Horizon Europe Programme

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Women TechEU Application Form (CSA)

Project proposal – Technical description (Part B) 

Version 1.1
02 June 2022

Structure of the Proposal 

The proposal contains two parts:

•	Part A of the proposal is generated by the IT system. It is based on the information entered by the participants through the submission system in the Funding & Tenders Portal. The participants can update the information in the submission system at any time before final submission.
  
•	Part B of the proposal is the narrative part that includes three sections that each correspond to an evaluation criterion. Part B needs to be uploaded as a PDF document following the templates downloaded by the applicants in the submission system for the specific call or topic. The templates for a specific call may slightly differ from the example provided in this document.

The electronic submission system is an online wizard that guides you step-by-step through the preparation of your proposal. The submission process consists of 6 steps:

- Step 1: Logging in the Portal 
- Step 2: Select the call, topic and type of action in the Portal
- Step 3: Create a draft proposal: Title, acronym, summary, main organisation and contact details
- Step 4: Manage your parties and contact details: add your partner organisations and contact details. 
- Step 5: Edit and complete web forms for proposal part A and upload proposal part B
- Step 6: Submit the proposal

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HISTORY OF CHANGES	
Version	Publication date	Changes	
1.0	02.07.2021	•	Initial version	
1.1	02.06.2022	•	Added clarification to include only one work package and one deliverable
•	Added column for Person Months in work package table
•	Added table of milestones (table 3.1b)
•	Added table of critical risks (table 3.1c)
•	Added 2 additional questions

Proposal template Part B: technical description
(for full proposals: single stage submission procedure and 2nd stage of a two-stage submission procedure)

This template is to be used in a single-stage submission procedure or at the 2nd stage of a two-stage submission procedure.
The structure of this template must be followed when preparing your proposal. It has been designed to ensure that the important aspects of your planned work are presented in a way that will enable the experts to make an effective assessment against the evaluation criteria. Sections 1, 2 and 3 each correspond to an evaluation criterion. 
Please be aware that proposals will be evaluated as they were submitted, rather than on their potential if certain changes were to be made. This means that only proposals that successfully address all the required aspects will have a chance of being funded. There will be no possibility for significant changes to content, budget and consortium composition during grant preparation.
Proposal  must  be  based  on  an  initial  business  plan  and  describe  the  activities  to  be  undertaken.
 Page limit: The title, participant information and sections 1, 2 and 3, together, should not be longer than 10 pages. All tables, figures, references and any other element pertaining to these sections must be included as an integral part of these sections and are thus counted against this page limit. The number of pages included in each section of this template is only indicative.
The page limit will be applied automatically. At the end of the document you can see the structure of the actual proposal that you need to submit, please remove all instruction pages that are watermarked.
If you attempt to upload a proposal longer than the specified limit before the deadline, you will receive an automatic warning and will be advised to shorten and re-upload the proposal. After the deadline, excess pages (in over-long proposals/applications) will be automatically made invisible, and will not be taken into consideration by the experts. The proposal is a self-contained document.  Experts will be instructed to ignore hyperlinks to information that is specifically designed to expand the proposal, thus circumventing the page limit. 
Please, do not consider the page limit as a target! It is in your interest to keep your text as concise as possible, since experts rarely view unnecessarily long proposals in a po
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sitive light.  The following formatting conditions apply. 
The reference font for the body text of proposals is Times New Roman (Windows platforms), Times/Times New Roman (Apple platforms) or Nimbus Roman No. 9 L (Linux distributions).
The use of a different font for the body text is not advised and is subject to the cumulative conditions that the font is legible and that its use does not significantly shorten the representation of the proposal in number of pages compared to using the reference font (for example with a view to bypass the page limit).
The minimum font size allowed is 11 points. Standard character spacing and a minimum of single line spacing is to be used.
Text elements other than the body text, such as headers, foot/end notes, captions, formula's, may deviate, but must be legible.
The page size is A4, and all margins (top, bottom, left, right) should be at least 15 mm (not including any footers or headers).

DEFINITIONS 	
Critical risk	A critical risk is a plausible event or issue that could have a high adverse impact on the ability of the project to achieve its objectives.   
Level of likelihood to occur (Low/medium/high): The likelihood is the estimated probability that the risk will materialise even after taking account of the mitigating measures put in place.
Level of severity (Low/medium/high): The relative seriousness of the risk and the significance of its effect.	
Deliverable	A report that is sent to the Commission or Agency providing information to ensure effective monitoring of the project. There are different types of deliverables (e.g. a report on specific activities or results, data management plans, ethics or security requirements). 	
 Impacts	Wider long term effects on society (including the environment), the economy and science, enabled by the outcomes of R&I investments (long term). It refers to the specific contribution of the project to the work programme expected impacts described in the destination. Impacts generally occur some time after the end of the project.  

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Example: The deployment of the advanced forecasting system enables each airport to increase maximum passenger capacity by 15% and passenger average throughput by 10%, leading to a 28% reduction in infrastructure expansion costs.	
Milestone	Control points in the project that help to chart progress. Milestones may correspond to the achievement of a key result, allowing the next phase of the work to begin. They may also be needed at intermediary points so that, if problems have arisen, corrective measures can be taken. A milestone may be a critical decision point in the project where, for example, the consortium must decide which of several technologies to adopt for further development. The achievement of a milestone should be verifiable. 	
Objectives	The goals of the work performed within the project, in terms of its research and innovation content. This will be translated into the project’s results. These may range from tackling specific research questions, demonstrating the feasibility of an innovation, sharing knowledge among stakeholders on specific issues. The nature of the objectives will depend on the type of action, and the scope of the topic.	
Outcomes	The expected effects, over the medium term, of projects supported under a given topic.  The results of a project should contribute to these outcomes, fostered in particular by the dissemination and exploitation measures. This may include the uptake, diffusion, deployment, and/or use of the project’s results by direct target groups. Outcomes generally occur shortly after the end of the project.
Example:  9 European airports adopt the advanced forecasting system demonstrated during the project.	
Pathway to impact 	Logical steps towards the achievement of the expected impacts of the project over time, in particular beyond the duration of a project. A pathway begins with the projects’ results, to their dissemination, exploitation and communication, contributing to the expected outcomes in the work programme topic, and ultimately to the wider scientific, economic and societal impacts of the work programme destination. 	
Research output	Results generated by the action to which access can be given in the form of scientific publications, data or other engineered outcomes and processes such as software, algorithms, protocols and electronic notebooks.	
Results	What is generated during the project implementation. This may include, for example, know-how, innovative solutions, algorithms, proof of feasibility, new business models, policy recommendations, guidelines, prototypes, demonstrators, databases and datasets, trained researchers, new infrastructures, networks, etc. Most project results (inventions, scientific works, etc.) are ‘Intellectual Property’, which may, if appropriate, be protected by formal Intellectual Property Rights.
Example: Successful large-scale demonstrator: trial with 3 airports of an advanced forecasting system for proactive airport passenger flow management.	
Technology Readiness Level	See Work Programme General Annexes B	

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 Fill in the title of your proposal below.
Title of the Proposal
Participant information
Participant organisation name		
Organisation country		
Lead applicant / woman founder		
Position within the company		

Eligibility self-declaration	
 Applicants may be asked at a later stage to provide documents to support this eligibility declaration, in accordance with the Rules of Contest	
YES/NO
(if NO, please explain)	
The company is founded or co-founded by a woman		
The company is considered a ‘deep tech’  company		
The company was registered and established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, at least six months before the submission deadline		

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Double funding	
Information concerning other prizes for this project 
 Please note that there is a strict prohibition of double funding from the EU budget (except under EU Synergies calls). 	
YES/NO
(if NO, please explain)	
We confirm that to our best knowledge neither the application as a whole nor any parts of it have benefitted from any other EU programme. 		
We confirm that to our best knowledge neither the application as a whole nor any parts of it are (nor will be) submitted for any other EU programme. 		

Video pitch
You must support your application with a brief video pitch, lasting no more than 3 minutes. This video should be recorded by the woman or women founder(s) of the company.
In this video, tell us what makes you and your company’s innovation exceptional, and why your company should be selected for support through the Women TechEU programme.
In particular, please address the following questions:
-	Who are you, and what is your role within the company?
-	How have you personally contributed to the success of your company?
-	What is unique about your innovation? What could be the positive impact of this innovation?
-	How can the Women Tech EU programme support you and your company? What do you expect to achieve by taking part in this programme? 

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Please include a link to the video pitch in the box provided in the form. If you are using a file-sharing platform, please check the expiration date for the link. If your video is password-protected, please provide the access codes with the link.

1.	Excellence 
Excellence – aspects to be taken into account.
•	Clarity and pertinence of the project’s objectives 
•	Quality of the proposed coordination and/or support measures including soundness of methodology.	

	The following aspects will be taken into account only to the extent that the proposed work is within the scope of the work programme topic.
Briefly describe the objectives of your proposed work. Why are they pertinent to the work programme topic? Are they measurable and verifiable? Are they realistically achievable?
In particular, please address the following questions:
•	What is the societal challenge, business need and/or market opportunity that your innovation seeks to address?
•	What is your deep-tech innovation? What is unique about your innovation? How does it compare to available competitors' solutions, practices or products (in Europe and globally)?
•	What is the current stage of development of your innovation? What further steps (if any) are needed to develop this innovation?
•	Can you prove feasibility? Is there any feasibility study or proof of concept? Any independent report verifying the performance/efficiency of the product/service?
•	How will open science practices be embedded in your proposed work, if appropriate?
•	How have you funded your company to date? Have you benefited from grants, crowdfunding, support of incubators, accelerators, business angels or investors?
•	What is the greatest challenge you face as a company, and how do you plan to overcome this?
•	How can the Women TechEU programme support you and your company? What activity or activities do you plan to support with this EU grant? What type of coaching and mentoring could you benefit from, and why?

2.	Impact 
Impact – aspects to be taken into account.
•	Credibility of the pathways to achieve the expected outcomes and impacts specified in the work programme, and the likely scale and significance of the contributions due to the project.	
The results of your project should make a contribution to the expected outcomes set out for the work programme topic over the medium term, and to the wider expected impacts set out in the ‘destination’ over the longer term. 
In this section you should show how your project could contribute to the outcomes and impacts described in the work programme, the likely scale and significance of this contribution, and the measures to maximise these impacts.

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Provide a narrative explaining how the project’s results are expected to make a difference in terms of impact, beyond the immediate scope and duration of the project. The narrative should include the components below, tailored to your project. 
Describe the unique contribution your project results would make towards (1) the outcomes specified in this topic, and (2) the wider impacts, in the longer term, specified in the respective destinations in the work programme.  
In particular, please address the following questions:
•	How does this innovation fit with your company's overall business strategy? 
•	Can you briefly describe your business plan?
•	What is (or will be) your company’s sustainable business model, including the pricing and revenue model (now, and in 5 years’ time)?
•	What  is  the  expected  growth  potential  of  your  solution  in  terms  of  turnover,  profit  and jobs?  What is the wider economic impact?
•	• What are your IPR assets? Describe the key knowledge items, who owns them and who else may have the rights to use them; patents (applied/granted) or other ways of protection. Have you conducted a “freedom to operate analysis”, and if “yes” what has been the result?
•	Where do you see your company in 5 years? 
•	What do you expect to have achieved by taking part in this project?
•	How do you plan to share the results of this project, and communicate about the wider outcomes and impacts?
•	What are your company’s current policies and practices in promoting gender diversity and inclusion? 
•	How will your company’s innovation create positive societal and environmental impact? 
3.	Quality and efficiency of the implementation 
Quality and efficiency of the implementation – aspects to be taken into account
‒	Quality and effectiveness of the work plan, assessment of risks, and appropriateness of the effort assigned to work packages, and the resources overall.
‒	Capacity and role of the woman leader and her team, and extent to which the team as a whole brings together the necessary expertise.	

3.1	Work plan and resources 
Please provide the following:
•	Brief presentation of the overall structure of the work plan;
•	Detailed work / project description, including narrative description of the resources planned for each activity.
The description of work must demonstrate that the resources are reasonable and appropriate for the implementation of the project.
	Give full details. Base your account on the logical structure of the project and the stages in which it is to be carried out. 
	You should give enough detail in the work plan to justify the proposed resources to be allocated and also quantified information so that progress can be monitored, including by the Commission.
	Resources assigned to work plan should be in line with 
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its objectives and deliverables. 
 
3.2	Capacity of participants and the team as a whole
•	As a woman founder or co-founder, describe your position and role within the company. How have you personally contributed to the success of the company? What role will you play within this project?
•	Describe your team, their experience and profiles. What is the gender balance within the team? What are the team’s main strengths and weaknesses? What role have they played in the success of the company?  What will be their role within this project?
•	What is your company's ownership and capital structure? To support your answer, you are expected to provide a capitalization table (Cap Table) under ‘Annex’.

Tables for section 3.1
Proposals for this topic should include one single work package. All project tasks/activities should be included in this work package. 
Table 3.1a: 	Work package description
Work package title		Person Months		

Objectives

	

Description of work (where appropriate, broken down into tasks), lead partner and role of participants

	

This is the only deliverable for the project. The achievement of activities under the project will be described in this report. 
Deliverable: Final report that should include a detailed description of all the activities mentioned in the proposal and carried out during the project, including information on how the funding supported the company. The report should also describe how the mentoring and coaching  supported and empowered the woman leader 

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Table 3.1b:	List of milestones 
Milestone number	Milestone name	Related work package(s)	Due date (in month)	Means of verification	

KEY
Due date
Measured in months from the project start date (month 1)

Means of verification 
Show how you will confirm that the milestone has been attained. Refer to indicators if appropriate. For example: a laboratory prototype that is ‘up and running’; software released and validated by a user group; field survey complete and data quality validated.	

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Table 3.1c:	Critical risks for implementation 
Description of risk  (indicate level of (i) likelihood, and (ii) severity: Low/Medium/High)	Work package(s) involved	Proposed risk-mitigation measures	

Definition critical risk: 
A critical risk is a plausible event or issue that could have a high adverse impact on the ability of the project to achieve its objectives. 

Level of likelihood to occur: Low/medium/high
The likelihood is the estimated probability that the risk will materialise even after taking account of the mitigating measures put in place.

Level of severity: Low/medium/high
The relative seriousness of the risk and the significance of its effect.	

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Proposal template Part B: technical description

Title of the Proposal
Participant information

Participant organisation name		
Organisation country		
Lead applicant / woman founder		
Position within the company		

Eligibility self-declaration	
 Applicants may be asked at a later stage to provide documents to support this eligibility declaration, in accordance with the Rules of Contest	
YES/NO
(if NO, please explain)	
The company is founded or co-founded by a woman		
The company is considered a ‘deep tech’  company		
The company was registered and established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, at least six months before the submission deadline		

Double funding	
Information concerning other prizes for this project 
 Please note that there is a strict prohibition of double funding from the EU budget (except under EU Synergies calls). 	
YES/NO
(if NO, please explain)	
We confirm that to our best knowledge neither the application as a whole nor any parts of it have benefitted from any other EU programme. 		
We confirm that to our best knowledge neither the application as a whole nor any parts of it are (nor will be) submitted for any other EU programme. 		

Please include a link to the video pitch in the box below. 
Link to the video	

1.	Excellence
Insert here text for your proposal

2.	Impact
Insert here text for your proposal

3. Quality and efficiency of the implementation
3.1	Work plan and resources 
Insert here text for your proposal

3.2	Capacity of participants and the team as a whole
Insert here text for your proposal

Tables for section 3.1
Table 3.1a: 	Work package description
Proposals for this topic should include one single work package. All activities to be carried out in the project should be included in this work package (instructions – please remove this sentence).

Work package title		

Objectives

	

Description of work (where appropriate, broken down into tasks), lead partner and role of participants

	

Deliverable: Final report that should include a detailed description of all the activities mentioned in the proposal and carried out during the project, including information on how the funding supported the company. The report should also highlight how the mentoring and coaching have supported and empowered the woman leader.

Table 3.1b:	List of milestones 
Milestone number	Milestone name	Related work package(s)	Due date (in month)	Means of verification	

Table 3.1c:	Critical risks for implementation 
Description of risk  (indicate level of (i) likelihood, and (ii) severity: Low/Medium/High)	Work package(s) involved	Proposed risk-mitigation measures