At the origins of the Activ'Action association was a meeting.
On the one hand, Emilie Schmitt and Fabien Schmitt - unrelated - who were looking to launch collaborative workshops after having spent their civic service together in Nancy.
On the other, Pauline Voldoire who, after having worked for an NGO, had been looking for a job for six months.
“I was not worried, but I felt isolated, doubtful and lost confidence in myself.
And I realized that the fact of attending conferences and participating in associations had given me back energy, the desire to act and to have discussions, ”
says the latter.
"
Emilie and Fabien's project seemed obvious to me and we decided to co-found Activ'Action, the objective of which is to transform job search into a constructive experience ”
.
Develop the know-how and fight against psycho-social risks
Develop know-how as well as skills and fight against psychosocial risks: this is the vocation of the collaborative workshops based on collective intelligence, completely free, set up by the association which was created in 2014. About fifteen modules - CV,
pitch
, entrepreneurial project - allow job seekers who register on the internet to get out of their isolation by sharing their questions, their doubts and their experiences with people in a comparable situation, in premises of one of the association's 50 partners.
Even if the profiles are very varied: "
the executive rubs shoulders with the employee because diversity makes it possible to enrich interactions"
, insists the co-founder.
Beyond mutual aid between peers, the idea is to train participants, designated as “Activ'Acteurs”, to lead workshops, or even to set up their own module themselves.
They are 350 to have followed this process and about fifty to be still active.
The others have found jobs.
And if some continue to lead meetings even after their return to the world of work, it is not always obvious, since the workshops took place during the day.
At least so far, because some will soon start in the evening and on weekends.
Already 3,500 workshops in 50 cities in 6 countries
Independent communities, created on this model on the initiative of individuals, have multiplied in the provinces, in Brussels and even in Australia by French-speaking people.
Thus in six years, 3,500 workshops brought together 17,000 participants in fifty cities in six different countries.
The three co-founders of Activ'Action: Pauline Voldoire, Emilie Schmitt and Fabien Schmitt.
Activ'Action
Enough to gain self-confidence.
Stephan * was very shy when he first came to the association.
Little by little, participating in different workshops allowed him to regain his self-confidence.
He went so far as to lead several himself and even created several citizens' initiatives in the sports field for the benefit of refugees.
“During my job interview to become a salesperson, I was much more comfortable than before and this experience helped me get the job,”
he admits today.
It was the opportunity for me to test with the participants my project to become a sophrologist, a profession that I have been practicing since 2018.
Sophie, former Activ'Actor
Going through Activ'Action can also be a good springboard to validate an entrepreneurial project.
After a burn-out, Sophie *, a former saleswoman, wanted to change jobs.
After having followed the association's workshops for a few months, she ended up creating one, which she led herself.
"
It was an opportunity for me to test with the participants my project to become a sophrologist, a profession that I have been exercising today since 2018, as a member of the Chambre Syndicale des Sophrologues, after having been trained at the IFS
», She says.
Free workshops financed by paid services
During the first two years, Activ'Action worked mainly with social workers, who sent participants to it.
For three years, the association has also worked on behalf of external structures.
Workshops can thus be run within integration structures or local authorities, at the request of the latter.
"Our objective is to train other actors, in integration, employment and support, in order to disseminate our model as much as possible"
, explains Pauline Voldoire.
This is the opportunity to invoice external services to finance the workshops - free - which allow the association to have a viable economic model.
Ditto with the management consulting and training activity that is developing with companies: inclusive recruitment, non-discrimination, animation of collaborative dynamics or even skills sponsorship.
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The initiative was noticed and encouraged.
In 2017, the co-founder Emilie Schmitt became Ashoka “fellow” and at the end of November 2020, the association was one of the 12 laureates of “La France engages”.
The president of this foundation, François Hollande, must also visit the premises of the association in Strasbourg today.
So many distinctions which are far from being honorary.
Ashoka made two consultants available to Activ'Action for two months full time to work on the internal reorganization of the association and Capgemini consultants for the overhaul of its website.
One of Ashoka's partners, the Klésia social protection group, will now support it in developing its clientele.
On the side of France is committed, financial support of 260,000 euros and support for three years will allow the structure to multiply its impact.
“Today, we reach between 5,000 and 7,000 people per year;
our goal is to double this number from 10,000 to 15,000.
To achieve this, we want to train and support 600 integration and employment players within three years, ”
explains Pauline Voldoire.
The team, which has 40 people - not counting the 160 volunteers - spread over three sites (Paris, Strasbourg and Mérignac near Bordeaux), recognizes that its economic model would not be viable without state subsidies but its ambition is to 'be less and less dependent on it.
Especially with an annual budget of one million euros, its effectiveness is no longer to be proven.
87% of the participants admit having developed their “interpersonal skills” and 95% reduced their feeling of isolation.
*
First names have been changed