous position, be it any business or corporation. Employees or company owners have to keep in mind that they have to take this chance to work with more dedication, spend time researching and studying about the further scopes and skills improvement. Finally, this is a message to managers and directors to make sure to get out of the normal box and do something extraordinary for their employees; for example, they should organize online teambuilding activities, send them a gift packages, and if possible organize individual video calls with employees to check and see if they’re handling the situation.

Authors

• Kenza Hsik
• Oumaima El Fadily
• Widad Guerchi
• Haimoud Amine
• Ghafir Youssef

International repercussions on the global economy and government reaction

In the Eurozone, the PMI (survey of corporate purchasing managers) saw the largest decline ever after settling at 51.6 in February. This index is constructed in such a way that a number below 50 indicates a contraction, and a number above 50 represents an expansion of activity. The scale of the crisis is also historic in the rest of the world. For example, Australia had experienced the longest period of uninterrupted growth among developed countries to date. This trend is likely to stop, with the Covid-19 likely to plunge the country into recession.

The job market in the United States is deteriorating at an unprecedented rate. The last week of March saw 6.6 million Americans jobless, double the previous week, which had already set a “record”. On average in recent years, about 250,000 Americans have been unemployed every week.

In China, industrial production plunged 13.5% in January and February 2020, compared to the same period in 2019. Such a drop is unprecedented in China since the country turned to market economy in the late 1970s.

The major economies reacted by taking vigorous monetary and fiscal policy measures. The short-term evolution of demand and activity will depend entirely on the duration and severity of the confinement of populations. Once it is lifted, the recovery will likely be gradual and uneven. Government action will need to evolve, with aid measures in the face of the pandemic giving way to measures to revive growth, with public finances still under strain.

Faced with the prospect of a severe blow to GDP, central banks reacted quickly and energetically. The Federal Reserve has cut the Fed funds to zero and launched a commercial paper buy-back program as well as high-rated corporate bonds. It also sent the message that it would “do whatever is necessary” to stabilize the market for agency treasuries and the mortgage-backed securities market. The ECB, for its part, launched a pandemic emergency purchase program (PEPP), amounting to EUR 750 billion, and introduced essential flexibility regarding the breakdown of its shopping.

The oil market is collapsing due to the COVID-19

If someone tell you “take this for free and I’ll give you 30$” you might think he’s being ridiculous, and he’ll look like a psycho in your eyes if the thing he’s proposing was Oil, yes the black gold. But trust me, that is actually happening in the era of COVID-19 pandemic; the impossible became possible and the price of oil fell to the ground, and we can say ‘underground’ for the US case. So you might be asking “how is that related to the COVID-19?”: We all know the price of any good is related to supply and demand, and in this era of COVID-19 the demand of transport fuels decreased due to the lockdown and quarantine. With that, a big amount of oil, let’s call it “unwanted oil”, in the market caused a big drop in oil price, and it turned US oil price negative to almost -40$ a barrel. This means producers will pay oil buyers just to get rid of the unwanted oil they have in hands, while the price of oil is still above zero in other countries. It’s all due to the type of crude oil. In America, West Texas Intermediate is an oil shale which costs a lot for its extraction and production (1 oil barrel costs +40$) while in Saudi Arabia, 1oil barrel is way too cheaper (1 oil barrel costs just 5 to 10 dollars) and so is Brent Crude in Russia. However, even if the international bench mark oil price (Brent Crude) is above zero with 20$ a barrel, it is a drop of two-thirds since January to 18 years lows. So the whole oil market is collapsing.

The Impact of Coronavirus on the global trading and the international commerce

 In December 2019, a new strand of Coronavirus started spreading in the streets of Wuhan in China, ever since this has turned into a global pandemic with the virus now present everywhere in the world. This rapid spread has caused governments all over the globe to put social distancing policies in place. Most countries have banned the entrance of anyone that wasn’t present in their territory before the virus broke out. No one was expecting a decrease in the amount of goods being traded in the world but this happened sooner than later, countries like China who have temporarily stopped all forms of import and export, other countries focusing on importing only essential materials and merchandise that can’t be produced nationally. This has caused many companies and factories to close up shop and put their workers to rest. Laying people off work forces countries to provide some sort of financial compensation to help the now unemployed workers, that also means less income for the state. This situation is unprecedented, and currently no one has clear and precise answers to the questions currently on hand. One thing that is definitely sure is that we need to revisit all the habits injected into our bloodstreams from consumerism and capitalism, the only way for us to survive and grow from this pandemic, if to refocus toward the human capital instead of the bottom-line.

Authors

• Imad Hamdis
• Soukaina FARTOUTI
• Ilias Bourkadi

Active listening involves reading a speaker’s body language and tone of voice, both. They can transmit different messages than those of the words used; the body language can convey more than words and voice tone may also reveal feelings that contradict the speaker’s words. A speaker whose gestures often and lean forward may be enthusiastic or excited; if he/she doesn’t make eye contact and looks down may be conveying discomfort or embarrassment. In fact, some commonly held beliefs about body language are not necessarily accurate. If a listener crossed his arms, that often believed to be a sign of resistance to the speaker’s words, it can only be a sign of the listener’s best comfortable sitting position. In the other hand, some people believe that unwillingness to make eye contact indicate lying. However, many people may lack eye contact due to shyness, or can look others in the eye and lie, or other reasons. Feedback is an important part of active listening; both verbal and nonverbal responses can improve listening. First, a speaker may nod their head, raise their eyebrows, or smile to show that they understand the listener; or they can use many verbal responses to show comprehension. In case of lack of understanding or the need for further information when listening, the listener might nod his/ her head to one side or furrow his eye-brows; he can also use some expression to improve his ability to understand the speaker. One element of feedback discussed previously is the recognition of the speaker’s feelings, especially when the speaker is emotional. Before listeners can effectively understand the topic of discussion, they must recognize any negative feelings that the speaker seems to feel.

People are different from one another; each one has his/her own personality and character, and especially the topic or the subject that can trigger negative emotions in them. For which the speaker should sense, in a way or another, the beginning of these emotions that can show up in the listener, who can be a client or a coworker or a superior in a business meeting. Also, the speaker needs to have the ability to control his/her own emotions, remain calm, and try to distract the listener to another subject or even minimize his emotional reaction, and especially show them that his/her emotions are taken into consideration. However, the speaker is often aware of the topics that can trigger a bad feeling in the listener, that’s why he/she needs to make sure to avoid it as possible. And the simple way to know and have an idea of these sensitive subjects is to listen carefully to the person to get a clue about his/her personality or point of view; this way it is much easier to have a safe business communication.

To better manage the negative reactions towards coworkers or towards customers it is necessary first of all to remain calm, to have the willingness of an active listening, without taking pre-judgment, while respecting what others want to communicate. In addition, it is also necessary to avoid any verbal or non-verbal reaction which can trigger problems and which only serves to aggravate the situation. On the other side, you have to share the trust and take into consideration the differences in mentalities, age, cultures …; because trust overcomes all obstacles and improves team spirit and self-esteem which has a direct impact on an individual’s ability to work in a team and to help others. Moreover, it is necessary to take the initiative by showing a minimum of respect first and as this will come the respect of the others later.

A strong business communication is very crucial in every company, it’s the key of successful teamwork, it helps to build a good relationship between the manager and employees which can likely help increase productivity. To improve your listening skills, you should have a critical business skill and should be emotionally aware so that you can read speakers’ emotions and recognize their feelings.

• Bourass Imane
• Bouafi Ilyass
• Boukssass Kawtar
• Bouibker Yassmine
• Benshaba Imane