Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs How to make the EU more

entrepreneurial

2014 Call for Proposals

Info Day, 19 June 2014, Brussels

Entrepreneurship and Social Economy Unit, DG Enterprise & Industry - European Commission

Unit A.1 COSME, Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME)

Order of events

• 1. What is Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs?

• 2. How does it work?

• 3. Call objectives and the role of the EASME

• 4. Eligibility, selection and award criteria, financial provisions

• 5. Tips and tricks for successful implementation

Part 1

What is Erasmus for Young

Entrepreneurs ?

Erasmus for

Young Entrepreneurs facilitates:

exchange of experience

learning & networking

for New Entrepreneurs

through time spent

with Experienced Host Entrepreneurs

in another country

Benefits for Host & New Entrepreneurs

• Get experience & advice from seasoned entrepreneur

• Develop international contacts

• Get knowledge about foreign markets

• Providers, clients, co-venturing opportunities

• Access new skills and innovative knowledge

• Work with a fresh mind contributing new ideas

• Gain 'intelligence 'about foreign markets

• Establish new business partnerships with entrepreneurs from other countries

Benefits for New Entrepreneurs

Benefits for Host Entrepreneurs

"Give 1h to New Entrepreneur

you get 2h back"

"Concrete EU programme with concrete results"

"Possibility to apply and develop skills in practice

– for both sides"

Testimonies:

EYE – general framework

Key figures and impact

EYE Growth path (based on completed relationships by Year)

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014ongoing

completed relationships

Year Exch

2009 54

2010 310

2011 626

2012 1157

2013 2022

2014 2500

Achievements:

Addressing Europe's challenges:

o youth unemployment

o delivers tangible entrepreneurial education & showcases role models

o offers practical support to SMEs

o strengthens Single Market connections

Excellent Feedback from both New & Host Entrepreneurs:

o reinforced entrepreneurial attitudes, more new businesses

o new practical skills, knowledge, ideas

o networking, new markets, internationalisation

o more resilient companies, further business development , innovation

Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs

2009-2014 Achievements:

Successful proof of concept

24,5 M EUR in 6 Calls (Call 7 open by mid-July)

2500 exchanges (i.e. 5000 entrepreneurs involved) and growing

9000 entrepreneurs in the database (leading: IT, ES, UK, DE, FR)

Intermediary Organisations: 180 in 30+ countries

Challenges and Next steps:

By 2020 – 10 000 exchanges

COSME (Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs) funding: Objective 4 on "Promoting entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial culture"

EYE funding: EUR 55,3 M

Externalisation – EASME (Executive Agency for Small and medium sized enterprises)

Upcoming discussion on next strategic steps – COSME committee to be consulted

Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs

Part 2

How does it work?

Main Actors Involved

European Commission (EC)

Support Office (SO)

Intermediary Organisations (IOs)

Host Entrepreneurs (HEs)

New Entrepreneurs (NEs)

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Online Application

Matching

Contracting & Preparing

Stay abroad

Feedback

& Payment

NE – New Entrepreneur HE – Host Entrepreneur IO – Intermediary Organisation

5 Steps of the exchange:

STEP 1: Online application

1. Application from NE (needs: business plan, CV, motivation);

OR

1. HE states interest to participate (needs: CV and motivation);

2. Applications checked by IO;

> Admission to on-line catalogue How to apply? :

www.erasmus-entrepreneurs.eu

NE – New Entrepreneur HE – Host Entrepreneur IO – Intermediary Organisation

STEP 2: Searching & Matching

1. Entrepreneurs search for partners - on-line-catalogue, themselves

2. IOs contact other IOs in other countries to "recruit" a suitable Entrepreneur

3. Automatic matching based on profiles

> Proposals are established

STEP 3: Contracting and preparation

1. Negotiations on duration, objectives and content

> NOT traineeship!

2. Agreement on the content of the exchange

3. NE does pre-departure induction

4. NE receives a grant

STEP 4: Stay abroad

1. Duration: 1-6 months;

2. On-the-job , Peer-to-peer training, working on concrete projects

3. On-site support provided to the NE by the Host IO

4. Reporting about the exchange.

STEP 5: Feedback and final payment

1. Electronic feedback questionnaiers for HE and NE

2. Final payment to NE upon sucessful completion

3. Re-insertion of HE into the catalogue (if inter-ested to continue)

Country where the NE stays Lump Sum per month in €

Denmark 1100

United Kingdom, Ireland 1000

Finland, Sweden 950

Austria, France, Iceland, Italy 900

Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain 830

Cyprus, Greece, Portugal 780

Turkey 750

Croatia, Malta, Slovenia 720

Estonia, Hungary 670

Czech Republic, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia 610

Bulgaria, FYROM, Lithuania, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia 560

Albania, Moldova 530

Outermost Regions of EU, Entrepreneurs with disabilities 1100

•Part 3

•Call objectives and the role of the EASME

The 2014 call objectives: The overall objectives

- Strengthening the network of Intermediary Organisations implementing the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs programme across Europe

=>> selection of new consortia (so-called European Partnerships) which will act as Intermediary Organisations (IOs) to implement the programme across Europe.

The 2014 call objectives: Specific objectives

Expected results by January 2017:

• - Circa 650 exchanges matched;

• - Circa 2000 entrepreneurs registered

• - Circa 100 Intermediary Organisations involved in the implementation of the programme;

• - At least 25 countries covered;

• - Rate of successful exchanges above 90%.

- (in accordance with the COSME Work Programme 2014)

The role of the EASME

• - Commission Decision on the delegation of programme management tasks to executive agencies

• - EASME = extension of the mandate of the previous EACI (until 2014)

• - Implementation of large parts of several EU funding programmes, including COSME

• - In the future: management of the EYE programme (grants, Support Office etc.)

• ->> EASME becomes the contracting authority

Part 4 a)

Eligibility, selection, award

criteria

26

Any public entity or private body active in the field of business support can participate, e.g.:

Public authorities active in economic affairs, enterprise or business support

Chambers of commerce and industry, chambers of crafts or similar bodies

Business support organisations, start-up centres and incubators

Business associations and business support networks

University-business links

Eligibility - Who can participate in the call?

Admissibility: Electronic Submission

Proposals should be submitted electronically via the Participants Portal of Horizon 2020

Submitted proposals can be updated until the closure of the call: better to submit a draft and make improvements to it

Do not wait until the last moment to submit your proposal: if submitted late it will be rejected. System overload does not overrule deadline for submission

Admissibility

(date, time)

Eligibility

(consortium composition, legal status, geography, non-profit

etc.)

Exclusion

(declaration on honour, bankruptcy

etc.)

Selection

(financial and

operational capacity)

Award

(quality criteria, ranking)

29

The Successive Stages of the Selection Process

Award Criteria

Criteria Maximum Score

Relevance 25

Quality 25

Impact 25

Budget and cost-effectiveness 25

Minimum score: overall score of 70% + 50% of each criterion.

Please note that the Evaluation Committee will be assisted by external evaluators.

For details please check the award criteria in the Call text.

Meetings and Indicative Deadlines

Deadline for sub-mission of proposals: 17 July 2014

Award decision, information to applicants and financial commitment: October 2014

Signing of grant agreements: November 2014

Duration of projects: February 2015 – January 2017

Submission of final reports: March 2017

Key Questions… (1) …and Answers (1)

Which countries can participate?

EU Member States and countries participating in COSME, including outermost regions

How to apply? Business support organisations should apply in a Consortium composed of 5 entities from at least 4 different participating countries

Which activities will be supported?

Intermediary Organisations have the task to enhance and facilitate the mobility of new entrepreneurs

How long will the project last? The projects will span a time frame of 24 months (1st February 2015 until 31st January 2017)

Key Questions… (2) …and Answers (2)

How does the electronic submission work?

Following the link at the Participants Portal, fill in the templates online and upload other documents (part B)

When will the submission be available?

As soon as possible.

Who is the applicants under this call?

All partners in a joint proposal are considered applicants. The coordinator submits the proposal.

What will happen to the EYE programme in the future?

The EYE programme continues to be financed under COSME beyond 2014.

At least 100 entrepreneurs (NEs and HEs) involved in a successful relationship, either as New or Host Entrepreneur

Services linked to these relationships (promotion, information, training, advice, contracts, management of financial assistance, logistical support etc.)

Quality control, evaluation, reporting and active networking

34

Main deliverables at project level

Participation of all in 4 Networking Meetings in Brussels (starting February 2015)

Lead IOs meeting (usually 1 per year)

Mid-term review meetings

(in case of convocation by the EASME, all partners in the consortium are requested to attend)

35

Essentials meetings to be attended

Six-monthly management reports including report on promotion activities

Final Technical Implementation Report

and Financial Statement

36

Main Contractual Deliverables

Part 4 b)

Financial Provisions

37

Total Commission

budget: €4 120 000

Maximum funding per

project: €500 000

The EASME will be able to fund approximately

10 project proposals

38

Budget foreseen for the 2014 Call

Maximum EC contribution is

90% of the total eligible costs

EC reimburses 100% of financial assistance paid to

NEs – with a maximum of €6,600 per NE

Management costs are

reimbursed up to a maximum

of 75%

39

Financial Framework for IOs

Financial Assistance to New Entrepreneurs

Proposals have to contain a minimum financial assistance of 150.000 EUR to New Entrepreneurs.

The Quality Manual, Annex 1, specifies the maximum monthly lumps sums by host country.

The 4 Work Packages Work Package 1: Management,

Networking and Reporting:

(h) management, quality control and

evaluation

(i) active networking

(j) reporting

Work Package 2: Promotion of the

Programme and Recruitment of

Entrepreneurs

(a) promotion of the programme

(b) enrolment of entrepreneurs

Work Package 3: Relationship

Building

(c) assessing applications from NEs

and HEs

(d) building relationships

Work Package 4: Relationship

Management

(e) management of grant agreements,

commitments and financial assistance

(f) preparation of the exchange

(g) follow up of the exchanges,

including induction training

Payments to European Partnerships and Reports

Payments Conditions

Pre-financing 70% of grant

Final Payment (of balance) On the basis of the approved final report and the final financial statement

Reports: - Six-monthly management reports including report on promotion

activities

- Final Technical Implementation Report and Financial Statement

Part 5

Tips and Tricks for successful implementation

How to find a Project Partner?

Template « Looking for a partner » published with the Call (please send your availability to partner up to the call's functional mailbox)

Enterprise Europe Network: http://www.enterprise-europe-network.ec.europa.eu/index_en.htm

Network of existing Intermediary Organisations:

http://www.erasmus-entrepreneurs.eu/page.php?cid=5

Do’s and Don’t’s!!! (1)

Do not forget to include the lump sums for NEs in your budget (under “Financial Support to Third Parties”)!

Your budget should be detailed and should correspond to the deliverables/descriptions in the project proposal.

The budget should be cost-effective. Items referred to in the budget (e.g. consumables) should be necessary for execution of the Programme.

Sufficient management costs for the Lead IO – for the overall coordination of the European Partnership – should not be neglected.

Do not subcontract “core activities”. Limit subcontracting to 15% of the eligible costs.

Do’s and Don’t’s!!! (2)

Check the completeness of your proposal (all financial and budgetary forms, etc… from all partners)! Each partner can only participate in 1 (!) project proposal.

Use the Implementation Manual but DO NOT ‘copy paste’. Do not reinvent tools which are already available.

Get acquainted with the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs Programme – Website, Implementation Manual, User Manuals etc.

Clearly describe the division of tasks and responsibilities between partners in the project proposal.

Further Information

Full text of the Call for Proposals, Guide for Applicants and other call related documents: http://ec.europa.eu/easme/eye_en.htm

Link to Electronic Submission system also available in this website.

Dedicated Programme website:

www.erasmus-entrepreneurs.eu

Contact:

European Commission

Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME)

Unit A1: COSME

B-1210 Brussels/Belgium

Email: easme-cosme-erasmus-call2014@ec.europa.eu

,

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!

QUESTIONS?