EIC Accelerator

How to write a good proposal

Funding & tender website

Creating a user

See here link

Proposal template:

Part A:

Administrative part

Part B:

Proposal template

Part A:

Administrative form

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Part A: abstract

An important element in the first impression, thus has to be

appealing and concise (about one paragraph); could include:

Who are you and why are you special?

What are you developing and why?

Glimpse of the market \ business opportunity

Israeli winners’ tip: form your proposal as a credible solution that addresses a

problem or a proved need, with a clear economic justification

GLUCOSET AS Direct link http://www.glucoset.com Project: Microsensor for continuous arterial blood glucose monitoring Project Acronym: GlucoSet Project Phase: Phase 2 - Poor glucose control in critically ill patients leads to significant increases in costs, complication and mortality rates. Continuous monitoring of glucose will reduce costs of €2700 per patient and could save 58 000 lives in the EU every year. - GlucoSet has developed a disposable glucose sensor for monitoring glucose in the ICU. The sensor measures glucose by measuring sub-nanometer length changes in an advanced material that responds to the glucose level. The product is designed for mass-manufacturing at its core. The innovative fiber optic sensor is protected by granted patents and has freedom to operate. The sensor will be sold as a single-use device lasting 96h with a gross margin of over 90% at high volume. - The total addressable market (US and EU) is $1600 million per year. Willingness to pay has already been confirmed. The project has strong backing from key opinion leaders. - Unlike the competition, the sensor couples to the indwelling arterial catheter, which enables unsurpassed reliability and ease of use. - The SMEi phase 2 will take the project from working prototypes that have been tested in vivo, to a CE-marked device. We expect market entry in 2021 in the EU. - The company has a very strong team that has extensive experience with medical devices, scaling up production and raising and working with venture capital. Topic: Engineering and technology Total budget: 3.394.500 € EU Contribution: 2.376.150 € Call ID: H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-2 Start date: 01/10/2018 End date: 30/09/2020

Part B:

The proposal template

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Each criterion weighs 0.33 (Excellence, Impact, Implementation)

A median grade of 4 independent remote evaluators

Threshold: 13 points (minimum 4 points per each criterion)

The grade is received in an Evaluation Summary Report (ESR)

Next step: face-2-face interviews!

Israeli winners’ tip: do not despair after a failure,

improve the proposal and submit again and again

Evaluation

Part B:

Proposal template

Think of the evaluator as if he is an investor!

Write the abstract and the summary as a pitch: Problem – Solution – Competitive Advantage

The evaluator is looking for an excellent company – focus also on the team; the company’s track record, its strategy, its future offering and its ability to scale up

Show you’re ‘in love’ with your idea

Highlight increase in turnover (RoI), employment, private investment

From now: submit your pitch deck too!

General tips

General tips Continued

Appearance is not less important than the content! You never get a second chance to make a first impression!

Use pictures, graphics and diagrams to describe processes; market segmentation; emphasize your strong points

Maintain font size, margins and numbering of chapters and sections

Use appealing acronyms

Delete guidelines in the template

Take note of the max. number of pages

Be coherent in proposal and goals

Pleasant reading:

Let the evaluator have a good time reading your proposal as a continuous

interesting coherent and consistent story, clear, fluent, accessible, appealing

Review and polish the language; avoid repetitions

Give answers to the questions in the evaluator’s “checklist”

Add links where necessary

Be evidence-based (POCs), verifiable, realistic (e.g. fitting info in company website)

Be refined (and not general or theoretical)

General tips Continued

Israeli winners’ tip: do your homework before writing!!

Talk in the EU’s language – for example, measure yourself in TRL, in Euros

Make sure you fit into the key concepts:

Market creating innovation/new markets (not incremental)

Beyond state-of the-art, disruptive, ground breaking, game changing

For the first time…

Scale-up, growth (in Europe and globally)

High-risk and high-potential

Impact on market and company, in qualitative and quantitative terms (turnover,

employment, market size, IP management, sales, ROI, profitability)

‘Freedom to operate’, regulatory and standardization issues

New keywords: associated financial needs, ‘bankability’, leveraging of

investments, potential to scale-up

Taken from a presentation of the EC, about the EIC, NCP training July 19

Israeli winners’ tip:

If you are developing a platform,

show it’s overall

potential to disrupt the market, not only in your

current application

Introduction Helps give a rapid understanding of the innovation and put it in context

Prove credibility of the company; perhaps referring

to letters of intent from European partners. Demonstrate high

probability of successful commercialization and

ascertain trustworthiness of the company!

Highlight relevant achievements and

experience: projects, products, money raising,

awards, grants, appearances in the media, conferences,

participation in accelerators, publications, members of

advisory board, equipment, infrastructure, etc.

Short, Simple, Sell! Expanding on the abstract

Start with a bang!

Problem-solution-opportunity - competitive advantage

Mention the team, growing together

Traction

Your business model - How will you make money?

What is your financial status? Current investors

Relation to the overall strategy of the company

Summary

High-risk and high-potential

Discuss the product - technology and innovation (proven results); that answers

unmet-needs and pain-points (as a solution)

Don’t be too technical!

Refer to market-related elements also in “Excellence”

Relevant TRL

Standing out from your competition; clear differentiation, USP

“Must have” vs. nice-to-have

Explain and proof feasibility (technological, practical, economic) and risk management about market introduction

Excellence

See here a “state-of-the-art” (SoA) exercise in Access4SMEs’ Analysis report on SME success factors and best practices in Horizon 2020

Refer to gender, climate change / environment, benefits to society

Excellence Continued

Israeli winners’ tip: Emphasize not only technological innovation but also innovation in usage; for potential users who

right now don’t have a similar solution in the market

Presenting the competitive landscape and your differentiation

Value proposition tool of A4SMEs

Excellence - continued

TRL9: Actual system proven in operational environment (competitive manufacturing in the case of key enabling technologies, or in space)

TRL8: System complete and qualified

TRL7: System prototype demonstration in operational environment

TRL6: Technology demonstrated in relevant environment (industrially relevant environment in the case of key enabling technologies)

TRL5: Technology validated in relevant environment (industrially relevant environment in the case of key enabling technologies)

TRL4: Technology validated in lab

TRL3: Experimental proof of concept

TRL2: Technology concept formulated

TRL1: Basic principles observed

Why is the optimal timing now?

How did you reach TRL5\6?

How will your solution reach the market?

Grant versus equity

SMEs requesting grant-only must demonstrate their ability to secure other resources for the activities

above TRL8!!

Risk analysis

How to cope? Description Market barrier

End-user free trials would be offered, and the positive results will be well communicated and disseminated…

End-users must be convinced that…

Market skepticism….

High market-entry cost…

Need of demonstration of the product…

Acquisition of enough client mass / finding a lead customer…

Impact includes innovation’s benefits, commercial value!

Define clearly your target users and\or customers

Company’s growth; build a successful business of innovation!

Potential market and its willingness to pay; clear demand/need

Business model that will scale-up company and product

Market understanding: commercialization, competitors, regulation, external strategic partners (LOIs), etc.

This is not a research proposal; EU is looking for Unicorns

Impact

Entering the market –

Who are your (global) competitors?

Identify needs\demand\pain points of customers, end-users; segment them

Preform a market sizing exercise - quantify the data: market share and potential, how many people suffer from the problem you will solve, market characteristics (fragmented? emerging? many players?)

Be relevant to Europe (and then: also globally).

Growth forecast of the company, sales and revenues, financial projections (RoI), etc.

Show current interest in the solution (LOI’s)

Impact Continued

Presenting your competitors

Market Analysis and competitor tool of A4SMEs

Business model and commercialization–

Talk about your business model: how will you make money? (BM, RM, PM)

Discuss your go-to-market strategy: how will you sell? Directly to the clients? Through channels? On the web? How does it fit the overall business strategy?

Show current traction: paying customers, LOIs, beta sites, MOU

Impact Continued

Discuss IPR protection: FtO? Knowledge management?

50% of phase-2 companies are with awarded patents

52% of phase-2 companies have published patents covering their industrial property outside of the EU jurisdiction

Build on the result of a market-research phase

Scale up potential

Define KPIs for expected outcomes and success criteria

Broader Impact: societal, economic, environmental, climate, etc.

See here an “Impact plan” exercise and the Access4SMEs Business Toolbox Set

Impact Continued

Implementation

Different roles in the team, commitment (full time or part time?)

Relevant achievements \ experience

Prove relevant varied skills of management (in technology, product development,

management and business capacity, sales, marketing, commercialization)

For each team member detail info (CV), incentives, shareholding, stock options

Role of company’s owners

Strengths versus weaknesses, how to acquire missing competences?

Team and capabilities - capacity to execute

How will the project be managed? (technically: team, facilities, WPs, tasks, work force, work

program, milestones, deliverables, financing, approach…)

Implementation - continued

Estimation of the total financial resources required

and its timing to reach break-even point

Breakdown between:

1. EIC Grant (for all)

2. EIC Equity (if applicable)

3. Remaining financing provided by other sources (for all)

What are your plans to ensure subsequent financing of your innovation?

Financing needs and need for EIC support

Equity (if blended finance)

What will the equity be used for;

how much equity share the company plans to give?

How has the valuation developed over time?

Explain company ownership and capital structure (Table 4)

Expected exit strategy?

Need for EIC support

Why isn’t it possible for your company to raise the required financial resources from

private investors or other resources?

Description of company’s track record and current efforts

What would the impact be if you do not receive financial support from the EIC?

Risks

The project is divided in a clear way to work packages and tasks

The months are generic (M1, M2….) and not calendric

It is clear when each assignment begins and ends, and the dependence between them

Have a realistic plan for: knowledge, resources, work-package management, timeline, budget

Approach – overall structure

Gantt for the Grant

Summary table of project including TRL9 covered by EIC Fund

Mentioning Person Months needed per WP

Should be in correlation with:

Work package description

Deliverables and Milestones:

Resources

Resources, equipment, facilities for the project

Give info about sub-contractors and third parties

(“best value for money”!)

Annexes

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

Taken from EC presentation in NCP training on the EIC, July 19

More info…

Tips how to write a good proposal from EASME

Self-Evaluation form for proposals

Briefing for EIC A evaluators 2019

EIC work-program 2018-2020

Additional tools in A4SMEs website

Webinars

Have a look at these before writing!

Israeli winners’ tip: Even when using external

assistance for submission, the CEO must be involved and

contribute to the technological \ financial part

Choose your keywords carefully before submission

Accelerator \ SME Instrument Data hub

Follow SME on twitter, linkedin, EIC websites, etc

Sources for more information

ISERD’s website!

You can address general questions to: Research Enquiry Service

Submitting the proposal: Funding and Tender portal SME-EIC call

SEDIA IT Helpdesk contact form, Phone: +32229 92222 Email: ec-sedia-support@ec.europa.eu

How can ISERD assist?

Ongoing guidance and support in submission

ISERD website- SME Department (webinars, guides, links and more)

Guidance before interviews in Brussels

Red Team for EIC Accelerator (It is free…!)

Preliminary review of Israeli proposals before the submission, by expert evaluators

from the IIA.

The draft proposal must be final and sent to ISERD at least one month before the

deadline!

For returning submitters (with a grade 13+) or Phase 1 / 2 winners

www.iserd.org.il

SME_FTI@iserd.org.il