Getting Ready for FP7 Thessaloniki, Greece, 8-9 March, 2007

Fundamental Concepts Participation is via Trans-European collaborative projects and proposals In response to specific calls for proposals Proposals may be written by any (or all) of the participating partners, however in practice they are most usually initiated and developed by a small number of core partners Proposal preparation takes anything between a few months and a few weeks ahead of submission Evaluation by external experts Project implementation lasts typically around 2-5 years and is subject to contract

Fundamental Concepts Summary of Key Phase Characteristics 5. Roll-Out & Implementation  Establish contacts & agreements  Partner search  Admin. & Legal Mgt  Payments & Financ. Mgt  Auditing  Reporting  IPR Mgt.  Technical Work  EC templates & submission forms  Agree on overall budget & partner shares  Role in proposal & target budget  Proposal idea & proposal summary  Explore initial contacts  Action Plan for proposal development  Final proposal submission  Allocation of proposal parts among partners  Negotiation & re- costing  Final contract signature = effective start of project  Consortium Agreement 4. Contract Negotiation 3. Proposal Development 2. Consortium Formation 1.Feasibility

Fundamental Concepts – Consortium Formation Core Points FP7 consortia MUST be characterised by a range of complementarity in terms of –Expertise –Disciplines –Geography –Organisation types (e.g. academia, SMEs, etc) –Human resources Number of partners depends on –Subject, tasks, project type - minimum three partners from three Member States or Associated Countries An experienced co-ordinator is an important plus

Established contacts –Previous or current project partners –Business partners Internal organisation / company networks and communication channels Private Partner Search –Databases in ICT-related projects like SEE-INNOVATION, EASIER, SECURE-FORCE, etc Public Partner Search –Cordis, IDEAL-IST FP7, etc Fundamental Concepts – Finding Partners 1/2

And also –ETP Partner Searches –Targeted potential customers / distributors –FP6 projects database –Patent databases –EU conferences and publications –Information Days and other events –National Contact Points & Innovation Relay Centres Fundamental Concepts – Finding Partners 2/2

Fundamental Concepts – Proposal Structure Section 1 – Scientific and/or technical quality –Concept & objectives –Progress beyond the state-of-the-art –S/T methodology and associated work plan –Exploitation and Dissemination Section 2 – Implementation –Management structure & procedures –Individual participants –Consortium as a whole –Resources to be committed Section 3 – Impact –Expected impacts listed in the work programme –Dissemination and/or exploitation of project results, and management of intellectual property Section 4 – Ethical Issues PART B – Proposal Content PART A – Proposal Submission Forms A1 – General information on proposal (title, abstract, etc) A2 – Information on co-ordinator and other partners A3 – Cost breakdown by type of cost categories and partner

Focus –There should really be only one high-level objective Consortium credibility and quality Management aspects and resource allocation Workable and realistic work plan with well-defined milestones / deliverables / and success metrics Well-identified risks and contingency plans Exploitation and anticipated impact Fundamental Concepts – Key Proposal Elements

Fundamental Concepts Proposal Submission and Evaluation One stage e-submission via EPSS – Electronic Proposal Submission System Eligibility Check – time of receipt, min. partners, proposal complete, other specific to call Evaluation via 3 independent experts incl. non-EU evaluators –Evaluators selected from central database and by invitation and checked for any conflict of interest 3 evaluation criteria only – for each funding scheme per Work Programme Feedback via ESR and later by official letter of outcome of ranking process (including unsuccessful applications)

FP7 – the EU offer –Almost € 50m in top-down research priorities –ICT takes the lion’s share of this budget – close to € 1,2 b distributed among 7 strategic challenges (+ FET) –Two key modes of participation – as partner, or as co- ordinator –Three funding schemes – CP (IPs and STREPs), NOEs, CSA –Participation is through collaborative research projects funded at 50%-100% depending on activities Research by public institutions and SMEs is funded at 75% FP7 Participation The Current EU Offer

Technological offer Participation Modalities Two Case Scenarios Research offer Project idea Co-ordinator Partner

Three key things to consider – –(A) What projects need A good partner, that shares the consortium vision and is able to perform a given set of activities A partner who is reliable and sticks to its mission A partner who communicates well and understands how EU projects work from a financial and administrative point of view –(B) What kind of project you want A project that helps you implement a strategy or reach an important objective –(C) How do you get onboard the project that you want Customizing your research offer Entering in FP7 projects Participating as Partner

Entering in FP7 projects Grasping an Opportunity When identifying an FP7-related opportunity, you need to –Screen proposal idea –Check role proposed and also Man effort, cost and ROI (Return on Investment) involved Other potential benefits accruing from role – e.g. new market opportunities, improved efficiencies, access to new technologies (avoid missing the train), etc –If in agreement, supply required info Organisation profile and 2-3 short CVs Man month rate & and – if applicable – overhead rate A2 forms, Letter of Commitment, technical input, etc

Remember the basics of partneship formation – consortia require complementary partners with distinct, well-justified roles –Participation of the right partners in consortia is ESSENTIAL to success – key successful partner features include Interest and motivation Inherent capabilities in IST domains Familiarity with FP procedures, past experience in EU RTD projects Access to local IST market, contacts Reliability, good command of English Resources Critical mass / sustainability Entering FP7 Consortia Responding to an Idea

Research expertise offered –Brief description of the benefits of the research / technology including key technical and competitive advantages Innovative aspects and specific features –What does the research / product do, and in what applications can it be used? State-of-the-research / technology / closeness to the market –Specify / describe the particular market sectors in which this technology could be applied IPR, patents, etc Building a Profile for Research Co- Operation 1/2

Shared Vision –Why do you want to participate in this specific research project Suitability –How does your profile match that of the type of partner sought? Complementarity –What is your unique contribution to the project and the consortium? Capacity –Do you have enough AND suitable resources? Building a Profile for Research Co- Operation 2/2

Strategy for FP7 In Brief… Develop or participate in an excellent idea for an excellent project Develop and cultivate contacts with European research institutes and organisations Render your profile and scientific / technology potential visible and accessible Make yourself familiar with –FP7, the ICT workprogramme and call specifics, procedures, regulations –The EU-policy in your specific field ("European Added Value")

Any questions?

For Further Info On participation in FP7 – On ICT in FP7 – – (M. Morron FP7 book) On proposal development and e-training courses – ICT helpdesk for proposers’ questions Partner search facilities –Cordis database: –IDEALIST: –SEE-INNOVATION, IS2WeB, and other SSA databases:

Thank You! For more info, please contact – – – –