I always feel uncomfortable answering questions like “how do you write a successful proposal (for the EU framework programme Horizon 2020)?”. I sense that there is not a right answer and that the spokesman is giving to much importance to the writing activity not focusing on the assessment of the innovation potential of the idea, nor to the project planning tasks.
It is true that when it comes to the European framework Programme, especially for Research, Development and Innovation, the applicants tend to focus only on the template. < > they say, or it is said to them. The solution becomes finding the keywords to attract the evaluators’ attention and get a good rank.
What is almost totally forgotten is that proposals represent a synthesis of a project where the key elements are analysed and edited.
I prefer to answer the question saying that there is nothing like “writing a proposal”, but rather “a project to develop” together with analysis, assessments, methodologies and best practices which must be strategically applied to guarantee the highest results possible (and yet they cannot automatically guarantee the success).
Let us clear the air from possible misunderstandings and say that behind a project proposal there is knowledge which comes from the Project management best practices, there are notions that come from the IPR management, which must be adapted and included into the architecture and policies of the Framework Programmes for research and innovation. Above all there is the technology and the team who realized it.
Of course getting some tips about how to write is definitely useful as long as they remain a way to provide an added value and not the key of success.
Developing a project proposal is not limited to write it well. To have a good project, to be able to manage and fulfill all the requirements of the project, the work must start much before the proposal template is downloaded and usually involves the following activities:
1. Settle the entire project related IPs - it is important, before engaging partners and planning activities to secure that all the Intellectual properties connected to on innovation are secured; the ownership and/or use rights are secured. This is an issue always present in all the kind of H2020 project, and not dealing with it early in the project development might jeopardize the whole project plan.
2. Understand the European Policy landscape of the technology – Most of the calls for proposal are ideated as Bottom-up approach. It means that the results of the project must help the European Union solving or mitigating one or more of its societal issues. Clarifying these relations helps the evaluator understanding and quantifying the positive impacts of the project on the European Policies.
3. Identify consistent objectives and develop a project management plan which includes all the relevant aspects: the objectives of the project (main aims of the work) are considered the guideline of the project implementation and are the indicator of the quality of the section 3 (task, financial resource and quality of the personnel).
4. Design a powerful innovation management plan - tailored to the IP intensity of the consortium and the innovation, where all the interests of the partners are identified and the exploitation pathways are designed;
5. Allocate the right financial resources - make sure that all the partners have enough resource to carry out the project activities;
6. Create a detailed consortium agreement - to avoid any surprises when exploiting the projects results.
When considering these aspects we have more chances to be successful, but please bear in mind that «Despite all of our technological advances, content creation still requires time, inspiration, and a certain amount of sweat. There aren't any shortcuts. You can't write an algorithm for it. You can't predict it. You can't code it».
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