“I have a certain attachment to Eastern culture”
The kingdom is nothing new for this globetrotter, who has already lived in four different countries. “My relationship with Morocco began in 1987 during a family holiday”, recalls the Vice-President of the CCSM. A holiday they enjoyed so much that the family came back three times. In 2005, when he had been with ABB for six years, a first professional opportunity in the country arose. “There was talk of taking charge of Morocco, but it didn’t materialise because the group was restructuring at the same time”, Pierre Leretz regrets.
In 2007, he decided to try his hand at entrepreneurship. He left the ABB Group to try his luck by setting up his own engineering company in Abu Dhabi. “It is the achievement I am proudest of, professionally speaking”, recalls the Managing Director of ABB Morocco and French-speaking African countries. This experience allowed him “to broaden my skills”, to “become aware of the economic reality of SMEs” and, as a manager, to be “more humble, more down-to-earth”.
ABB, a partner for Morocco and Africa
Today, Pierre Leretz’s mission in Morocco is to implement ABB’s Strategy 2020, of which the African continent is one of the main pillars, notably Morocco, with its extraordinary potential and its established role as a Hub for French-speaking African countries. In his view, “ABB is a natural partner to be associated with the Kingdom’s vision and its sustainable development plan in the field of energy, and specifically renewable energies, as well as in the field of industrial productivity, while helping to reduce energy consumption.”
And for 2019, ABB Maroc is preparing a surprise: “We plan to set up a 100% electric bus line in a Moroccan city, but we have not yet decided which one”, reveals the MD. As far as his management is concerned, he says he is inspired by Peter Voser, Chairman of the Board of the ABB Group and former head of Shell: “He is a leader who impresses me with his humility, who speaks in simple words, and I think that is a lesson for each of us”.
Pierre Leretz is now in a new phase of his professional and personal life. Married and the father of a 13-year-old teenage daughter, Pierre Leretz continues to travel back and forth to Abu Dhabi to spend time with his family, who have remained in the United Arab Emirates. “My daughter is my greatest pride; she makes me better every day”, he confides. Until he is reunited with his family, the MD of ABB Morocco and French-speaking African countries spends his free time reading – “there are always two books on my bedside table” – and playing tennis to a good standard. And for this polyglot, who already speaks four languages – French, English, Armenian (because of his origins) and Italian – Arabic is a language he wants to perfect “ during his term at the head of ABB Morocco and French-speaking African countries ”, Pierre Leretz hopes.