EU funding is key to many European organizations’ sustainable growth and increased international competitiveness today. But the European funding landscape is complex and highly fragmented. With limited time, resources and in-house capacity to identify suitable funding programs to support project ideas, knowing what funding is available and understanding how this funding can be obtained is fundamental to increasing these organizations’ activity, networking and visibility in Europe.

CMT Prooptiki provides the information tools that organizations need to clarify their project ideas; track suitable funding sources to support them; and tailor them to meet specific funding program requirements. CMT also offers partnership building, bid/consortium management, technical assistance, dissemination and project evaluation services.

EU project consulting: thematic focus

EU funding is allocated on the basis of specific EU policies the various funds aim to address. CMT Prooptiki offers services across the entire range of EU policies, from regional policies supported by Structural Funds such as the NSRF, to internal policies such as Health and Social Care supported by the EU Health Program, Education and Training supported by the Life Long Learning Program, Research and Innovation in Health and Education supported by FP7, Local Government and Third Sector supported by the Cohesion and Social Funds. Services range from merely informative activities, to technical assistance and project implementation activities, throughout the entire cycle of EU funding.

1. Grant advisory services
EU funding is key to many European organizations' sustainable growth and increased international competitiveness today. But the European funding landscape is complex and highly fragmented. With limited time, resources and in-house capacity to identify suitable funding programs to support project ideas, knowing what funding is available and understanding how this funding can be obtained is fundamental to increasing these organizations' activity, networking and visibility in Europe. CMT Prooptiki provides the information tools that organizations need to clarify their project ideas; track suitable funding sources to support them; tailor them to meet specific funding program requirements. Specifically:
  • We will help you clarify your ideas and transform them into viable project plans
  • we will identify suitable funding opportunities that match your ideas and organizational objectives and priorities
  • we will tailor your ideas to match available funding program requirements
  • we will develop a strategy plan on how to approach funding opportunities, including suggestions for projects matching your organization's objectives and priorities
Matching upcoming funding opportunities with the future development goals of your organization is the most relevant question in making maximum use of the European funding opportunities becoming available from 2014. We will provide you with tools and suggestions on:
  • How to inform decision makers in your organization on the added value of European funding for your organization.
  • How to take a strategic approach in acquiring European funding. As project topics can fit in several EU programs, the best fitting ones have to be selected based on the required outputs for your project. Since the time and process needed for project preparation varies per program, decisions on where your projects will be submitted have to be done at an early stage and based on a strategic approach.
  • How to match the midterm policy plans and intentions of your organization with the available funding programs.
 
2. Partnership building
In the framework of its project consulting services, CMT Prooptiki undertakes to support your organisation in building the appropriate partnerships for proposals or bid submission.
This includes identification, evaluation and selection of partners using the contacts we have already developed after 20 years of working in eu funded projects, as well as research to several eu data bases and the social media. We can also use your contacts and undertake to communicate and negotiate possible options for cooperation.
3. Bid / consortium management
Transforming an idea or a funding opportunity to a finally awarded contract for a new project requires a range of management services, starting from the bid/proposal preparation, including also contract negotiations with contracting authority. CMT Prooptiki has wide experience in preparing and submitting successful bids in EU or national authorities according to their call for proposals or call for tenders’ specifications. Specifically:
  • We can contribute to the technical description or the project undertaking all or specific parts of the bid
  • We can allocate responsibilities among the partnership in drafting parts or the proposal, monitor the overall process, comment on drafts as well as finalization of the technical part of the bid.
  • We can undertake drafting the budget of the project and preparing the financial offer.
  • We can undertake management of the supporting documents procedures, ie declarations of honor, consortium agreements, partnership profiles, cv’s etc according to each call specific requirements.
  • We can collect all required documents and parts of the proposal in order to prepare and submit the final bid in electronic and hard copy format.
    • Finally we can undertake full responsibility or participate in the contract negotiations procedures with contracting authority, leading to a successful completion of all preparatory project actions and setting the beginning of a professional organized project implementation.
4. Project implementation services
CMT Prooptiki has wide experience in the successful implementation of projects according to the specifications described in the contract and the initial proposal. Specifically we offer the following services:
  • Literature reviews, focus group and interview-based research services according to the project specifications.
  • Data collection through focus group and interview-based research services
  • Literature reviews, focus group and interview-based research services (for Interlinks etc)
  • Communication, content management and dissemination services, in order to increase visibility of the project and to devise strategies for further dissemination of the final product. This include:
    • Description of project’s communication strategy (communication plans)
    • Design of Project identity / project logo
    • Web site development, content management and maintaining.
    • Design of project’s printed or electronic communication material (brochures, newsletters etc)
    • Events organisation and management.
    • Press releases and media actions
    • Social media utilisation
  • On going project management support to ensure timely and qualitative achievement of the project results through technical and administrative coordination and to provide timely and efficient organisational and financial coordination, meeting contractual commitments. This include:
    • Description of project specifications and details (inception reports, project handbook etc)
    • Organisation of project meetings
    • Effective technical management and reporting
    • Sound financial resource management and reporting
  • On going evaluation services of the project’s progress and quality, in order to identify errors and gaps, to improve the products and to reflect on lessons learned from the partnerships and the partnership’s interaction with end-users or stakeholders or each project. This include:
    • Evaluation plan to specify methods and tools of project evaluation.
    • Questionnaires and evaluation forms for external (by target groups) and internal (by partners) project evaluation.
    • Formative evaluation methods throughout project duration and summative evaluation of project outcomes at the end.
  • Education and training services such as needs analysis and state of the art description, educational material development, organization and piloting of courses and evaluation of training activities.