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 CALL FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI)

Project number 573936-EPP-2016-BG-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP

The purpose of this call for EOI is to identify appropriate service providers (natural persons, companies or organizations) that possess the necessary technical and operational capacity and are equipped to fulfil the tasks to be assigned in regard with above mentioned project’s external evaluation. The call is exploratory rather than binding and Varna University of Management (VUM; in Bulgarian Visshe Uchilshte po Menidzhmant), project coordinating institution of the above indicated project reserves the right to change or cancel this requirement at any time during the EOI and/or solicitation process.

Opening date of the call for EOI: 18th October 2017

Closing date of the call for EOI: 3rd November 2017

  1. Summary

VUM is the project coordinating institution of project number 573936-EPP-2016-BG-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP that is funded through the Erasmus+ Programme, Key Action 2, Capacity Building in Higher Education (CBHE). The external evaluator to be selected and subcontracted shall be by default a body or an individual that is independent from and external to the project consortium. The working language of the external evaluation is English. The selected external evaluator will be in charge of continuous project external evaluation and the elaboration of External Evaluation Report at the final project stage. In addition, the selected project external evaluator will act as trainer and facilitator of a three-day project Quality Control workshop to be held in the project.

  1. The BEEHIVE project: www. beehive-erasmusplus.eu

The BEEHIVE project is funded through the Erasmus+ programme for Capacity Building in Higher Education. It combines the efforts of universities in Indonesia, Philippines, Bulgaria, Greece, Iceland and Italy. In addition, the consortium includes IdeaSpace Foundation from the Philippines and WestBIC Innovation and Management Centre in Ireland. The project’s chief end is to build sustainable university-based entrepreneurial ecosystems at the universities involved in Indonesia and the Philippines and to enhance their students’ and graduates’ employability and ability to create jobs. Furthermore, the project strives to support these universities’ transformation into entrepreneurial Universities.

 The BEEHIVE project introduces the novel holistic approach of entrepreneurial ecosystems that sees entrepreneurship not merely as individual efforts but as a process of networking and creating synergies between different stakeholders. Thus, through BEEHIVE the partner universities in Indonesia and the Philippines are engaging with a broad range of external stakeholders including business partners, investors, venture capitalists, social entrepreneurs, policymakers. The project key outcomes include:

  1. Towards the Entrepreneurial University: National Benchmarking Reports for Indonesia and the Philippines
  2. Entrepreneurship for All MOOC
  3. BEEHIVE Accelerator Programme induced at the partner universities in Indonesia and the Philippines; at least 10 business start-ups will be created through the BEEHIVE accelerator programme.
  4. BEEHIVE Label to certify the quality and excellence of universities’ entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Project eligibility period: 15th October 2016 – 14th October 2019

  1. External evaluator’s tasks and key responsibilities

The external evaluator will be expected to complete the following tasks:

  • To carry out and execute regular independent peer review of project results and implementation.
  • To conduct interviews and to lead the three-day Quality Control workshop during the 5th partner meeting to take place in Galway (Ireland) in October 2018.
  • To produce and submit an External Evaluation Report at the project’s final stage. The Report will summarize the findings of the continuous peer review and will provide assessment of the project impact and the quality of the results achieved. It will also make conclusions on the consortium efficiency. The External Evaluation Report will include an independent cost/benefit analysis of the project. Last but not least, the document will make recommendations for strengthening the sustainability of project results and for ensuring long-term impact. The Report will be discussed at the final project meeting and will be published no later than 31st August 2019.
  1. Budget

The potential applicants are invited to submit a draft budget that includes a breakdown of the actual costs expected to incur in regard with the external evaluator’s tasks and responsibilities as indicated above (staff costs, travel costs and costs of stay linked to the organization and facilitation of a three-day workshop to take place in Ireland in October 2018). Budget proposals are expected to apply the levels of remuneration applicable in the country of registration (or residence in case of natural persons). Furthermore, the budget proposals shall reflect the actual number of workdays planned for work. The external evaluator shall also provide information on the estimated actual travel costs and costs of stay that are expected to incur in regard with the three-day Quality Control workshop to take place in Galway, Ireland in October 2018. Only reasonably drafted and well justified budget proposals that are based on the principles of sound financial management, in particular regarding the economy and efficiency, will be considered for selection.

  1. Application procedure

Interested parties are invited to submit their EOI by email before the closing date of 3rd November to the project coordinating institution.

Contact person: Christina Armutlieva, project coordinator

Email: christina.armutlieva@vumk.eu

The minimum number of documents to be provided as part of the EOI should include:

  • Legal entity form (to be filled out according to the applicant’s profile, e.g. natural person, private entity or public body)
  • Company’s portfolio and/or detailed expert(s) CV(s) providing sufficient evidence that the external evaluator to be subcontracted possess the technical and operational capacity as well as the professional experience necessary for the successful achievement of the tasks assigned
  • Proposed evaluation methodology (between 9000 and 12000 characters)
  • Proposed budget for the tasks described in point 3.

The award method will be the “best value for money” and the selected external evaluator will be the one offering the best quality/price ratio. The selected external evaluator will be requested to provide detailed documentation and evidence related to payment of due taxes and social security contributions.

  1. Selection criteria

The external evaluator (natural person, private entity or public law body) shall be selected on the basis of the professional and technical ability to perform the tasks described in this call and according to the following criteria:

  • At least 5 years of experience in project evaluation and/or as project manager
  • Quality of the methodology proposed
  • Feasibility of the proposed budget
  • Ability to fulfil the required tasks justified through sufficient evidence
  • Extensive knowledge of the higher education sector
  • Experience with Erasmus+ projects as well as its predecessors Tempus, Alfa and Edu-link will be considered an advantage
  • English language proficiency corresponding at least to level B2 according to CEFR
  • Good command of Microsoft Office tools.

The requested experience and abilities will be assessed on the basis of the evidence provided by the applicants as indicated in point 5. In order to facilitate the selection process, additional information may be requested by the project coordinating institution.