OSCAR Program: 3.500 Renovation Assistance Referrals (RAR) to inform and raise awareness among craftsmen and construction companies

The RARs of the OSCAR program in figures

The mission of the OSCAR program is both simple and ambitious: to support craftsmen and renovation companies, as close as possible to their expectations and professional practices, to facilitate their understanding, appropriation and use of public (Ma Prime Rénov') and private aid. (EEC).

To do this, the program relies on proximity with the RARs, direct contacts for artisans and businesses at distributors, federations and professional organizations.

Two years after its launch, the OSCAR program:

• Recruited and upgraded the skills of more than 3.500 RARs, of whom 2.700 have fully completed their training course;
• Distributed throughout France, with at least 1 RAR per department (excluding southern Corsica);
• 93% of them work in distribution/trading networks.

All are actively engaged in an active dynamic of skills development specifically dedicated to renovation aid systems:

• 76,6% validated the OSCAR program MOOC;
• 76,2% registered or completed a “Becoming RAR” workshop.

Visions & Feedback from RAR

Who is more appropriate to talk about the RARs of the OSCAR program, their field exchanges with craftsmen and renovation companies, the program tools... than the RARs themselves?

Four of them share their visions and experience here:

• Claude Cutajar, Secretary General CAPEB Grand Paris
• Cyril Millot, CEDEO heating manager
• Pierre Roland, FFB Grand-Est business project manager
• Marlène Hammoutène, SMB Materials Structural Work Manager (France Matériaux)

What types of profiles do RAR support most?

These are most often small and medium-sized companies, with very large structures generally being well informed.

Some RARs work more specifically with medium-sized companies (20/30 employees), which “intervene a lot on private construction sites, integrating or wishing to integrate aid into their offers”, Pierre Roland – FFB Grand-Est.

Others support artisans and micro-enterprises, or even artisans working alone.

Beyond the size of the structure, diversity can also be linked to the history of the company or the craftsman. For example, Marlène Hammoutène, from SMB Matériaux, explains that she responds as much to questions “from very young professionals who decide almost immediately after starting their activity to offer work with assistance, as from older companies who wish to increase their activity by developing offers with integrated aids”.

All are awaiting details regarding the practical operation of the systems or the direct consequences, for their clients' requests for assistance, of regulatory developments.

What questions come up most often?

Beyond very specific subjects, intrinsically linked to a particular activity or site, most of the questions are linked to recurring obstacles. For examples:

• Difficulty understanding the integration of aid into offers or preparation of the file;
• The difficulty of presenting the devices to their customers;
• A certain vagueness between the roles and missions of each person, as Claude Cutajar, of CAPEB Grand Paris, explains: “many wonder about the differences between obligated people and agents, not really understanding who should do what and how to go about it” .
• A lack of visibility regarding the sequencing of requesting and obtaining aid. Pierre Roland, from the FFB Grand-Est, specifies: “most companies have no problem with a delay of several weeks for payment. But they need this deadline to be clearly and surely announced from the start, for better organization and anticipation.”

This question of deadlines is also highlighted by Cyril Millot of CEDEO, to whom “artisans regularly complain about it, with regard to EWCs, these bad experiences constituting a significant obstacle”.

To answer these questions and remove these obstacles, which OSCAR program tools do the RARs use the most?

As Marlène Hammoutène, from SMB Matériaux, points out, “the brakes are up to us, RAR, to remove. And if we’re not comfortable, we don’t lift them easily.” To help her, she consults “the OSCAR tools a lot and regularly to keep up to date, particularly, for example, with regard to decrees which often change”.

The practical tools offered by OSCAR are therefore very popular, such as an information kit and practical presentation of aid, which Pierre Roland, from the FFB Grand-Est, uses “almost systematically during [his] meetings with businesses ".

The training tools are also appreciated and useful for RARs to update their knowledge and help them respond effectively to the questions asked: “the OSCAR MOOC, for example, allows us to fully understand, select and explain the most relevant help depending on of the customer case. It also helps us to respond to more specific, often problematic points, such as the calculation of VAT as part of the preparation of the file”, Claude Cutajar, from CAPEB Grand Paris.

Finally, the OSCAR community as such also constitutes a key tool for the RARs: “when I get stuck on a subject, I ask the question to the other RARs who share their experience with me. I always get the answer to my question. Here again, we are “among professionals”, as with our clients. This is essential to overcome difficulties and remove obstacles.” Cyril Millot, from CEDEO.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.