PROPOSAL WRITING Proposal Development Proposal Structure Part A

PROPOSAL WRITING

Proposal Development Proposal Structure • Part A – Administrative and statistical information • A 1 – General information on proposal (title, abstract, etc) • A 2 – Information on co-ordinator and other partners • A 3 – Cost breakdown by type of cost categories and partner – Outline budget – Standard forms – Eligibility check • Part B – Core (technical) proposal

Proposal Development Core Proposal Structure • “Technical” Components I (Parts B 1 -B 3) – B 1 – Project Objectives – B 2 – Relevance to IST ALL PARTNERS Need to provide monthly manand overhead rates & cost model – B 3 – Potential Impact • B 4 – Project Consortium and Resources • B 5 – Project Management Structure ALL PARTNERS • B 6 – Technical Components II Need to describe management procedures and agree on coordinator – Project Workplan • B 7 – Other Issues (Gender / Ethical)

Proposal Development Before Starting… • Objectives and scope of project • Deliverables, work needed to achieve them & milestones • Work packages • Schedule for developing proposal • Roles and responsibilities: co-ordinator, work package leaders, etc • Formal relationship – consortium agreement or Memorandum of Understanding

Proposal Development Partner Responsibilities Project Partner • • • Provide – A 2 info – Cost model and if FC, overhead rate – Man month rate in € – Short paragraph on own organisation – Two short CVs Draft Part B components (as asked) Signed any DNA / Mo. U required Project Co-ordinator • Registers with EPPS • Fills in A 1 and A 3 forms • Collates and develops technical proposal incorporating partner contributions • Uploads technical proposal

Proposal Development Part A Components • Form A 1 – Find the right activity codes and keywords – Proposal abstract (< 2, 000 characters) – is also used in Part B • Form A 2 – Fill in completely based on instructions • Partner numbering should be the same as in Part B – Get a letter of commitment (LOC) from the partners to participate in the proposal and later-on in the project • Form A 3 – Fill in at the very end

Proposal Development B 1 Section Structure • Exact structure depends on instrument type, e. g. – STREP • B 1. 1 Scientific and technological objectives of the project • B 1. 2 State of the Art • SSA – B 1 Objectives of the proposed project

B 1 – Scientific and Technological Objectives and State-of-the-Art Section Objectives • Should provide clear answers to – What is the problem to be solved? – What is the state-of-the art in the area concerned? – What exactly will come out of the work? – How will the proposed project enhance the state-of-theart in its area? – Who will be the next user – who will use the project results? – How will the project deliver the results to these users – routes of exploitation (publications, licences, spin offs) Recommended Length = 3 Pages

B 1 – Scientific and Technological Objectives and State-of-the-Art Required Response (1/2) • Proposal objective(s) – Should be those achievable within the project – not through subsequent development – Should be few in number at higher levels – if possible, just one – and subsequently broken down in more specific aims, goals, etc – Should reflect state-of-the-art in the area concerned and align with key European Policies • But Community contribution alone is not a sufficient driver

B 1 – Scientific and Technological Objectives and State-of-the-Art Required Response (2/2) • Goals – Should be directly relevant to objective(s) – Should be stated in a measurable and verifiable form – Should be accompanied by delineation of project • Approach • Means • Output, e. g. – Selection and validation of promising technologies; – Mitigation of existing problems; – Anticipation of future trends, etc

Proposal Development Sections B 2 & B 3 • B 2 ― based on scientific, technical, wider societal or policy objectives of the IST Priority in working call • B 3 ― Based on information on European policies and initiatives as described, for instance, in – Related Work Programme – Europa web site (http: //europa. eu. int) Recommended Total Length = 5 Pages

Proposal Development B 3 – Potential Impact • B 3 ― Must address – Any related activities issues (if applicable – e. g. EUREKA, national research programmes) – Standardisation • How will your work impact existing standards? – Dissemination and exploitation plans • How will the partners exploit the project results? – Be specific and quantify things

Proposal Development Summary of B 1 -B 3 • What is the problem to be solved? • What is the state-of-the art in the area concerned? • What exactly will come out of the work? • How will the proposed project enhance the state-of-the-art in its area? • Who will be the next user – who will use the project results? • How will the project deliver the results to these users – routes of exploitation (publications, licences, spin offs)

B 4 – Consortium Budget & Resources • Description of the Consortium – Participant nationalities, types of partners, etc • Sub-contracting • Other Countries • Description of Participants • Quality of Participants: involvement of users and SMEs • Overall financial plan • Project Effort Form

B 4 – Consortium Budget & Resources Key Questions • What resources? Recommended Length = 5 Pages – Money – Personnel – Travel – Equipment, consumables – Partners – Time • Must justify the resources you plan to use

B 4 – Consortium Budget & Resources Budget Breakdown • Must be split between types of activity as rates can vary. For instance – Project Management ― 100% up to 7% of total budget – Research and innovation ― 50% – Demonstration ― 35% – Training costs ― 100%

B 4 – Consortium Budget & Resources Resource Effort Form P 1 Kick-off and other meetings P 2 P 3 P 4 P 5 P 6 P 7 P 8 P 9

B 5 – Description of Project Management B 5 Section Structure • • Project Co-ordinator & Project Manager Management Structure Work Monitoring and Crisis Management Quality Procedures Communication and Reporting Consortium Agreement IPR and Knowledge Management Evaluation and Assessment – Mid Term and Final Project Review Recommended Length = 3 Pages

B 5 – Description of Project Management Resource Roles

Proposal Development B 6 – Work Plan • Overview of Work Plan ― should include rationale for technical approach • Research and Technological Aspects • Potential Risks and Fall Backs / Contingency Plan • Phasing and Check Points / Milestones • Graphical presentation of the project components – Gannt and Pert charts • Workpackage list • Deliverables list • Workpackage description

B 6 – Work Plan Workpackage Design • Each Objective becomes a single Work Package • For each Work Package – What is the end point? end point becomes the milestone – What steps are needed to get there? steps become the tasks

B 6 – Work Plan Workpackage List

B 6 – Work Plan List of Deliverables

B 6 – Work Plan Gannt Charts

B 6 – Work Plan Pert Charts T 1. 1: State-of-the-art Analysis T 1. 2: E-Gov Lifecycle Specification T 2. 1: Investigation of PA Services T 2. 2: Determination of Service Criteria T 3. 1: User Requirements T 3. 2: Platform Specifications M 1: Availability of Onto. Gov Platform Specifications T 2. 3: Selection and Analysis of Suitable Service for Onto. Gov T 4. 1: Development of Ontology Editor T 4. 2: Development of Ontology Management System T 5. 1: Development of the Service Configuration System M 3: Finalisation of Software Components M 2: Availability of the Ontology Editor T 6. 1: Integration T 6. 2: Deployment M 4: Availability of Integrated Platform T 7. 1: Development of Trial & Evaluation Plan T 7. 2: Execution & Evaluation of Trials M 5: Executed and Evaluated User Trials

B 6 – Work Plan Detailed Workpackage Descriptions

Proposal Development B 7 ― Ethical and Gender Issues • Any ethical or gender issues associated with proposal must be addressed – Research must contribute to promoting gender equality ― participation of women must be encouraged at all levels • Indications of relevant gender issues and suggestions on how gender dimension can be integrated into projects are available from: ü[email protected] eu. int • No max length

B 7 ― Ethical and Gender Issues Ethical Issues Form

Proposal Development Completing • Check for other costs per partner per WP (e. g. dissemination cost – printing, booths, …) • Iterate costs to fit via spread sheet • Update all tables with man months, deliverables • Add financial plan rationale to B 4 • Update A 3 with costs • Fine tuning, proofing, spell check • Final agreement of partners • Before uploading – Do a final dummy evaluation using manual – have a nonexpert read the proposal • Initial submittal via EPSS

Proposal Submission The EPSS Submission Tool • The basic templates are given by EPSS – EPSS = internet-based application providing a secure work space for proposal preparation and submission • https: //www. epss-fp 6. org/epss/welcome. jsp – System allows you to submit updated versions – There is some freedom to add own subheadings and own templates for tables, etc

Proposal Development Finalising… • Double-check with Evaluation Criteria – Relevance (Threshold 3/5) – Potential Impact (Threshold 3/5) – S&T Excellence / Quality of the Co-ordination Action / Quality of Integration (Threshold 4/5) !!! – Quality of the Support Action (Threshold 3/5) – Quality of the Consortium / Excellence of Participants (Threshold 3/5) – Quality of the Management (Threshold 3/5) – Mobilisation of Resources (Threshold 3/5) – Overall Remarks

Finalising… Evaluation Criteria – A Thing to Remember The proposal will ONLY progress if all individual thresholds PLUS the overall threshold are reached

Following are main links you will require - • http: //www. cordis. lu/ist • https: //www. epss-fp 6. org/epss/welcome. jsp • http: //www. cordis. lu/experts/fp 6_candidature. htm

3 — Proposal Development Key Steps (1/2) • Develop abstract and proposal template, 1 st draft • Register with EPSS (Electronic Proposal Submission System) • (Pre-consortium meeting) • Provide partners with appropriate information – Preceded by MOU or NDA, if deemed necessary • Set dates for all partner contributions for Part B at coordinator – Date for first complete draft – Date for critical review – Date for A 2 forms

3 — Proposal Development Key Steps (1/2) – Date for final draft and first submission (1 week before deadline) – Date for final critical review • Fill-in EPSS A 1 + A 2 forms • Work on technical proposal • Final submission (1 day before deadline)