After a decade of experience in statistics and marketing in large companies, Aurélien decides to embark on the adventure of entrepreneurship. He is driven by a fervent desire to use his energy for the ecological and social transition in a project with impact. Thus, in 2021, Instinct de fourmi is born from his convictions and commitments.

The objective of Instinct de fourmi is to help companies and local communities implement concrete actions to reduce their impact on the environment. Aurélien relies on a network of solution providers, called « Fourmisseurs, » to achieve this.

Aurélien started from a simple observation: a strong demand from companies and communities to reduce their environmental impact. The reasons are multiple but are generally related to costs, budget, and legal obligations. On the supply side, he observes that it comes in several types of levers: public aid, good practices and collective intelligence, and technical solution providers, which he calls « Fourmisseurs. » Through Instinct de fourmi, he therefore proposes these three levers to engage and accelerate actions carried out by companies and to ensure that the energy transition is dynamic.
He then explains that the creation of Instinct de fourmi and its business model respond to a desire to break with the usual models and even to consider something utopian: to propose ecological and economical solutions. He thus proposes to his customers a period of exchange so that he can understand their context and the level of maturity of the project and realizes thereafter a balance sheet by drawing up levers of action associated with the most adapted technical solutions of the “Fourmisseurs.” In order not to slow down the exchange process, he decided not to bill his clients for these first steps. His remuneration comes from the signature of a contract between a “Fourmisseur” and a client. This approach, which he wanted to differentiate, is now his pride because it allows him to prioritize the implementation of concrete actions. It also allows him to accompany all types of structures by adapting to their financing capacities, which therefore no longer becomes an obstacle to action.

What is for you an impactful Entrepreneur?

For Aurélien, an impactful entrepreneur is an entrepreneur who, in the decision-making process, takes into account both environmental and social issues, but who also, and above all, adopts a transversal vision of CSR in every decision. For him, a committed/impactful entrepreneur is therefore someone who has taken the measure of the challenge represented by the ecological and social transition and who balances these environmental and societal criteria with economic issues.

How can we identify/recognize an impactful and responsible entrepreneurial opportunity?

It is on the basis of clear, quantifiable and reliable indicators that Aurélien judges that it is possible to identify a problem or a prospect for improvement and therefore to identify such an entrepreneurial opportunity.

The impact of Instinct de Fourmi

Aurélien explains that the impact of his organization is relatively small because he does not produce and does not travel much or at most by soft mobility. Moreover, the technical solutions proposed to his customers are not considered in his own balance sheet but in that of his “Fourmisseurs.”
He also reports that he has not set up any selection criteria for these “Fourmisseurs” because the requirements relative to each sector and type of company are too diverse and that Instinct de fourmi wishes to accompany all types of structures.

How do you measure your impact on the problem you solve?

Aurélien does not perform an evaluation/audit of the impact of the implementation of a technical solution for one of his clients. But he carefully follows the project and is very interested in the evolution of the client’s indicators. He follows the relationship between his initial client and the “Fourmisseur” from a distance, without having any say in the matter, in order to free up the processes and not add any more constraints than there already are. It is all the more difficult to measure this impact since the Instinct de Fourmi project is only a year and a half old, so Aurélien has little hindsight on his activity. One of the positive indicators of its impact, however, is the renewal of a contract with a client following the successful application of a recommended technical solution.

How did you manage to make your organization economically viable?

Aurélien considers that today his business model is a strength because of its attractive character but also a weakness. Indeed, the projects pushed to the customer do not always see the light of day, some projects are also long-term projects which generates a rather delicate cash management. However, he remains confident because the strategic development he is putting in place allows him to balance his activity between long-term projects with a higher impact and budget, and more short-term projects.
To ensure the highest possible conversion rate, he makes sure that the customer’s needs are perfectly qualified to offer the highest quality connection with the “Fourmisseur.”
Finally, he thinks about development perspectives, including a more advanced digital strategy, readjustments to his strategy, questions about billing and the creation of other sources of remuneration for greater financial stability.

To conclude, Aurélien came back to the symbol of the ant in his project. Faced with the many people who question themselves and who implement small actions at their scale to reduce their environmental impact, he wished to remind that we are all the ant of someone else. Thus, even a significant reduction in the impact of a large company or the French state remains a small action on a global scale and it is therefore collectively that we will succeed in changing things, through small gestures. He insists on the fact that we should not fear inertia but all contribute in a collective way to positive change. Finally, through Instinct de fourmi, Aurélien also wanted to make a reference to the fable of the Cicada and the Ant.