Project Management Birutė Markevičiūtė Joint Technical Secretariat Lead Partner Seminar 13 October 2008, Riga

Project start and end date 2 Project start date:  when first costs incurred and/or  date indicated in the Subsidy Contract  earliest – day after JMSC decision (17 September 2008) Project end date:  project start date + project duration in Application Form;  set in Subsidy Contract.

Basic principles of cooperation 3  Joint development;  Joint implementation;  Joint staffing;  Joint financing.

Lead Partner Principle 4 LP solely bears the overall financial and legal responsibility for the Project (see full list in Subsidy Contract and PM, 7.1.1) In practice, it means LP is responsible for:  signing Subsidy Contract;  representing Project;  setting effective management and financial control system;  ensuring that EU, Programme and national rules are followed;  coordination of activities with Project Partners;  achievement of quality Project outputs and results;  observance of spending plan;  reporting of Project progress via Progress Reports;  requesting payments and distributing to Project Partners;  ensuring audit trail on each Project Partner level.

Project Partners 5 Project Partners are responsible to implement their part of Project, and in particular they shall:  Assume responsibility in the event of any irregularity;  Repay the LP any amounts unduly paid;  Responsible for information and communication measures;  Keep available all documents related to the Project.

Operational Project Management 6 LP should appoint:  Project Coordinator: overall project implementation, coordination of different activities within Work Packages;  Financial Manager: overall financial control of the project. Requirements:  good knowledge of English and previous experience;  ability to work as a “uniting force” for a partnership;  clear coordination system between LP and external manager. Project Partners:  Local coordinators at institution.

Decision Making 7 Project (LP) should establish procedures for decision-making and coordination. Structures:  Strategic level (e.g. Steering Group);  Working level (e.g. working group, advisory group). Mechanisms:  Regular communication;  Meetings;  Rules of Procedure;  Delegation of representatives from each PP;  Protocols. Note: clear, not complicated structures.

Monitoring and Evaluation 8 Monitoring and evaluation system should be established (LP): Application Form = Project results Quality of management and co-ordination:  efficiency of procedures and resources;  progress towards achievement of the Project goals;  time plan;  financial plan and costs effectiveness. Quality of project outputs and results:  Who sets quality criteria;  Who is responsible to monitor the quality;  What are constraints/ risk factors. Source: Evaluation sheets; indicators; Interviews; Procedures; Reports; External evaluation; Technical specifications (procurement).

Monitoring and Evaluation 9 Remember! Some hints:  to plan the monitoring and reporting tasks and costs in the AF and Partnership Agreement;  to set a proper monitoring system early enough;  to make it clear to every PP in terms of tasks, deadlines, etc;  to keep discipline among the PPs to report timely.

Partnership Agreement 10 Lead Partner Managing Authority Subsidy Contract Application Form Project Partner Partner Declarations Partnership Agreement

11 As a minimum requirement the issues stipulated (see full list in Subsidy Contract and PM,4.4.4) should include: 1  PPs tasks and responsibilities;  payment procedures;  decision making;  reporting obligations and deadlines;  communication between PPs;  solving of disputes;  project changes;  ownership of the project outputs and results;  arrangements for audit trail. 2 Annex: table indicating responsibility for project activities per PPs and budget breakdown per Work Packages/ Budget Lines for each PP. Model shall be available on the website

Information to the JTS 12 Project (LP) should inform JTS:  on major Project events not later than 2 weeks before event (add info to the web page);  on changes of the Project Coordinator, Financial Manager or LP contact person immediately (via ; Progress Reports). Recommended: to send copy of project information and publicity materials as soon as available to JTS!

Project Finalization 13 Results should be:  Freely accessible to general public;  Further disseminated;  Durable: no substantial changes within 5 years: The project must not undergo any substantial change: affecting its nature or its implementation conditions or giving to a firm or a public body an undue advantage; and resulting either from change in the nature of ownership of an item of infrastructure or the cessation of a productive activity. Not fulfilling these conditions can imply a recovery of the funds unduly paid. How, when and by whom outputs and results produced by the project will be used after the project has ended? How they will be maintained?

Project Finalization 14 Durability of contacts:  LP should indicate contact person at least for 6 months after Project end;  LP should inform on changes of contact person for 5 years after Project end.

Project Finalization 15 LP and PPs should retain Project documents at least until 31 December 2021 (see full list in Subsidy Contract and PM,10.7) such as, e.g.:  Application Form;  Subsidy Contract, Partnership Agreement;  Project correspondence (financial and contractual);  Progress Reports and Partner Reports;  list of declared expenditure and supporting documentation;  proof of payment for each invoice;  public procurement documents and contracts;  proofs for delivery of services and goods: studies, brochures, newsletters, minutes of meetings, signed participant lists, travel tickets, etc.;  record of assets, physical availability of equipment purchased in the context of the project.

Lessons Learned: 16 Start as fast as possible: projects usually delay; Ensure sufficient human resources; Good Project Manager and Financial Manager – part of project success; Efficient communication with PPs; Clear division of activities and budget between PPs; Realistic time planning (e.g. public procurement procedures); In line with what is written in the Application Form; Reporting takes more time than planned; Contact JTS for advise

More information 17 Other useful links:  National authorities    Project management tools:  ‘Projects’, ‘Management Toolkit’  INTERACT guidelines: