Welcome to The Storyteller, a newsletter that brings you updates, stories and articles that shine a light on communication in leadership. Helping you to find your voice and use it.
Le grand philosophe grec Aristote a beaucoup réfléchi sur le langage. Le langage, c’est à l’évidence un outil de communication. Mais, la communication est-elle un langage ? Et de quoi doit être fait le langage pour faire une bonne communication ? Aristote a identifié deux spécificités de l’être humain face au reste du règne animal : l’homme est le seul être doué de langage ; l’homme est un animal politique. Qu’est-ce que cela signifie ? D’abord que le langage est la « différence spécifique », qui définit l’homme. Ensuite, que l’homme est un être qui ne saurait vivre qu’en communauté. C’est en effet seulement parce que les hommes disposent d’un langage commun, qu’ils sont capables de s’entendre et de vivre ensemble. « Il est évident, écrit Aristote, que l’homme est un animal politique, bien plus que n’importe quelle abeille ou n’importe quel animal grégaire. Car…
Upcoming Events
Conference: “The Power of Communication and Societal Changes”
Story School is organizing its second conference on June 8th, 2023, at the UM6P campus in Rabat-Salé, focusing on the profound influence of communication in addressing and transforming today’s societal issues. The conference will feature distinguished guests including Anne Méaux, President and Founder of “Image7”, Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli, Founder and Executive Chair of “African Food Changemakers” and Martine St-Victor, Managing Director at Edelman-Montréal. Meriem Idrissi Kaitouni will moderate the panel. The conference aims to highlight the strategic and transformative dimension of communication in a changing society, how it drives social change and its crucial role in in disseminating ideas, as well as designing and implementing communication initiatives to raise awareness and encouraging innovation.
African Stories : A writing contest to tell Our Africa, Our stories
African Stories : A writing contest to tell Our Africa, Our stories “Africa is the cradle of humanity”. This quote is one of the hundreds of clichés that weighs down the shoulders of our continent. Africa is also filled with everyday heroes, or even antiheroes. It is a past, but also a plural present, and infinite possible futures. To break down the chain of stereotypes, and to unleash the writing potentials at OCP and UM6P, Story School is giving you the opportunity to share a short story on the topic : “Penser, écrire et imaginer l’Afrique”. Stories should be 1000 to 2500 words, in French, Arabic or in English. A prestigious jury has been selected to read and reward the best short stories:
- Réda Allali : Columnist, radio consultant, singer and guitarist
- Yassine Adnan : Writer, researcher, journalist, and broadcaster
- — Hajar Chokairi Azell : Consultant, writer and writing teacher
- Hakim El Karoui : Consultant and writer
- Fouad Laroui : Professor, novelist, poet, editorialist and literary critic
- Ndidi Nwueneli : Social entrepreneur, author, and speaker
- Jeffrey Seglin : Communications Program Director at Harvard Kennedy School, columnist and senior lecturer
By September 3rd, the jury will select the short story for the “Grand Prix du Jury”. A “Coup de Coeur Story School” will also be awarded to the most moving short story. The ten best stories will be published, and the winners will benefit from rewriting sessions before publication, and promotion afterwards. To enter, please click on the link below:
Op-ed crash course with Harvard’s Jeffrey Seglin
Story School is hosting a 3 day boot-camp for writing opinion columns in July. It will be led by Jeffrey Selin, a senior lecturer emeritus at the Harvard Kennedy school where he implemented the Harvard Kennedy School Communications Program. This class will be restricted to less than 20 students from OCP and UM6P and will cover everything from developing a column idea and identifying an audience to creating, structuring, and writing an effective opinion column. Story School’s Op-ed crash course is already sold out!
Crossed Stories
Hajar Chokairi vs Patrick Beauduin
This edition of Story School’s « Crossed Stories » features two communication experts with a totally different approach and practice . Hajar Chokairi Azell, a Moroccan writer and a Story School affiliate professor, will insist on the importance of being authentic, embracing one’s truth and culture, for communications that create impact and responses. Patrick Beauduin is a well-known practitioner in the field of communication. Originally from Belgium, he has worked in advertising in Europe and Canada and taught for almost twenty years on an academic level in various places in the world. He will be stressing the fact that communication is not meant to be a monologue, but should operate on the level of “conversation”. This is more than a semantic shift, it is a mindset upgrade.
Latest Stories
Corporate Writing training
On May 29-30, 2023, Story School conducted a training session called “Écrire pour discourir” dedicated to OCP employees in Marrakech with Hakim El Karoui, a French consultant and writer. The training aimed to enhance the participants’ abilities in corporate and discourse writing. As the communication landscape becomes more complex and digital demands increase, it is crucial for companies and employees to prepare themselves to communicate efficiently. In this context, the training focused on enabling participants to communicate precisely and relevantly. It addressed key questions such as the target audience, the use of double enunciation, and the distinctions between oral and written communication.
Fundamental program in communication: Six training sessions delivered by Story School thus far
As part of the Fundamental program in communication for OCP & UM6P communications teams, Story School delivered a series of sessions from May 4 to the end of May 2023.
- Introduction: The strategic dimension of communication, with professor Assaël Adary. This session aimed to demonstrate that communication is a strategic function and to provide participants with the necessary tools to act as strategists.
- 360° Communication Plan, with the instructor Julien Baudry, familiarized the participants with the stages of a communication plan and methods for determining its strategic relevance.
- The Pitch, delivered by the well-known Eric Salomon, provided participants with a toolkit for impactful interventions to gain audience buy-in. The session included techniques on how to capture the attention of the audience from the first few seconds and how to speak with ease and efficiency.
- Listening for better Communication, presented by the expert Julia Pilod, explored the field of active listening both theoretically and practically.
- Media Landscapes, Media Economic Models & Press Relations was covered by three speakers: Enguérand Renault provided an overview of media economic models. L e s l i e Jung-Isenwater provided an operational insight on press relations. Abdellah Tourabi presented a panorama of the Moroccan media from a historical perspective.
- The course “Communicating Tomorrow: Strategic Challenges and Trends” was presented by Professor Jean-Jacques Stréliski, who exposed the paradoxes in communication, and Professor Jean-François Renaud who focused on brands and the digital landscape.
Communicating to Lead
Story School contributed in the organization of a training session for Marjane Holding entitled “Communiquer pour diriger “. This was held on May 2nd and 3rd as part of the Executive Leadership Cycle, for the benefit of Marjane’s future strategic project managers, in collaboration with Africa Business School. The training focused primarily on the mindset behind internal communication, as well as on operational exercises. The training also focused on leadership in communication through authority, empathy, conflict management, and negotiation. Amandine Hamon, a Story School professor and expert in internal and crisis communication, delivered this training.
Story School’s first Conference, a Success!
On May 8, 2023, Story School organized its first Conference on “The need for companies to reinvent their conversation.” The conference featured two speakers, Mr. Patrick Beauduin, a well-known practitioner in the field of communication, and Mrs. Kenza Dadi, a Moroccan expert in Branding, and Partner at Valyans consulting firm. Mr. Beauduin spoke about the evolution of communication over the ages and how it has changed the way companies interact with their customers. He argued that companies need to reinvent their conversation in order to stay relevant in today’s digital age. Mrs. Dadi spoke about the importance of branding and how it can help companies connect with their customers on an emotional level, arguing that customer centricity is everyone’s concern. She also added that branding is more important than ever in today’s competitive marketplace. The conference was a great opportunity for attendees to learn about the latest trends in communication and branding and also a chance for them to network with other professionals in the field.
