Open call for the provision of “Jumpstarter Support” (EIT Jumpstarter support with training, coaching, and mentoring) from EIT RawMaterials.  

 

Request for Proposal (RFP)

EIT RawMaterials invites you to respond to this Request for Proposal (RfP) “Jumpstarter support”.

Introduction to EIT RawMaterials

Europe is home to world leaders in manufacturing, game-changing innovative technologies and an entrepreneurial infrastructure that can boost the transition to a resource-efficient and sustainable society. A sustainable supply of raw materials is vital for both this transition and for Europe’s industrial activity.

EIT RawMaterials, initiated and funded by the EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology), a body of the European Union, is the largest and strongest consortium in the raw materials sector worldwide. Its mission is to develop raw materials into a major strength for Europe by boosting competitiveness, growth and attractiveness of the European raw materials sector via radical innovation, new education approaches and guided entrepreneurship.

EIT RawMaterials unites more than 120 partners – academic and research institutions as well as businesses – from more than 20 EU countries. Together we collaborate on finding new, innovative solutions to secure the supply of raw materials and improve the sector all along the value chain – from extraction to processing, from recycling to reuse.

The vision of EIT RawMaterials: To develop raw materials into a major strength for Europe’ will be realised by integrating knowledge from industry, higher education and research and engaging stakeholders from the entire raw materials value chain. EIT RawMaterials will promote increased resource efficiency and the improvement of processes and products, support the introduction of new, innovative technologies and rethink our current linear economic model to move towards a circular approach. Further focus areas are to increase human capital in the raw materials sector and promote entrepreneurial education at all levels.

We see a Europe with industrial strength built on a foundation of efficient, secure and sustainable supply and use of raw materials. In this vision, products, processes and solutions are geared towards the closure of closely interconnected material cycles. These dynamic and rapidly changing material cycles will attract new investments, enhance the innovation capacity for competitiveness and incite the interest of talented, skilled, entrepreneurial employees. The aim is for society as a whole to appreciate the value of raw materials and perceive the sector as innovative and attractive.

EIT RawMaterials aims to significantly enhance innovation in the raw materials sector by sharing knowledge, information and expertise: Entrepreneurs, Startups and SMEs receive funding and support through our partner network and collaboration activities.

EIT and EIT RawMaterials are and will be an integral part of the Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 2021-2027. EIT RawMaterials has evolved to an open, integrated, outward-looking and expanding partnership closely connected with the policy agenda of the European Commission and driven by a strategy to create industrial symbiosis through innovation across value chains.

EIT RawMaterials is becoming a ‘network- and service-focused organisation (2021-2027) with the ambitious aim to emerge as a stand-alone and profitable, fully-fledged professional service organisation.

Activity/ project to which the RfP is referring to

EIT Jumpstarter is the award-winning pre-acceleration programme for scientists, researchers, and innovators, who want to validate their idea and develop business skills to create and run their startups. The programme, powered by the EIT Community, focuses on talents coming from countries located in Central, Eastern and Southern Europe, where the overall pace of innovation is moderate or modest. EIT Jumpstarter has brought to life already 70 startups and trained over 750 researchers, scientists, and professionals. It is free of charge and doesn’t require equity shares.

Who are the participants? EIT Jumpstarter creates a new European cohort of innovators: curious and eager to find solutions to some of the global intersectional challenges such as climate change, energy crisis, access to raw materials, health, well-being and active ageing, sustainable manufacturing or smart and livable cities. Very often they have the necessary scientific background and research experience, but they lack business skills or have never validated their idea on the market. During the seven-month-long programme, the participants are equipped with a unique business skill set that is a must for future entrepreneurs, including business modelling and validation of the market need. They also gain best-in-class networking and understand how to bring their innovation from the lab to the market and make a potential impact in their respective industry. EIT Communities are carefully selecting the best candidates to enable quality peer-to-peer learning. The most promising teams will be awarded cash prizes for further development. This competition is divided into several phases.

Phase 1: Submission of ideas and selection to the Online Bootcamps.

Phase 2: Online Bootcamps and learning group coaching. The training aims to deliver the fundamental qualitative and quantitative skills of developing a business case for an entrepreneurial idea; as well as knowledge on pitching the business case to get investor funding. Focus areas: pitch deck development, creation of business-critical assumptions and identification of next steps. Bootcamps will be organised online in May-June 2023. The length of this stage is approximately 15 hours. Bootcamps are composed of online modules and learning group meetings where participants will be supported with expert coaching to master the different topics while interacting, networking and learning from fellow teams. Furthermore, teams will have the possibility to receive individual mentoring from industry and business experts. Once the team joined one learning group, they are not eligible to participate in another. The EIT Jumpstarter project management team will assign the teams to the learning groups and coaches. The team’s attendance in learning group meetings is mandatory to proceed and pitch at the Online Pitch Day.

Phase 3: Online Pitch Day and selection to the Local Joint Trainings After the Online Bootcamps, teams will pitch their business ideas at an online, thematical Pitch Day in late June 2023. The pitch shall be either pre-recorded and sent in advance or will be recorded during the online event and evaluated by a team of experts powered by the EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities (EIT KICs). Teams will have the possibility to answer the jury’s questions and based on their pitches and answers, organisers will select the best performers, most committed 90 teams – 10 teams per each category – and invite them to attend the Local Joint Trainings, which take place partially in person. The invitations will be sent to participants directly by the respective EIT KIC’s Contact point.

Phase 4: Local Joint Trainings will be organised in various European locations in July-September 2023. They will build on the knowledge acquired by teams during the Online Bootcamps. The Local Joint Trainings aim to help teams test and validate their main assumptions set up in the previous phase, enrich knowledge and practice new skills, master their presentation skills and how to set up a startup. Teams will be ideally directed to the nearest location of their city of residence. The length of the Local Joint Trainings is approximately 40 hours. Teams will be asked to prepare home assignments during the trainings: to work on business modelling tools. By the end of the training, teams will write a concise Business Plan considering the outcomes of the analyses prepared and delivered during the training. The Local Joint Trainings will be organised partially in person. Teams will be supported by small grants to cover the travel and accommodation costs related to their participation in the training. Attendance of the team in the sessions is mandatory to proceed and submit a business plan for evaluation.

Phase 5: Selection to the EIT Jumpstarter Grand Final After the Local Joint Trainings, teams should submit their business plans prepared with the support of local trainers. The business plans will be evaluated by the EIT KIC’s evaluation committee. The prizes at the Grand Final are intended to incentivise the product or service development efforts aimed at the commercialisation of innovative solutions by startup companies. Therefore, in all categories, only those teams will be eligible to enter the next phase who are ready to set up a new business enterprise by the end of 2023.

Description of Services to be provided.

Task 1: Coach up to 4 learning groups (one learning group is composed of 5 RawMaterials teams) during the Bootcamp phase – 7×1 hour coaching sessions with a learning group in 4 weeks (2 sessions/week).

  • date: 22 May – 18 June,
  • format: online,
  • Detailed tasks: get to know the curriculum and the requirements of the final deliverable, deliver the coaching sessions, check homework and give feedback to the teams and reporting,
  • The 4 learning groups should be coached by 4 different coaches – intensive 4 weeks,
  • Available budget: 800 EUR gross/ 1 learning group.

Task 2: Deliver up to 2 sets of Local Joint Trainings for approx. 7-8 teams (teams will be thematically mixed).

  • Date: first online kick-off session between 10-21 July, remaining sessions in September – in the meantime, teams will be asked to validate their assumptions made during the Bootcamps
  • Format: hybrid approach – online and in-person sessions with the option to join the in-person sessions online in case a team cannot travel due to visa or Covid issue
  • Sessions in person shall preferably take place in one of the following countries: Italy, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Serbia or Spain. We are looking for two parallel sessions being executed at the same time in two different countries mentioned in the above list
  • Detailed tasks: get to know the curriculum and the requirements of the final deliverable, organisation and delivery of the training sessions, and reporting
  • Available budget: 11,000 EUR gross/1 Local Joint training

Task 3: Expert mentoring up to 4 sets (10×1 hour mentor sessions / set with teams on demand) during Phase 4 and Phase 5 of the EIT Jumpstarter programme.

  • Date: July – November
  • Format: online
  • Detailed tasks: online mentoring support (pre-booked, on demand up to a maximum of 10 occasions/mentor) to the teams on business plan development, business idea validation and final pitch during the grand finale
  • The 4 learning groups should be coached by 4 different coaches – intensive 4 weeks
  • Available budget: 1000 EUR gross/ 1 set

Offers can be provided for each task separately or jointly for all of them. When you provide your offer, please indicate:

  • To which task you are applying and for each of them separately provide the following information
    • Task 1 – The price for coaching one learning group and how many learning groups you are able to manage within the contract (up to 4)
    • Task 2 – The price for one local joint training organised and how many Local Joint Trainings you are able to manage within the contract and in which countries (up to two, selected from the above-mentioned list)
    • Task 3 – The price for one set of mentoring and how many mentoring sets you are able to manage within the contract (up to 4).

The total available budget for the entire offer is 29,200 EUR.

Experience required:

  • Prior experience in mentoring and coaching early-stage startup teams.
  • Prior experience in training in pre-acceleration and innovation educational programs.
  • Experience in working across multinational and geographically dispersed teams.

Selection Criteria*

EIT RawMaterials will use multiple criteria to select the most appropriate partner. The following list summarises the major qualitative areas that will be evaluated:

In each task separately:

  • Previous relevant experience as defined in section 4 (score 0-5 on each criterion) (40%).
  • Budget (best value for money rule applies) (60%)

Response Contents and Format

Please complete all sections of the RfP as defined under Section 7. If additional material is required for one or more tasks, please label attachments clearly and reference them in your response. Your response to this RfP will serve as the basis for the consideration of your potential as a selected venture.

Information Requirements

To understand more about your company and your ability to successfully fulfil this important EIT RawMaterials requirement, please provide the information below as part of your response, clearly referencing each specific question.

  •  Corporate Information

Give a brief overview of your organisation’s involvement in providing services as described above in the marketplace covering the “Expertise” requests of Section 4.

  •  Proposal 

Describe your proposal as a response to the generic elements mentioned in this RfP and in specific in the “Services” requests of Section 4. The proposal should foresee for each action, a detailed set of deliverables, timeline and milestones and should be complemented by an estimate of costs.

  •  Financials

Describe your pricing model and detailed financial analysis that is requested to execute your proposal

Response Delivery Instructions

Please submit an electronic copy of your proposal to both imre.gombkoto@eitrawmaterials.eu and tina.benda@eitrawmaterials.eu All responses must be received on or before the close of business (3:00 pm CET) and written in English on the proposal due date indicated in the key dates table below.

Key Dates

21.03. 2023.: Proposals submission deadline
By 27. 03. 2023.: Award by EIT RawMaterials 
01.05. 2023.: Commencement of work 

No Obligation

The submission of a proposal shall not in any manner oblige EIT RawMaterials to enter into a contract or to be responsible for the costs incurred by your organisation in responding to this request.

Agreement of Non-Disclosure

This document is considered to be proprietary and shall not be disclosed to any other party. It is designed, developed and submitted to potential partners of EIT RawMaterials solely for the benefit of EIT RawMaterials.

No Guarantee

EIT RawMaterials makes no guarantee of future volumes and offers volume information for directional purposes only, to assist vendors with proposal preparation.

Costs for preparing proposals/offers

No costs incurred by the tenderer in preparing and submitting the proposal are reimbursable. All such costs must be borne by the tenderer.

Contact

Imre Gombkötő, RIS Project Coordinator, is the designated EIT RawMaterials representative for this initiative. For any information related to this RfP, please direct all inquiries to her contact information as follows: imre.gombkoto@eitrawmaterials.eu.

 

*The selection criteria shall be clear and objective and defined before the initiation of the procurement procedure. They may exclusively relate to the qualification and authorisation to pursue the professional activity, the economic and financial standing and the technical and professional ability. Before the initiation of the procurement procedure, all candidates or tenderers shall be informed about eligibility criteria, including any minimum requirements and requirements for the provision of evidence.