Objectives and scope of the assignment

DISTRETTO AGROALIMENTARE REGIONALE SCRL (D.A.Re.) is the coordinator of TRACE-KEI project and is responsible for the specific task “Cluster twinning programme”.  The objective of this call is selecting and recruiting an expert cluster manager that will mentor and support the TRACE-KEI cluster managers in order to enhance their management skills and therefore being able to provide better SMEs support services and clearly define a cluster strategy. In accordance with the TRACE-KEI project Grant Agreement, the subcontractor will be asked to perform the activity as follows:

1. Experienced cluster manager visits TRACE-KEI clusters for 2 days and assesses the state of the cluster by that time. Some tailored recommendations will be delivered. The first phase will be completed within 1 month (October – November);
2. Every Cluster implements the improvement recommendations (4 months). Results of the implementation will be analysed in the joint training event that will be performed in Hungary during February 2018. Further recommendations will be delivered and will be implemented in the following 4 months.
3. During the meeting in Hungary, the selected mentor is expected to deliver a specific workshop (about 4 hours) on one of the most important opportunities for a European cluster dealing with “Cluster Internationalisation”.
4. From March to July 2018, the TRACE-KEI partner will keep on implementing the improvement recommendations. In July 2018, any partner will provide the mentor with a final report on the recommended activities and improvements. Finally, the mentor will evaluate the individual reports and provide partners with final feedbacks.

Duties and responsibilities of the expert

The selected expert will be responsible for mentoring the seven clusters involved in the TRACE-KEI project as described in the previous paragraph. This means that the expert will assess every partner clusters and provide ad-hoc recommendations with the final aim to improve their management capacities. Moreover, the expert will be asked to organize a workshop (at about 4 hours) specifically addressed to cluster internationalization. The aforementioned set of activities entails the following duties:

1. To schedule a two days visit in each cluster with the support of the Task leader (D.A.Re.)
2. To provide the cluster manager with materials and templates that clusters will adopt to execute the expert recommendations
3. To foresee a monitoring process allowing the cluster managers to adjust their practices along with the expert recommendations
4. To present cluster internationalization strategy, opportunities and examples to be shared during a 4 hours workshops
5. To present an interim (February 2018) and a final assessment (July 2018) in order to provide cluster managers with the suitable strategic orientation. 

Timeframe of the work

The activities will start on the 16th October 2017 and will end on the 15th July 2018 (9 months). The selected mentor will be able to schedule all the visits for the Phase 1 with each of the TRACE-KEI partner clusters. However, it is foreseen that the first phase ends by the end of November 2017.

Submission of Proposals

Proposal must be submitted by email to [email protected] and [email protected] , starting from 1st, June, 2017 included to 15th, July, 2017 included. Applications received before or after the indicated limit dates will be disregarded.

Application forms/Question

For any information, contact Giuliano de Seneen, TRACE-KEI financial manager, [email protected] .

Documents

The full text of the call and the application forms can be downloaded at the following link