Step4all guide 3 How to apply and how to manage successful European projects

Short Guide 3
How to Apply for and How to
Manage Successful European
Projects
Circulation: Confidential/Partners/Public
Authors: Step4all Consortium
Date: 12/06/2014
Doc. Ref. N°: STEP4ALL – SHORT GUIDE 3
Leonardo Da Vinci
2012-1-IT1-LEO04-02901 1

2
COPYRIGHT
© Copyright 2013 The STEp4All Consortium
Consisting of:
 EUROCREA MERCHANT SRL
 SPIS REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY
 KOCAELI EU PROJECTS COORDINATION CENTRE
 HDI CONSULTING LTD.
 AVACA TECHNOLOGIES
 STICHTING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT FRIESLAND
 BULGARIAN CONSTRUCTION CHAMBER
 TEMÁTICA POSITIVA
This document may not be copied, reproduced, or modified in whole or in part for any
purpose without written permission from the STEP4All Consortium. In addition an
acknowledgement of the authors of the document and all applicable portions of the
copyright notice must be clearly referenced.
All rights reserved.
This document may change without notice.
DOCUMENT HISTORY
Version Date Comment
01 20/05/2014 Interim version
02 24/05/2014 Draft version
03 12/06/2014 Final version
04

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Contents
1 Introduction......................................................................................................................................................5
2 Introduction to Project Cycle Management.......................................................................................6
3 Introduction to the Logical Framework Approach for Project Design and
Management ..........................................................................................................................................................11
4 How to Prepare a Proposal.....................................................................................................................15
5. Contractual aspects .......................................................................................................................................29
6 Project Management, monitoring and reviewing ........................................................................31
7 EU Project Management Roles..............................................................................................................56
8 Administrative and Financial Management........................................................................................59
9 Project Managers’ Skills ...........................................................................................................................67
10. FAQ.....................................................................................................................................................................74
11. BIBLIOGRAPHY..........................................................................................................................................83

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1 Introduction
The present document aims at providing useful information about the skills and
techniques necessary to apply for and manage successful European projects.
What is Project Cycle Management? How to prepare a proposal? What is LFA? What are
the main responsibilities of the Project Coordinator? What are the most important skills
a successful Project Manager should possess? Answers to these and many more
interesting questions could be found in the following chapters.
The present Guide 3 is connected to Guide 1 and Guide 2, which respectively present
the European Union and its institutions, and the introduction to the EU main funding
programmes.

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Introduction to Project Cycle
Management
2

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2 Introduction to Project Cycle Management
According to different definitions for project, it is planned, interrelated and coordinated
activities, in order to achieve specific objectives within a certain period of time and
budget. It is developed jointly by a formal or informal groups of organisations or
institutions. Practically, every major project goes through a specific decision-making
procedure called Project Cycle Management. The latter includes decisions such as key
tasks, roles and responsibilities, key documents and others. Each project phase/stage can
result in either some sense of closure before the next phase begins, or it can result in
certain deliverables which would provide the starting point for the next phase. These
batches of activities are usually called work packages, and each of them includes a
number of tasks. Thus, the transitions between work packages is the best time for
evaluation and review of the costs and the project prospects, in general.
Different organizations and institutions have adopted different terms to describe similar
stages of the Project Cycle. For the EU projects in particular, one can distinguish between
legal and managerial aspects of the project lifecycle. The legal aspects refer to the
establishment of relations between the beneficiary and the National Agency (NA) or the
EU Commission. These address the procedures for project submission, contract
conclusion, project monitoring, reporting, performance evaluation and audit. Whereas
the managerial aspects refer to the actual idea generation, project design, project
implementation, including project planning, time- and team management, internal
monitoring and evaluation, and reporting documentation among others. These project
lifecycle phases are shown in Fig.2 below:

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Fig.2 Project Cycle Management
2.1 Project Cycle Management – Design & Managerial Aspects
Here is one of the most commonly used categorisation of the managerial aspects:
1. Planning - there are three important aspects: a) identifying the problem on
national or sectorial level to form the project idea; b) determination of the main goals and
priorities to be achieved by implementing the project and c) formulation of the
methodology and the strategy. It is essential that the project idea addresses a real sectorial
and/or market need. Moreover, the planned results should be aimed at solving a
particular issue of the selected target group. No project is successful, meaning sustainable,
if its implementation is motivated by the sole desire to “get some EU funding”.
2. Research – conducting background research prior to proposal submission is to
determine the project relevance, data availability and potential risks. It helps finding
potential participants and relevant information to develop the project idea as well as to
understand the sector’s framework. A good background research reduces the risk of
getting into troubles at project implementation stage, such as low data availability,
incorrect assumptions and wrong choice of partners, among others. It also supports the
idea generation/development of the idea and helps to design a relevant and coherent

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proposal.
3. Formulation – the appropriate ideas are then developed into a concrete project.
It is essential to assess the suitability and the sustainability of the idea. The project
proposal is to be designed and submitted in the official online- and/or paper-based -
template, following the latest available guidelines of the NA/EU Commission DG.
Furthermore, the project proposal includes detailed description of the project tasks and
distribution among partners for each planned work package. Therefore, careful
consideration and planning of all the activities and resources at a proposal stage, is
crucial, as these are tough to change upon proposal approval.
4. Implementation – after the contracting authority has evaluated the project
proposals, and the grant agreement has been signed. This is the longest phase of the
project lifecycle, aimed at achieving the planned results as per project proposal. The
implementation stage comprises: drafting of detailed management, evaluation, quality and
dissemination plans, in order to ensure consistency of the project results. It also involves
the following activities among others: preparing series of tenders (if applicable);
signature of contracts (including those for technical support); constant monitoring and
control over the spending, as well as the timely and quality implementation of the project
tasks; financial and progress report drafts. Adequate project management is essential in
terms of guiding the project partners and achieving quality results.
5. Financial Management – interim and final reports are required by the NA to
determine suitable spending of the EU funding. In some cases, the Agency might require a
progress report to evaluate the interim project implementation. The reporting should be
provided in the respective template, usually available on the website of the respective
programme.
2.2 Project Cycle Management - Legal Aspects
The legal aspects of the project lifecycle refer to the administrative support of the EU
projects. In most cases each programme follows particular project cycle management
logic; however these encompass more or less the following items:
1. Submission of proposals to the National Agencies or the European
Commission DGs. These two bodies act as Contracting authority and Contractor
respectively and each one of them has a specific operational field. The Commission deals
with policy setting and programme design to be implemented by the NAs. EC and NAs
have a mandate to control the whole lifecycle of the projects. The NAs are responsible for
the implementation of all decentralised actions, whereas the EC DGs are entrusted with
the centralized measures. Among others, the National Agencies have to support with
comprehensive administration and to make payments to the beneficiaries.
2. Assessment of proposals – the project proposals need to adhere to a number
of criteria (formal and quality elements, stipulated in the respective programme), which
are used by the experts evaluating the proposals. Each proposal is rated based on a
comprehensive grading system.
3. Selection results – at this stage, all applicants are contacted. The successful
ones receive individual notifications with the exact status of their projects, while the
unsuccessful applicants are given feedback of the project gaps and weaknesses.

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4. Contracting –successful applicants sign a Grant Agreement with the National
Agency, which stipulates both the conditions for the grant award, the payment
instalments, and the financial and operational responsibilities of each partner.
5. Eligibility period and project activities – during this stage the planned
activities are carried on, while the expenses can be incurred and covered by the
European Communities’ grant. This period depends on the duration of the project.
6. Project monitoring – the implementation of the project through its lifecycle is
monitored by the NA. The project progress is examined through regular on-the-spot
project visits and Thematic Monitoring initiatives.
7. Reporting & Audit –beneficiaries are obliged to regularly submit reports to the
NA, which defines the accurate spending of the grants and the successful implementation
of the envisaged activities. The required data should be summarized in specific report
templates and financial reporting tables, provided by the NA:
 Submission of Interim Report – provides mid-term update on the project
progress compared to the original plans and budgets; required only for projects of
18 months' duration or more; only upon acceptance by the NA the next
instalments can be paid;
 Submission of Final Report- provides information on the entire implementation
of the project, the results and the expenditures. The report assessment and rating
are to determine whether partial or complete final payment would be made. The
submission date falls two months after the end of the project.
 Audit - within 5 years of the final payment the National Agency or the European
Commission may carry out an audit.
A very important aspect of the management cycle, especially for the new programming
period 2014-2020, is how sustainable the results are after the project closure. This means
that an EU project should not only achieve its objectives, but it should also lead to
sustainable public benefits - direct or indirect long-term positive effects for the EU
citizens. Sustainability in this context means that crucial activities and results should be
designed in a way, which would guarantee that it would continue to deliver benefits to the
target groups, structures, sectors or systems after the project closure. This underlines the
necessity of a comprehensive review and critical analysis of both – the project results and
their relevance to the problem, stated in the proposal.

11
Logical Framework Approach
for Project Design and
Management
3

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3 Introduction to the Logical Framework Approach for Project Design and
Management
3.1 Overview of the Logical Framework Approach (LFA)
The US Agency of International Development developed in the late 1960’s the Logical
Framework Approach (LFA) in order to improve its project planning and evaluation
system and to tackle with planning, managerial, distribution of tasks and assessment
issues. Among the challenges that were faced are: vague planning, unclear,
immeasurable and unrealistic objectives, ambiguous management responsibilities,
adversarial evaluation process and purely defined project purposes. LFA turns out to be
a successful solution to these issues, providing a core set of useful tools for high quality
project implementation and assessment. Thus, the model is recognised by the EC as an
essential part of the Project Cycle Management, officially used in the EU project
management since 1993.
3.2 What is LFA?
The LFA is defined as an analytical process and a set of tools used to support the project
planning and the management processes. The method combines a set of interconnected
concepts and repetitive processes, used to support the structured and systematic
analysis of the project idea and/or objectives. Basically, the LFA is ‘help for reflection’,
providing instruments for structuring and analysing a bulk of information to determine
the key project questions, to identify the weaknesses, define the project rationale and
pursued objectives in order to support the well-informed and sound decision-making
process.
LFA however should be distinguished from the Logical Framework Matrix (LFM); the
latter being defined is a tool. In contrast, the LFA is an analytical process, incorporating
analysis of stakeholders and challenges, setting of objectives and strategy selection.
Indeed, while LFM or the so-called Logframe requires further analysis of the objectives,
their implementation and the potential risks, it also provides a documented product of
the analytical process. The LFM is made of a matrix with four columns and four (or
more) rows, summing up key elements of a project plan, such as:
• Project Description or Intervention Logic, namely the project’s hierarchy of
objectives;
• Assumptions, namely the key external factors crucial for the project’s success;
• Indicators and Sources of Verification, namely the way how the project’s
achievements will be monitored and evaluated.
The Logframe also provides the basis for determining resource requirements (inputs)
and costs (budget).

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3.2 Link between Project Cycle and key PCM documents
How is the LFA used in practice?
• It is used in the identification phase of PCM in order to help analysing the existing
situation, to investigate the relevance of the proposed project and to identify
potential objectives and strategies;
• During the formulation stage, the LFA supports the preparation of an appropriate
project plan with clear objectives, measurable results, risk management strategy
and defined levels of management responsibility;
• During project/programme implementation, the LFA provides a key management
tool to support contracting, operational work planning and monitoring; and
• During the evaluation and audit stage, the Logframe matrix provides a summary
record of what was planned (objectives, indicators and key assumptions), and
thus provides a basis for performance and impact assessment.
A common problem with the application of the Logframe Approach (particularly the
preparation of the matrix) is that it is undertaken separately from the preparation of the
other required project documents. This may then result in inconsistency between the
contents of the Logframe matrix and the description of the project contained in the
narrative of the main documents. The application of the LFA should come first, and then
provide a base source of information for completing the required PCM documents. The
LFA provides no magic solutions, but when understood and applied accordingly, it is a
very effective analytical and managerial tool.
Fig. 1: Strengths and Common Problems with the Application of LFA
ELEMENT STRENGTHS COMMON PROBLEMS
Problem
analysis and
objective
setting
 Requires systematic analysis
of problems, including cause
and effect relationships
 Provides logical link between
means & ends
 Places the project within a
broader development context
(overall objective and
purpose)
• Encourages examination of
risks and management
accountability for results
 Getting consensus on priority
problems
 Getting consensus on project
objectives
 Reducing objectives to a
simplistic linear chain
 Inappropriate level of detail
(too much/too little)
Indicators and
source of
verification
• Requires analysis of how to
measure the achievement of
objectives, in terms of both
quantity and quality
• Helps improve clarity and
specificity of objectives
• Finding SMART (specific,
measurable,
available/achievable in a cost
effective way, relevant for the
programme, and available in a
timely manner) indicators for

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• Helps in establishing the
monitoring and evaluation
framework
higher level objectives and for
projects with ‘capacity building’
and ‘process’ objectives
• Establishing unrealistic targets
too early in the planning
process
• Relying on ‘project reports’ as
the main ‘source of verification’,
and not detailing where the
required information actually
comes from, who should collect
it and how frequently
Format and
application
• Links problem analysis to
objective setting
• Emphasises importance of
stakeholder analysis to
determine ‘whose problems’
and ‘whose benefits’
• Visually accessible and
relatively easy to understand
• Prepared mechanically as a
bureaucratic ‘box-filling’
requirement, not linked to
problem analysis, objective
setting or strategy selection
• Used as a means of top-down
control – too rigidly applied
• Can alienate staff not familiar
with the key concepts
• Becomes a ‘fetish’ rather than a
help
Source: PCM Guidelines p.59, European Commission, Europeaid Cooperation Office, March
2014

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How to Prepare a Proposal
4

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4 How to Prepare a Proposal
4.1 The analysis stage
Prior to initiating detailed analysis with the stakeholder groups (field work), it is
essential to involve experts during the project identification and design stage, who are
sufficiently aware of the policy, sector and institutional context. This preliminary,
Analysis Stage, contains four main elements, focused on the following items
respectively:
1. Stakeholders
2. Problems
3. Objectives
4. Strategies
4.1.1 Stakeholders Analysis:
‘Stakeholders’ are all individuals, groups of people, institutions, private or public actors
having a significant interest in the success or failure of a project or process. The key
questions asked during the stakeholder analysis are ‘whose problems or
opportunities are being analysed’, and ‘who will benefit or loose-out, and how,
from a proposed project intervention’?
Therefore, the final goal is to help maximize the social, economic and institutional
benefits of the project towards target groups as well as direct/indirect beneficiaries. The
key purpose of the stakeholders analysis is to understand and address
distributional/equity concerns, particularly in the context of the needs of the target
groups.
One of the most powerful tools for conducting stakeholders’ analysis is the SWOT
analysis, which defines the strengths of a particular organisation as well as the
opportunities and the threats it might face. The SWOT comprises three main stages,
namely:
1. Ideas are generated about the internal strengths and weaknesses of a group or
organization, and the external opportunities and threats;
2. The situation is analysed by looking for ways in which the group/organisation’s
strengths can be built on to overcome identified weaknesses, and opportunities
can be taken to minimize threats; and
3. A strategy for making improvements is formulated (and then subsequently
developed using a number of additional analytical planning tools).

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Fig. 2: Example of SWOT table
STRENGHTS
…..
…..
….
WEAKNESSES
…..
…..
…..
OPPORTUNITIES
…..
…..
…..
THREATS
…..
…..
…..
Identification of the SWOTs of the stakeholders is important because this analysis is
likely to affect the task allocation in order to achieve high quality results and the actual
definition of the objectives. Users of SWOT analysis need to ask and answer questions
that generate meaningful information for each category (strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and threats) to make the analysis useful and find their competitive
advantage.
4.1.2 Problem Analysis
Problem analysis identifies the negative aspects of an existing situation and establishes
the ‘cause and effect’ relationships between the identified problems. It involves three
main steps:
1. Definition of the framework and the subject of analysis;
2. Identification of the major problems faced by target groups and beneficiaries:
a. What is/are the problem/s?
b. Whose problems?
3. Visualisation of the problems in form of a diagram, called a “problem tree” or
“hierarchy of problems” to help analyse and clarify cause–effect relationships.
The analysis should be presented in diagrammatic form showing effects of a problem on
top and its causes underneath: the figure below shows a template for building a
problems tree. The analysis is aimed at identifying the real bottlenecks that need to be
overcome. Thus, a clear problem analysis provides a sound foundation on which to
develop a set of relevant and focused project objectives.

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Fig. 3: Focal problem – causes and effects
Source: PCM Guidelines, European Commission, Europeaid Cooperation Office, March 2014
Once completed, the problem tree represents a summary picture of the existing negative
situation. In many respects the problem analysis is the most critical stage of the project
planning, as it then guides all subsequent analysis and decision-making on priorities.
4.1.3 Analysis of the Objectives
Analysis of the objectives is a methodological approach applied to:
• describe the situation in the future once identified problems have been remedied;
• verify the hierarchy of the objectives;
• illustrate the means/ends relationships in a diagram.
All ‘negative situations’ of the problem tree are shifted into solutions, turning into
‘positive achievements’. These positive achievements are in fact objectives, and should
be presented in a diagram of objectives showing the means/ends hierarchy. This
diagram aims at providing clear overview of the desired future situation.
The main steps in the process are summarised below:
• Step 1: Reformulate all negative situations of the problems’ analysis turned into
positive situations that are desirable and realistically achievable;
Focal Problem
Effects of the Focal Problem
Causes of the Focal Problem
TIPS AND TRICKS
 Conduct an exhaustive
background research about the
problem to find valid and
credible information.
 Potential web-sources: official
reports and publications,
academic research papers, press
clippings.
 If possible conduct primary
research through
formal/informal interviews,
surveys and etc.
 Ask for the opinion of the
stakeholders and the potential
partners.
 Make sure to exhaust all sources
of information to conduct an
adequate analysis.

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• Step 2: Check the means/ends relationships to ensure validity and
completeness of the hierarchy (cause-effect relationships are turned into means-
ends);
• Step 3: If necessary: revise statements; add new objectives if these seem to be
relevant and necessary to achieve the objective at the next higher level; delete
objectives which do not seem suitable or necessary.
4.1.4 Analysis of the Strategies
Some of the questions that need to be asked and answered at this stage include:
Such analysis should be carried out as a repetitive learning process and an assessment
of the undertaken strategies should be provided on a regular basis, so as every
milestone could be overcome. For example, while stakeholders’ analysis must be carried
out early in the process, the strategy must be reviewed and refined as new questions are
asked and new information comes to light.
At this stage, or as part of the stakeholders’ analysis, it is also crucial to identify the right
partners. Never leave this task for the last moment of the proposal stage; strive to find
the right partners at idea generation stage. Besides the formal programme eligibility, the
selected partners need to have the right skills and expertise to implement high quality
results.
• Should all the identified problems and/or objectives be tackled, or only few?
• What are the positive opportunities that can be built on (i.e. from the SWOT
analysis)?
• What is the combination of interventions that are most likely to bring about the
desired results and promote sustainability of the benefits?
• How the local ownership of the project is best supported, including
development of the capacity of local institutions?
• What are the likely capital- and recurrent costs of the different possible
interventions, and what can realistically be afforded?
• What is the most cost effective option(s)?
• Which strategy will have the most positive impact in terms of addressing the
needs of the identified vulnerable groups?
• How could potential negative environmental impacts be mitigated or avoided?

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Once the partners’ requirements are clarified, managers can start searching for partners
through their local networks, general web-search and/or use some of the following links
to identify project partners (please note that this is not an exhaustive list of databases):
 A list of databases for partners’ search is provided by Eurodesk, on the following
link: http://www.eurodesk.org/edesk/EUToolbox.do?go=7
 LinkedIn also hosts groups with the same purpose. Some of these are presented
here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/Database-European-Partnership-
4108977/about
4.2 The Planning Stage
4.2.1 Drafting the Logframe
Results of the analysis in the Planning Stage are adapted into a practical plan ready for
implementation. The results of the stakeholder, problem, objectives and strategy
analysis are used as the basis for preparing the Logical Framework Matrix.
In this stage:
• the Logframe matrix is prepared, requiring further analysis and refinement of
ideas;
• activities and resource requirements are defined and scheduled, and
• a budget is prepared.
Generally, it is recommended that the matrix only includes the project Overall Objective,
Purpose and Results, and that Indicative Activities be described/documented separately
(i.e. using an activity schedule). Also, it is recommended that means and costs are not to
be included in the Logframe matrix format, as there are more appropriate ways/places
in which to resent this information.
KEY QUESTIONS
 What skills’ gap should a partner fill in? What is required from the
partnership? For example, the future project consortium might need:
expertise, project management experiences, access to networks, lobbying
support and financial resources among others.
 What type of organisation? What size? What industry? What
services/expertise/products are required?
 What networks or intermediaries would give an added value?
TIPS AND TRICKS
 Prepare a very good presentation of your organisation and team, to approach
the potential partner with a clear written request.
 Be very clear about the desired project outcomes, timelines and expected
support, in order to enable the potential partner to take adequate decision.
 Be prepared to give further clarifications about the partners’ responsibilities
and set appropriate expectations.

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Fig. 4: Typical structure of a logframe matrix
PROJECT
DESCRIPTION
INDICATORS
SOURCE OF
VERIFICATION
ASSUMPTIONS
Overall Objective
(OO) – The project’s
contribution to
policy or
programme
Objectives (impact)
How the OO is to be
measured including
Quantity, Quality,
and Time?
How will the
information be
collected, when
and by whom?
Purpose – Direct
benefits to the
target group(s)
How the Purpose is
to be measured
including Quantity,
Quality, and Time?
As above
If the Purpose is
achieved, what
assumptions must
hold true to achieve
the OO?
Results – Tangible
products or services
delivered by the
project
How the results are
to be measured
including Quantity,
Quality, and Time?
As above
If Results are
achieved, what
assumptions must
hold true to achieve
the Purpose?
Activities – Tasks
that have to be
undertaken to
deliver the desired
results
If Activities are
completed, what
assumptions must
hold true to deliver
the results?
This is an iterative process, as it may be necessary to review and revise the scope of
project activities and expected results once the resource implications and budget
become clearer.
TIPS AND TRICKS
 Try to turn the logframe into the cornerstone of the project design.
 It is important to start drafting the logframe from top to bottom. A common
mistake is that managers often begin with the activities, being the easiest part,
and then they try to fit in the ‘results’ and a ‘purpose’ for them. The logic is
actually the other way around, i.e. the overall objective and the purpose of the
project defines the expected results, which in turn entails the respective
activities.
 The purpose of the project is at times challenging. Remember that the purpose is
a consequence of the results and try to describe it in just one, but crisp and clear
sentence.

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4.2.2 Activity, resource and cost schedule
The Activity Schedule is a format for analysing and graphically presenting project
activities. It helps to identify their logical sequence, expected duration, any
dependencies that exist between activities, and provides a basis for allocating
management responsibility. Once the Activity Schedule is prepared further specification
of resources and scheduling of costs could begin.
A useful tool to schedule activities can be the Gantt chart, a type of bar chart, developed
by Henry Gantt in the 1910s, that illustrates a project schedule. It is commonly used in
project management, and it is one of the most popular and useful ways of showing
activities displayed against time. On the left of the chart is a list of the activities and
along the top is a suitable time scale. Each activity is represented by a bar; the position
and length of the bar reflects the start date, the duration and the end date of the activity.
This allows you to see at a glance:
 What the various activities are
 When each activity begins and ends
 How long each activity is scheduled to last
 Where activities overlap with other activities, and by how much
 The start and the end date of the whole project
To summarize, a Gantt chart shows you what has to be done (the activities) and when
(the schedule).
Fig 5: Example of a Gantt Chart
TASK 2012 2013
Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May
Task 1:
………………….
Sub-task1.1:
…………..
Sub-task 1.2:
…………..
Sub-task
1.3:……………
Task 2:
……………………
Task 3:
 Another tricky area is the definition of the indicators, being commonly mistaken
for “targets”. Remember that the indicator is meant to provide evidence that
something has happened. Thus, these need to be clearly defined, measured and
realistic.
 Try to involve as many experts as possible; these might be partners, stakeholders
and/or own staff.
 Test the logframe to ensure it has been built logically.

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……………………
Sub-task 3.1:
…………..
Sub-task 3.2:
…………..
Besides the timing of the activities, in transnational and other complex projects
implemented by consortium of partners, it is also useful to have a task division scheme
that allows you to make a summary of activities and responsibilities.
Fig 6: Example of a task division scheme
TASK Partner
1
Partner
2
Partner
3
Partner4 Partner
5
Task 1: …………………. X X
Sub-task1.1: ………….. X X X
Sub-task 1.2: ………….. X X X
Sub-task 1.3:…………… X X
Task2: …………………… X X X
Task 3:…………………… X X X
Sub-task 3.1: ………….. X X
Sub-task 3.2: ………….. X X X
4.3.3 A checklist to prepare an activity schedule
Once the Logframe matrix itself is complete, it is then possible to use the identified
Activities (which may or may not be actually included in the matrix itself) to further
analyse issues of timing, dependency and responsibility using an activity scheduling (or
Gantt Chart) format. A step-by-step approach for the preparation of a detailed activity
schedule can be followed:
Step 1 – List the Main Activities
The main Activities identified through the Logframe analysis are a summary of what the
project must do in order to deliver the project’s results. These can therefore be used as
the basis for preparation of the Activity Schedule which helps to specify the possible
stages and the duration of the key activities.
Step 2 – Break Activities Down into Manageable Tasks
The purpose of breaking Activities down into sub-activities or tasks, is to make them
sufficiently simple to be organised and managed easily. The technique is to break down
an Activity into its component sub-activities, and then to take each sub-activity and
break it down into its component tasks. Each task can then be assigned to an individual,
and becomes their short-term goal. This step may be time-consuming and thus some
managers might prefer to complete it once the financing is approved and the project
implementation phase has commenced. However, please note that the detailed

24
description of each and every task during the planning stage ensures better
understanding, clear definition, adequate allocation of resources, and sound costs
calculations of each project Activity.
Step 3 – Clarify Sequence and Dependencies
Once the Activities have been broken down into sufficient details, they must be related
to each other in order to determine their:
• Sequence - in what order should related Activities be undertaken?
• Dependencies - is the Activity dependent on the start-up or completion of any
other Activity?
Step 4 – Estimate Start-up, Duration and Completion of Activities
Specifying the timing involves making a realistic estimation of the duration of each task,
and then building it into the Activity Schedule to establish the most appropriate start-up
and completion dates. However, it is often not possible to estimate timing with great
confidence. To ensure that the estimations are at least realistic, those who have the
necessary technical knowledge or experience should be consulted.
Step 5 – Summarise Scheduling of the Main Activities
Having specified the timing of the individual tasks that make up the main Activities, it is
useful to provide an overall summary of the start-up, the duration and the completion of
the main Activity itself.
Step 6 – Define Milestones
Milestones can provide the basis, on which the project implementation is monitored and
managed. They are key events that provide a measure of progress and a target for the
project team to aim at. The simplest milestones are the dates estimated for completion
of each Activity – e.g. training needs assessment completed by January 20xx.
Step 7 – Define Expertise
When the tasks are known, it is possible to specify the type of expertise required. Often
the available expertise is known in advance. Nonetheless, this provides a good
opportunity to check whether the action plan is feasible given the human resources
available.
Step 8 – Allocate Tasks among the Team Members
This involves more than just saying who does what. With task allocation comes the
responsibility for overcoming the milestones. In other words, it is a way of defining the
accountability of each team member. Task allocation should therefore take into
consideration the abilities, skills and experience of each member of the team. When
delegating tasks to team members, it is important to ensure that they understand what
is required of them. If not, the level of detail with which the relevant tasks are specified
may have to be increased.

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4.3.4 Preparing resource and cost schedules
Cost estimates should be based on careful and thorough budgeting. They will have
significant influence over the investment decision at project appraisal and subsequently
on the smooth implementation of the project once the go-ahead is given.
At the beginning it is necessary to make an assessment of all available resources as well
as realistic and accurate appraisal of incomes. Then it is necessary to estimate the
required resources and the foreseen costs (Costs = quantity per unitary cost). Costs may
be distinguished in the following two groups:
 Variable costs: these vary proportionally with the volume of activities.
 Fixed costs: do not vary depending on the activities
Again, the list of Activities should be copied into a Resource Schedule pro-forma.
Each Activity should then be used as a checklist to ensure that all necessary
resources/inputs required under that Activity are provided for. Budgeting of
management activities should not be forgotten at this stage.
Once the Activities have been placed into the schedule, the required resources to
implement the Activities must be specified.
As there might be a need to aggregate or summarise the cost information, the resources
should be allocated to clearly defined cost categories. For example, in the following
figure the activity of establishing a Planning Unit requires Equipment, Salaries and
Allowances. The Units, Quantity per Period, and estimated Unit Cost should then be
specified. If entered on a spreadsheet, Cost per Period and Total Project Cost can be
calculated using simple formula.
Project costing should allow the costs allocation between the different funding sources
so that each party has clarity about their respective contributions. The code for Funding
Source can then be used to sort all costs and to determine respective totals. Those
providing funding for the project are likely to have cost codes for each established cost
category. By specifying the Cost Code, costs can again be sorted to determine total cost
by cost category. It is now possible to schedule cost per planning period using simple
formula to multiply the annual quantity by the unit cost.
Once Total Costs have been calculated, it is important to remember that the
implementing agency will be required to meet any recurrent costs of maintaining
service provision beyond the life of the project. Recurrent Costs may be covered (fully or
partly) through increased revenue that has been generated through project Activities.
Whether or not this is the case, it is important that the net recurrent cost implications of
the project are clearly specified so that the future impact on the implementing agency’s
budget can be determined.
Projects co-funded by the European Union are a subject to financial reporting, which
means collection, organisation and presentation of all incurred costs evidences. The
financial report must be accompanied by a report on the management and

implementation of the activities and the description of the results. A sample resource table is presented below:
Fig 7: Preparing a resource schedule

4.3.4 Preparing the proposal
Once the logframe and the budget have been completed, filling in the proposal
application form is easier as the main ideas are already jotted down and logically
verified. However, this task has its own peculiarities as the forms are quite long and
detailed. Each Call for Proposal is supported by thorough guidelines which must be
followed strictly. Even though the tips and tricks provided below seem obvious and
rather logical, these are often neglected by those who write the proposals.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
 Carefully read and understand all the details in the Guidelines and the accompanying
documents;
 Fill in diligently each and every section of the Application Form, following the
guidelines and strictly keep the word limits;
 EU projects proposals are large and time consuming to design, thus, be aware of the
submission deadline and envisage enough buffer time for the final proof read;
 Take into consideration the evaluation and the selection procedure and criteria, as it
helps understand where the proposal focus should be.
 Make sure that the following items meet the eligibility criteria:
o eligibility of applicants;
o partnerships and eligibility of partners;
o eligible actions - actions for which an application may be made;
o eligibility of costs - costs which may be taken into consideration for the grant.
 Procure, sign and stamp all the required documents, as required by the Agency.
 Get a second opinion on the finalized proposal. Remember, it is at times tough to
spot your own mistakes and logical flaws, especially for long and complex
documents.
 Avoid submitting the proposal at the very last moment; try to have finalized it at
least 3 to 5 days before the actual deadline.
 Last but not least, a well written proposal keeps long and hectic implementation
days away!

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5. Contractual aspects
5.1 Responsibilities of the Coordinator
The person responsible for the overall project management is the Project Coordinator.
Usually, the beneficiary organization or institution, responsible for the implementation
of the project by the consortium, is in charge of this position. Project coordination means
to manage project activities so as to ensure smooth tasks implementation and
accomplishment of envisaged goals and objectives. The coordinator is responsible for
task definition and work allocation, timely project scheduling and time management,
internal and external communication. Another important aspect is to monitor the
project tasks implementation, to ensure deliverables’ quality and successful team
performance.
The Project Coordinator should be skilled and qualified to guide team and consortium
members as well as to plan and coordinate administrative and operational activities.
One of the most important aspects in Project coordinator’s work is assisting the project’s
team members in their individual contributions to the project. Also, this person has to
negotiate, monitor, evaluate and propose project implementation methodology. The
position of Project Coordinator requires high level of independent judgment. This
person has to ensure that people and resources deployed to completing the project goals
are used appropriately.
In case of a change of the appointed Project Coordinator, the project consortium needs
to follow a specific EU procedure. In such situation an official letter should be sent,
informing the National Agency about the reasons for the change and stating that the
project partners have no objections on that. The letter is essential to include a
description of the competences and the experience of the new Coordinator, as well as
his/her contact details.
5.2 Grant Agreement
The agreement between the National Agency and the applicant selected for a grant award
is called Grant Agreement. The document sets the terms and conditions, as well as the
financial rules, which are to be applied for the use of the grant. The selected applicant
becomes a beneficiary through signature of the Agreement. A project begins after signing
the Agreement, and continues with the work plan. The Grant Agreement also sets the
eligibility period of the project activities, the maximum Community contribution to the
project costs, as well as the co-financing mechanism. In case there is a need for
modifications to the Grant Agreement during the project’s lifetime, one may send a
request for an amendment to the National Agency. There is a specific requirement in the
Grant Agreement, which stipulates how long after the project end the project records
must be kept.
In case of termination of a Grant Agreement, the National Agency may decide to
terminate the Agreement without any indemnity on its part. Another scenario for
termination is if the beneficiary fails to fulfil a substantial obligation incumbent on him

30
under the terms of the Agreement, including its annexes.
5.3 Partnership Agreement
An agreement between all participants in a certain project (beneficiary and partners) is
called Partnership Agreement. It has to be signed by all partner organizations in order
to have reasonable assurance that the project will be implemented in conformity with
the provisions of the Grant Agreement. Its purpose is to govern a number of issues that
may arise during the project’s lifetime, such as: collaboration methods, financial
provisions, intellectual property rights and other tasks. Partnership Agreement is highly
recommended for all projects. It is important to note that the Partnership Agreement is
deemed to be signed after signing the Grant Agreement.

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Project Management,
Monitoring and Reviewing
6

32
6 Project Management, monitoring and reviewing
6.1 Project Management
Managing projects funded by the European public bodies assumes adhering to particular
rules, as these are powerful EU instruments supporting the Community Policies on
economic and social cohesion. In spite of these managerial guidelines, project
coordination can have many faces depending on the purpose and the context of the
activities that have been implemented. In general, managing a project is considered the
process of working with a set of human, material and financial resources, organized and
structured in a hierarchical order, aimed at implementing the integrated activities, with
specific goals and over a certain period of time. In the context of the activities, EU
projects may entail specific actions related to the act of helping, advising, training,
supporting, stimulating, educating, empowering or teaching selected vulnerable target
groups and/or transferring and adapting best practices and methodologies among many
others.
Therefore, before commencing a new project, EU project managers need to make sure
that the following conditions are in place:
 Relevance: Verify that the project objectives are valid, considering the problems
and interests of the actors involved.
 Coherence: Check if the decisions that have been taken are appropriate and in
accordance with the external context of the project.
 Consistency: Check if there is in congruency with the different elements of the
project, such as: objectives, results, activities, timelines, and resources.
 Financial viability: Determine whether the resources allocated are sufficient for
the development of the activities;
 Efficiency: Analyse the relationship between the generated results and the
mobilized means (financial, human, and institutional);
 Effectiveness: Assess whether the results that have been obtained would help in
achieving the desired goals;
 Sustainability: Appreciate to what extent the decision making would be
effective, even after the project has been terminated.
This is a guarantee for the successful implementation of the project strategy and the
activities.
6.1.3. The project implementation
Officially, the start of the implementation phase of an EU project is announced once the
proposal has been approved and the contract has been signed. At this stage, the project
coordinator starts mobilizing the planned resources by establishing teams, which would
implement strategies and tasks, and would also design and produce project materials,
monitor the project progress, lead the internal and the external communication, prepare
the financial and the progress reports, manage any possible changes and risks, and cope
with the challenges that may occur. Thus, the implementation phase comprises three
main steps with specific activities (EuropeAid Cooperation Office 2004):

33
Step 1: Inception Period
The implementation phase starts here with the following preparatory activities:
a) Completion of contract procedures: contracts and regulations issued by the
regulating authority for particular measure/action.
b) Definition of human and material resources: adjustments are made by taking
into account the incurred changes between the funding requests and the project
approval (approval terms, partner change, timing, resources).
c) Establishment/maintenance of working relationships with stakeholders, in
which it is desirable to predict/put an internal communication plan into action, in
order to ensure the transparent and fluid circulation of information and to
effectively engage the stakeholders.
d) Review and update the action plan, specifically if there are discrepancies in the
originally formulated activity plan timeline, compared to the current plan.
e) Monitoring and evaluation of the project plan.
f) Hold inception workshops.
Step 2: Implementation of the project, through which the project manager, on an
ongoing basis, must:
a) Recruit and involve staff as well as provide the required equipment for the
implementation of the activities;
b) Implement activities and deliver results;
c) Monitor and review the project´s progress;
d) Re-plan the project;
e) Draft progress reports.
Step 3: Phase Out
Conditions for sustainability should be ensured during the project development stage,
particularly before entering the final phase. The project sustainability is a key criteria
that defines the success (or not) of the intervention, and usually answers one of the
reference questions related to the assessment of the project sustainability, namely:
“after its conclusion, to what extent does the impact of the project persevere?” The
answer to this question lies in the project manager’s ability to ensure that the following
activities are met during the project’s phase out, namely:
a) Make the project suitable for local partners, particularly with regard to the
fulfilment of their responsibilities;
b) Ensure that maintenance plans are in place;
c) Ensure that the skills acquired during the intervention are transferred;
d) Make an effort to ensure covering the ongoing costs.

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Based on the steps outlined above, project managers have the following responsibilities:
1. Monitoring and periodic revision of the project progress and respective work
package results, in order to ensure that the proposal tasks are successfully and timely
implemented (See chapters 6.2. and 6.3, which contain detailed presentation on project
monitoring).
2. Plan and re-plan the project
Even projects with structured planning are likely to encounter problems during their
implementation due to changes in environmental conditions, alterations in the
requirements and/or modifications of the target-groups’ needs, among others.
Therefore, it is essential that the manager is equipped with tools that would assist the
smooth project implementation, easy re-planning and effective risk management.
Fig. 7: The Re-planning Process
Source: Europe Aid, PCM Guidelines, p. 42
3. Report the physical and financial implementation of the project to the various
project stakeholders, such as funders, stakeholders, project team etc. (see Chapter 6.3.)

35
TIPS AND TRICKS
Establish an efficient communication system:
 Remember that one of the main reasons why partnerships fail and do not lead to
successful results is the lack of clear and timely communication;
 Provide clear Partnership Agreements, stipulating all the rights and responsibilities of
the partners;
 Use the kick-off meeting to confirm implementation arrangements, work plans, and
the internal communication strategy;
 Distribute equally and carefully the tasks between partners, based on their skills and
expertise; make sure there is no double work;
 Ensure that all partners have access to the necessary project documents;
 Make sure that tasks are clearly and thoroughly explained and everyone understands
their role in the project;
 Establish sound and clear system for work allocation and progress tracking to guide
the partners;
 Remind the deadlines on time;
 Stick to crisp and clear communication style and avoid too complex sentences;
 Try to involve partners as much as possible by asking for feedback, opinions and
suggestions;
 Prioritize transparency with project partners, especially on administrative and
financial issues.
Manage yourself and your team:
 Establish a functioning project team and try to make them accountable for the
project’s progress and reporting.
 Design a good management plan, providing benchmarks to assess performance,
quality and efficiency; this is a pre-requisite to the effective monitoring, review, and
evaluation.
 Maintain good quality and task implementation records. Project plans should be
always compared with the achieved results as this enables timely implementation of
corrective measures (if required).
 Make sure that these records are simple and practical to allow regular updates easily.
 Consider who needs what type of information and avoid overwhelming the team with
irrelevant information.
 Draft guidelines for specific tasks, based on partners' background.
 Provide templates for the documents; specify the font size, document structure,
specific formats etc., and make sure that all partners are following these formatting
guidelines. Otherwise the merging, formatting and editing of the final documents may
turn into a nightmare.
 Ensure that the tangible results are consistent in terms of style, units, statistics,
presentation, etc. This is an added value for the users of the project’s results.

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6.1.4. Working Tools
The process of project implementation requires ongoing evaluation to determine
whether the actual project results are aligned with the objectives, meet the quality
expectations and are on the right track. In order to successfully implement a particular
EU project, the manager needs to employ a set of efficient methodologies which facilitate
the collection and the systematization of information, support not only the analysis, but
also the decision-making process. The following tools, some of which already presented
in this guide, are quite useful for EU project management:
1. Logframe matrix (see chapter 3);
2. Activity plan (see chapters 4.1. and 6.3);
3. Progress reports (see chapter 6.3);
4. Risk management matrix.
6.1.4.1. Risk management matrix
The project risk management should be implemented during the project conception
stage and if necessary is revised during the implementation. The risk analysis is applied
during the conception phase, by identifying the assumptions of the Logframe Matrix. It
allows assessment of the importance of the assumptions as either “high/reduced
impact” and/or “high/reduced probability”. For example, if an assumption on the level
of specific or general objective is assessed to have high impact and high probability, it is
considered a “killer assumption”. This implies that an alternative should be found, as
otherwise the viability of the project could be jeopardized.
 Avoid piling up work for the very last moment. Such a strategy usually leads to a lower
quality.
 Strictly follow the dissemination guidelines and rules provided by the European
Commission. Remember that dissemination and sustainability are very important aspects
of the EU projects, thus, frivolous project popularization is not tolerated.
 Proper organization of the project’s documents. EU projects run over a period of 1-3 years
and people tend to forget.

37
Fig. 8 Risk Analysis Grid (Ulrich Schiefer 2006)
The risk analysis matrix
PROBABILITY
IMPACT
Total
Reduced Moderate High Extreme
Rare
Improbable
Possible
Probable
Total
In fact, there should always be a plan B and even a Plan C, which does not imply that the
project is being completely abandoned, because an assumption worth is largely due to
its uncertainty and probability, so that the scenario may be the reverse to what was
forecasted and things may go better without the assumption happening.
However, the analysis and ongoing review of the project risks should be a systematic
practice during project management and ensures that the necessary measures have
been taken to minimize the negative effects that the risks may have on the project
performance.
High
IMPACT
PROBABILITYReduced High

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Risk Management Matrix
ASSUMPTIONS RISK MANAGEMENT DETERMINANT
Intervention
Logic
Assumptions Relevance of Risks Risk Management
MeasuresProbability Impact Total
General
Objective
Specific
Objective
Results
Activities
6.1.5 Useful Online Tools for Project Management
Coordination, collaboration and managerial skills play a major role in EU project
management, as project outcomes are highly affected by the initial project planning as
well as the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the implemented tasks and tangible
results. Fortunately, the contemporary managers can now opt for a variety of free
and/or paid online tools, which optimize the complex EU project coordination process.
Nowadays, the cloud computing and the software services offer a wide spectrum of
management products, which make information sharing, collaboration, coordination
and communication, much easier. This is especially useful for the intranational EU
projects since these usually link at least three EU countries. Among others, the available
IT tools allow the online management of the following project activities:
 Content Sharing & Collaboration (CS)
 Communication (CM)
 Scheduling & Resource Allocation (RA)
 Cost Control & Budget Management (BM)
 Integration Capabilities (IC)
 IT Project Support
Pricing model of these tools can be free as well as under subscription - yearly, monthly
or one-time based etc. Further, no universal tool currently exists, this is why users need
to make a good choice of a set of tools and try to integrate them in the best possible
manner. This section outlines a list of relevant tools and provides a brief description of
their functionalities.

39
A) Intergrated Solutions
Google +
Web Site: www.google.com
Category: Project Management Platform
Pricing Model: Free, option to upgrade with a monthly fee to
more GDrive Space and Corporate email.
Those include a wide range of tools for online collaboration, content management,
communication etc. It can also be “stretched” to support the rest of the functionalities:
Google Hangouts
It is a communication platform, used for online meetings with
multinational partners, photo and video sharing, screen sharing, etc.
Gmail
Google’s online email platform.
Google Docs
This is one of the best online Content Sharing platforms, which offers not
only documents’ sharing, but also real-time collaboration by allowing
multiple people to create, share and edit the same file (word, excel and
presentation formats). Therefore, many people are using it to co-author
documents, which comes in quite handy for EU Projects. Further, the
google sheets could also be used to manage financial sheets and
information. A very useful tutorial on Google Drive and Docs is
available here: http://www.gcflearnfree.org/googledriveanddocs
Google Calendar
An online calendar/time management solution for keeping track of time
events, notifying event participants.
Google Drive
A Document Sharing Solution, offering 15GB free storage space, which
can be increased to 30GB should other Google work/school apps be used.
The applications offer good and safe solution for storage and documents
organisation.
Google Apps
A set of additional tools that can be used for various tasks in the context
of EU Project Management, especially since they offer online
collaboration. These apps are integrated within Google Drive and are
made available via Google Drive Platform. Some of the tools considered to
be relevant to the EU projects are listed below.
 Gannter Project: A tool that offers design and management of
Gannt diagrams.
 Zoho Writer: Office application Integration with Zoho Office
 Mind Map: Concept sketching diagram tool

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 WireFrame: For generating application mock-ups
 Simple Project Management
 Coordinate Everything
Please note that this list is being updated on a regular basis, and users are
encouraged to browse occasionally for new apps.
All of the applications mentioned above are tightly integrated with each other and
require a google/google+ account. However, the google-based security of these apps is
sometimes criticized. Also, many additional systems offer the option to use their
platform by logging in using a google account.
Microsoft Office 365
Web Site: office.microsoft.com
Pricing Model: On a subscription basis per user.
Microsoft offers a set of tools which are also used for Project management. Until
recently, Microsoft was targeting mostly desktop, while currently, it offers software for
both Desktop and Browser, namely the office 365 platform. The disadvantage compared
to Google is that it is subscription based.
Office Online (Office 365)
Their popular office suite is brought online allowing online co-
authoring. Not to mention that it has the best office document
compatibility.
Outlook
The online email platform.
Project Online
Migration of their Microsoft project suite online.
Skype
Microsoft integrates tightly with Skype for online communication and
net meetings
One Note
An alternative to Evernote for capturing and sharing notes.

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Zoho Project
Web Site: www.zoho.com
Pricing Model:
a) Limited free apps and content, and
b) User based subscription scheme
Award-winning online business, productivity and collaboration apps, offering solutions
for business processes, information and resource management as well as storage and
sharing services, among others. The toolset contains numerous modules for
Collaboration (chat, meeting, wiki and etc.), Business Related (campaigns, contact, CRM,
market place and etc.) and Productivity Related (sheet, calendar, notebooks and etc.).
A core component of this platform is the Microsoft office compatibility, allowing for
simultaneous online editing of documents. Zoho is also well integrated into other
document management platforms, such as Wiggio and GDrive. Some of the features are
presented below:
Zoho Docs
Solution to create, manage, organize, share and collaborate on
documents. It integrates into other file sharing solutions, such as
Dropbox , Google drive, and Wiggio, among others.
Zoho Projects
Allows task management, task allocation, setting up deadlines,
and progress tracking.
Discussions and Meetings
Tools for effective online communcation and online hosting of
meetings
Wiki
Wiki tool for wiki-style-knowledge sharing
SmartSheet
Web Site: www.wiggio.com
Pricing Model: Free
SmartSheet is a good alternative to Zoho. It offers a number of functionalities, such as
task management, calendars, files, online editing of documents, and discussions - all
accessible from any device. It does not support Gantt, but it provides a Work Break
Down Functionality of projects and tasks.

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B) Additional Project Management Tools
The platforms listed above are offering integrated solutions for the entire project cycle.
There are other platforms offering single solutions, which can support Microsoft or
other products used by managers. Some of these tools, offering complementary
functionalities in the context of the EU Project Management, are presented below.
Dropbox
Web Site: www.dropbox.com
Category: Document Shared Space
Pricing Model: Free and an option for additional disk space
with a monthly fee
Dropbox is probably the most popular solution for online documents’ storage and
sharing. It provides space of up to 2 GB for free which can be increased for negligible
costs.
Skype
Web Site: www.skype.com
Category: Communication
Pricing Model: Free and an option for additional services, such
as group video, etc.
This application does not really need a presentation as it is one of the most popular
online real-time communication and messaging tools used by both private and
corporate users. The paid skype version offers much better connection and additional
services.
Wiggio
Web Site: www.wiggio.com
Category: Document Shared Space
Pricing Model: Free
Wiggio is an alternative to some Google products. The platform offers document sharing
and storage, calendar, email and messaging, among others. Basically everything one may
need in order to work productively in groups. The advantage of Wiggio is that it can be
linked to Microsoft Outlook and users can send and receive emails in their corporate
mail server, as well.

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Evernote
Web Site: www.evernote.com
Category: Information Sharing
Pricing Model: Free; optional upgrade for information sharing
and collaboration.
Evernote is another collaborative platform for sharing information, ideas, notes,
sketches and bookmarks, as well as building corporate sketchpad of ideas. It offers
handy collaboration features, being also compatible with mobile devices. The
WebClipping functionality is quite useful for saving information directly from the
browser for later reference.
Asana
Web Site: www.asana.com
Category: Task Management
Pricing Model: Free; web and mobile application
designed to enable teamwork without email
A project management tool used to administer projects as well as to assign, monitor and
manage tasks and teams. The app provides thread based communication and allows
documents sharing in the context of each task/thread. The system also notifies users
about deadlines.
Survey monkey
Web Site: www.surveymonkey.com
Category: Online Survey
Pricing Model: Free for a limited number of questionnaires,
upgrade is optional for a higher quantity of surveys.
Survey Monkey is probably the most popular solution for online surveys. The tool does
not only create, administrate and distribute surveys, but it also merges the individual
results and presents them in a huge variety of formats, to suit almost any analysis needs.
Confluence
Web Site: www.atlassian.com/software/confluence
Category: Wiki
Pricing Model: Free for up to ten users; pricing scheme for
more users
A wiki-like software useful for storing project information and materials in online pages
format. This functionality is also offered by a combination of Google docs, for example.
However there are still more advantages, such as better cross document indexing.

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MediaWiki
Web Site: http://www.mediawiki.org
Category: Wiki
Pricing Model: Free
A free wiki software solution (Wikipedia is based on this platform). Free alternative to
confluence although content co-authoring is a bit trickier.
OpenProject
Web Site: http://www.openproject.org
Category: Project Planning
Pricing Model: Free
A Desktop based Project Management solution for generating Gannt Diagrams. Very
good compatibility with microsoft project.
C) Timesheet & Time Tracking Tools
The Timesheet & Time Tracking Tools offer time management services, in particular to
create timesheets, accounting spreadsheets and other time/resource management
documents. Some of these apps services are presented below.
ClickTime
Web Site: www.clicktime.com
Category: Timesheet management and Time Tracking
Pricing Model: Commercial
BeeBole
Web Site: beebole.com
Mindsalt
Web Site: www.mindsalt.com
D)Agile IT Project Management

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In addition, modern project management techniques, such as Agile project management,
follow leaner development cycles and embrace the concept of Sprints rather than
Waterfall model. These are commonly used for IT-intensive projects as they offer
complex, IT-specific functionalities.
YouTrack
Web Site: www.jetbrains.com/youtrack
Category: IT Project Management
This tool follows the Agile project management methodologies such as Scrum and
Canban.
Jira
Web Site: www.atlassian.com/software/jira
Category: IT Project Management
Jira is an issue tracking software for managing IT projects, which also contains a Scrum
based plug-in called Grasshopper for managing Agile based projects.
Summary
In conclusion, EU project managers need to use a set of online tools to support their
tasks. A summary of the available tools is presented below (please note that this is not
an exhaustive list of online tools).
File Sharing Dropbox, Google Drive, Wiggio, Microsoft Storage
Information Sharing Wiggio, Confluence, Media Wiki, Google Docs, Office
Docs
Online Authoring Google Docs, Office 365, Zoho Office
Task Management Asana, Zoho Task Management, SmartSheet, Office
Project
NetMeetings Skype, Google Hangouts
Task Tracking Asana
Project Planning Office Project, Open Project, Gannt Diagrammer (Google
Apps)
TimeSheets ClickTime, Beebole, Time Plan, Google Sheets, Office
Excel
IT Development
Lifecycle
You Track, Jira

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6.2 Project Monitoring
6.2.1 Project-based Monitoring System
An important part of any project is the project monitoring, carried out by the beneficiary
as well as by the managing authority, respectively the institution that manages and
administers the program (further referred to as “Managing Authority”). The monitoring
is a regular activity that systematically deals with the collection, sorting out, aggregation
and filing of relevant information, which is necessary for the evaluation and the control
of a project. It is performed continuously throughout the program, until the termination
of all contracts under the program.
Project monitoring is based on information, sourced from data provided by the
beneficiary, materials related to the implementation of the program, as well as data from
the information system, executing the administration of the program. This information
can be used for estimating whether the project execution runs according to schedule and
as set-out in the approved application form. If the execution is behind schedule, the
monitoring system should show that interventions are necessary, in order to get the
execution back on track. Both, the physical, and the financial progress or content of
project activities, are monitored.
Monitoring is carried out at the project level and also at the program level. The project
level information represents basic data for the preparation of the annual reports of the
program for the European Commission. Outputs of monitoring are called monitoring
reports.
Monitoring reports
Characteristics A comprehensive report by the beneficiary on the progress in the
project activities’ implementation, and other obligations under the
contract;
Objective To report on the project progress using measurable indicators,
to report on the project schedule and financial status, to identify the
problems and changes during the project implementation and to
evaluate the project progress;
Content and
form
Standardized and binding for all parties involved in the monitoring
and the evaluation process;
Submission In the periods determined by the Managing Authority and in the
electronic form, in writing, together with attachments. Failure in
submitting the monitoring reports is considered as a violation of the
contract. The beneficiary is responsible for the accuracy, correctness,
truthfulness and completeness of all information provided.
Types a) Interim monitoring report
b) Final monitoring report
c) Project participants report
d) Follow-up monitoring report

47
Attachments a) Minutes of project meetings
b) Lists of attendance
c) Photo documentation of carried out training activities
d) Copies of newspaper articles
e) TV or radio spots related to the project
Importance Information about the project, obtained during the monitoring of the
project is being analyzed. Based on the assessment of the monitoring
reports, the Managing Authority is entitled to carry out on-the-spot
checks, to suspend the reimbursement requests for payment, demand
repayment of financial contributions paid in the event of failure of the
project indicators, reduce the contractually agreed level of financial
contribution, withdraw from the contract, etc.
Characteristics of different types of monitoring reports:
The following types of reports are submitted during the project implementation period:
a) Interim monitoring report, submitted by the beneficiary during the
implementation of the project activities, e.g. every 6 months up to the date fixed
by the Managing Authority
b) Final monitoring report, submitted by the beneficiary on a deadline, fixed by
the Managing Authority from the closure of the project activities. The Final
monitoring report is the last Interim report.
c) Project participants report (only for some programs), the beneficiary is also
required to submit separate information on the project participants during the
implementation of the project activities (this is so, for each full calendar year
within the period prescribed by the Managing Authority). The purpose of these
reports is to determine the consistent and regular monitoring of the project
implementation progress and the fulfilment of other contract requirements. After
the end of the project a follow-up monitoring report must be submitted.
d) Follow up monitoring report is submitted by the beneficiaries after the end of
the project - within 5 years, or respectively 3 years (for projects that are subject
of transactions, or which are subject to continuing investments or maintaining
jobs created by SMEs). Follow up monitoring report contains data on the actual
state, and maintaining the contractually set of measurable indicators of the
project results.
6.2.2 Objectively Verifiable Indicators (OVIs)
The Objectively Verifiable Indicators are an essential tool for monitoring the progress of
implementation and evaluation of the objectives of the program. These are used to
evaluate the costs savings (minimizing the costs of carrying out the activity or
procurement of goods, works and services while maintaining their appropriate level and
quality), efficiency (maximizing the results of activities in relation to disposable public
funds) and efficacy (the relationship between planned and actual results taking into
account the utilized public funds) of funds allocated for the program.
Objectively Verifiable Indicators are:

48
A. Program indicators, such as indicator values for particular program,
representing the sum of project results and impact indicators
B. Project indicators, applied on project level:
 project results indicators
 project impact indicators
Characteristics of project indicators
ITEM PROJECT RESULT
INDICATORS
PROJECT IMPACT INDICATORS
Characteristics Formalized projection of
the direct and the
immediate effects of aid
(intervention), i.e. effects
brought about by the
project.
Formalized projection of the
consequences of the project, that goes
beyond the immediate effects of the
intervention. Reflects the planned
projection of future changes which
are likely to happen after the
implementation of the project
activities.
Binding Target values are binding Target values are not binding
Impact Depends on the
performance and the
activity of the beneficiary
The beneficiary has a minimal
influence on them, or none at all. They
are influenced by the external
environment (change of legislation,
demand, etc.). Their values represent
a reasonable estimation, which may
not be met.
Indicator
example
Number of persons trained
in the project, number of
people in the target groups
involved in the project etc.
Number of jobs that sustained the
agreed period, the number of
registered unemployed who got
employed due to the project, etc.
Number in
project
Minimum 1 Minimum 1
Indicators not
fulfilled
Violation of the terms of
contract
Not considered as violation of terms
of contract
Modification It is possible only in
objectively justified cases.
It is not possible.
Sanctions Termination of the project,
cuts of financial
contribution, return of all
provided funds, etc.
None
Requirements
for the
beneficiary
Regular monitoring of
project results indicators
and their submission in
interim monitoring reports
Regular monitoring the impacts of the
project and present values of impact
indicators in follow up monitoring
reports, including explanations of

49
to provide explanation in
case of their failure.
deviations against the planned values
of indicators.
Verification and Site visit
Purpose:
 to verify physical progress of activities within the project
 to verify that the expenditure declared was real, whether the goods, works or
services were provided in accordance with the contract, whether the payment
requests were correct and that the project and expenditure were in accordance
with the European Union rules and generally binding legal regulations
 to void double financing of expenditures with other EU or national schemes and
in the other programming periods
 to verify the economic effectiveness, and the efficacy of the provided support
 to verify the public procurement
 to verify publicity and information, etc.
Types of verification:
A. administrative verification
B. site visit
A. ADMINISTRATIVE VERIFICATION (AV)
AV of procurement of
goods, services and
works
AV of payment request AV of other
factorsAssessment of
formal
correctness
Assessment of
substantive
correctness
Assessment of the rules
and the procedures laid
down by the Public
Procurement Act, where
the Management
Authority monitors in
compliance with the
fundamental principles
of public procurement
(equal treatment, non-
discrimination of
tenderers, transparency,
efficiency and
effectiveness).
Assessment of the
application form
for payment
request and other
relevant
documentation
annexed to the
application, i.e.
whether the
application is
complete, correct
and fully filled in
all respects.
Assessment of
eligibility, accuracy,
feasibility, timeline of
expenditure in relation
to the relevant
expenditure and
activity of a given
project, to the place,
time eligibility, target
group and an eventual
duplicate expenditure
in relation to the
expenditure of the
same beneficiary under
other EC programs.
To obtain an
objective
information
about the
status and the
progress of
the project,
and about all
inspections of
the project
that have
been carried
out, etc.
B. SITE VISIT

50
Aim To verify the nature of the projects, to check project organization and
finances, to control necessary publicity and communication activities and
to review whether the project activities are being successfully executed.
Site visit covers the implementation of the project as a whole.
Period In any phase of the project implementation or after the closure of a project.
Subject to
control
Project organization - division of tasks, project partners, administration
system;
Progress of project - timing, reliability of progress report, indicators,
publicity;
Financial progress - expenditure, eligibility of costs, budget, fulfilment of
the financial conditions, compliance rules for public procurement;
Follow-up actions and other specific points and recommendations;
6.3 Progress Report and Updated Plans
Is the project on the right track? This is the master-key that supports the entire
monitoring process of a project, because it takes into account the social changes that
arise from the project intervention. This is the important information that the team,
stakeholders, funders, and most importantly, the project manager, need to know.
Thus, monitoring can be understood as a more or less continuous process of reviewing
the progress of the activities, in comparison to the initial plan and by considering the
implementation of various criteria, such as:
a) Completion of the activity;
b) Respect of deadlines and timings;
c) Provision of programmed resources (human and material);
d) To what degree the desired effects have been achieved;
e) Level of budget execution;
f) To what degree the objectives and the results have been achieved;
g) Alterations that occurred within the context of the project development and
that directly affect the activities;
The monitoring process should be designed during the project planning phase, based on
the Logical Framework Matrix, which includes the Matrix measurements of the four
levels of analysis: General Objective, Specific Objective, Activities and Results. In this
sense, as discussed in the previous chapter, the formulation of clear objectives is vital to
facilitate the monitoring process of the project results; therefore, it is a good practice to
define the objectives using the SMART technique (Specific, Measurable, Achievable,
Relevant, and Time-Related). In addition, according to the formulation and goals in the
LFM, indicators must be defined and verified objectively, by describing the extent to
which they are achieved. Respectively, indicators can be defined in accordance to their
measurability:
Quantitative indicators are measureable, and among others: number of trainees,
number of publications produced, and rate of participation in a conference.

51
Qualitative indicators: cannot be measured even though these are objectively
verifiable, for example: skills acquisition, changes in behaviour or habits, etc.
There is a wide variety of literature on how to formulate indicators, we suggest.
According to the "Trade Unions and Transnational Projects: A guide to managing
European Projects"1, after the project has been fully planned and conceived, the
following monitoring steps must be ensured so that the information is properly
reported:
1st Step - Collection and documentation of data (facts, observations and
evaluations), which should take into account:
a) The indicators of the objectives established at all levels of the LFM;
b) Quality and appropriateness of activities and use of resources;
c) Project environment, in which the verification indicators are analysed at the
assumption level;
d) Impact of the project;
e) Relationship with the target-groups and partners.
2nd Step - Analysis and preparation of findings, determined by:
a) Comparison between planned and executed results, including unexpected
outcomes, identification, and analysis of deviations and conclusions;
b) Comparison between the mechanisms of planned and current procedures, with
regard to the project organization and the relationship with the target-groups, by
identifying gaps and formulating conclusions.
3rd Step - Formulation of recommendations and proposed corrective actions in
order to allow for adjustments, for example, among others: timing of activities,
defined resources, objectives and project procedures and cooperation mechanisms.
Working Tools
While preparing the steps above, there are several models used for keeping track of the
project progress, which allow for better information synthesis, analysis and drawing
conclusions, such as:
a) Schedule in GANTT format: the use of a schedule in GANTT format allows a better
overview of the project progress, and provides a complete analytical reading about
what has been planned and what was carried out for a certain period of time in terms
of activities, calendars, defined resources, budget, etc. It may have the following
format (Ulrich Schiefer 2006):
b)
ACTIVITY
CALENDAR
(MONTHS)
HUMAN
RESOURCES
MATERIAL
RESOURCES
COSTS
RESPONSIBLE
ORGANIZATION
RESPONSIBLE
PERSON
OBS.
1 Chapter 6, "Trade Unions and Transnational Projects: A guide to managing European Projects" (European Trade
Union Institute, (ETUI) 2012)

52
Activity 1
A1
executed
Activity 2
A2
executed
Activity 2
A2
executed
Activity 3
A2
executed
…
b) Descriptive report in a table format, based on the LFM structure, which permits
reporting the project progress in a written format (EuropeAid Cooperation Office 2004):
Ref.
No
RESULT,
DESCRIPTION
and
INDICATORS
PLANNED
TARGET/ACHIEVEMENTS
FOR THE REPORTING
PERIOD
PROGRESS/ISSUES ACTION REQUIRED
1.1. Increased
coverage of
sewerage
network
No. of
households
and factories
connected
800 households and 10
factories
400 households (50%)
have been connected
to main sewerage and
all 10 factories
(100%).
Primary constraints
have been:
(i) willingness/ability
of households to pay
the connection fee; and
(ii) some delays due to
engineering works in
residential areas due
to Labour disputes.
Investigation
required into
householders
ability/willingness to
pay. To be conducted
as a matter of urgency
by water board and
local government.
Labour disputes
require action by
management of
construction
contractor.
Contract penalty
clauses to be applied.
…
The preparation of reports

53
Usually, funding bodies of the project provide guidelines for the preparation of reports,
such as the content, format or instruct whether it is necessary to follow any specific
model, including deadlines for the submission of the report, etc. This is one of the first
steps to take into account in order to avoid duplications and parallel procedures and
reports. The report is aimed at informing on the project progress as well as verifying if
what has been stipulated and agreed upon as per proposal and contracts is later on
implemented. Whether or not the funds have been spent appropriately is defined by the
funding bodies.
Although reporting is considered a costly work process, in terms of time and resources,
its importance should not be neglected. In many cases, there are substantial investments
in the collection of information, but often there is a lack of systematization, organization
and information analysis. Also, in the few cases when these are carried out, the
information is not produced within a useful timeframe, and thus, it does not allow the
implementation of decisions. The added value of any report lays on its usefulness as a
support tool where information is systematized and organized and where massive
amounts of information can be interpreted by transforming the information into useful
knowledge that permits the continuous improvement of the intervention.
What reports should be produced? How often?
The answer to this question depends on the nature and the duration of the project;
however, the reports may be of the following types:
1. An inception report: elaborated three months after the project begins, focused on
situations of particular importance, such as: substantial changes between what was
planned and what will be accomplished, for example: calendar/schedule, team, partners,
among others.
2. Progress report: elaborated on a biannual basis.
3. Annual report: it applies to multiannual projects and it should include the project
progress, especially in terms of activities and results, required alterations and their
effects, accompanied by an outline of the project annual revisions, which reflect
improvement/corrective actions.
4. Final report: it is elaborated at the end of the period of the project funding and it
contains all the required information for an integrated view of the implementation of the
project, allowing recommendations, lessons learned and follow-up actions to be
formulated. In order to know what are the most important issues that should be
addressed by the report, it is necessary to answer the following questions (Ulrich
Schiefer 2006):
1. Whom is the report for? What are their characteristics? What information do
they need to have?
2. What is the type of the written document? What are the features of this
document?
3. What is the purpose of the document and how is it useful?
4. When and how often should the report be elaborated?

54
During the elaboration of the report, various actors should be taken into account,
specifically those who have direct interest in "reading" the report, such as: target-
groups, stakeholders, team/project managers, sponsoring organizations (national and
international partner organizations), financing entities, and national and transnational
authorities. In this sense, the report should be adapted in accordance to the different
stakeholders, because writing techniques are different depending on the reader: for
example, it is different to write for laypeople than for decision-makers and technicians,
as it is different to write for people who are familiar with the project than for those who
are unrelated to it, or for those who are receptive than for those who are sceptical.
TIPS AND TRICKS (by Ulrich Schiefer 2006):
 Adapt the report to the reader;
 Produce informative and useful documents, which meet the interests and the
needs of the beneficiaries;
 Provide information, which is addressing the action, in order to provide
conditions regarding adjustment measures and decision-making;
 Be objective, clear and thorough, because the use of clear and accessible
language enhances the understanding of the report content;
 In order to facilitate the reading and the use of the document, it should contain
synthesized elements, such as executive summaries, elements that facilitate the
fast location of information (indexes), elements that allow better visualization of
the documents (charts, tables, images, etc.);
 Organize and systematize the information, which enable the reader to easily find
the information s/he needs;
 Bet on presentation, through the use of graphs, figures and diagrams that
capture readers' attention and facilitates content reading and understanding;
 Find the proper size for the document: a small sized report might suggest that
there are gaps in information and an excessive sized report may prove not to be
very useful, therefore the correct size of the report depends on the type of
audience it is prepared for. A good practice for elaborating an appropriate sized
report is the rule on disaggregation levels: the abstract should contain
information that is strictly essential, the executive summary contains key
information, the body of the report should be brief and concise, and all detailed
information should be referred in appendices, attachments or auxiliary
documents;

55
*Managing EU projects is a really complex task. Therefore, in a short guide, it is quite tough to
provide exhaustive information and an overview of the subject from all relevant aspects. For
additional information, Step4All recommends the following documents:
 Project Cycle Management Guidelines prepared for the European Commission and
published by EuropeAid Cooperation Office in 2004. The guide is probably the most
exhaustive document providing both theory and practical examples, backed up with
sufficient visualizations of the main project cycle management processes. Available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/multimedia/publications/documents/tools/europeaid_
adm_pcm_guidelines_2004_en.pdf
 A Survival Kit for European Project Management, published by the Survival Kit
consortium in 2004, funded by the EC. Even though the document refers to the Socrates
programme, the former Lifelong Learning and current Erasmus+, the kit provides
exhaustive management guides, accompanied with excellent visualizations. Available at:
http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/llp/erasmus_2000_2006/documents/survival_kit_EN_update
d_version_2004.pdf
 Developing and managing EU projects, published by TACSO Regional Office in 2011,
funded by the EC. The document is aimed to provide practical tips in EU project
management in the Western Balkans and Turkey. The guide provides less theory;
however it summarises best practices, practical examples and quotes from experts in the
topic. Available at: http://www.tacso.org/doc/doc_manual_3.pdf
 Project Management T-Kit, published by the Council of Europe in 2000. This is a very
cheerful project management guide for successful coordination of youth actions.
Available at: http://issuu.com/juventudenaccion/docs/name3fe1a4
 Focus the text on what is the most important, avoid all information that is not
directly related to the topic and may be referred to in footnotes, endnotes,
attachments, etc.;
 Be assertive, clear and direct, avoid the use of evasive language that might
weaken the understanding of the report contents;
 Be transparent. For example, recognize the limitations of the information
collected, and explain the used methodologies used, as well as identify the
encountered problems;
 Respect deadlines, because only through the elaboration of reports, stipulated
for specific periods during the project implementation, is possible to adapt
contents, to make decisions and consequently to take proper measures;
 Elaborate the executive summary carefully, allowing readers to understand the
key messages in the report and its conclusions;
 Ensure the confidentiality of the information, particularly in reference to the
different readers and the levels of information sharing. In addition, ensure
restricted access to certain types of information that is considered confidential.

56
EU Project Management Roles
7

57
7 EU Project Management Roles
7.1 Project managers
Project managers have a leading role in a project and the lack of experienced project
managers could fail the project execution, although the coordinator has the biggest
responsibility. Project managers have to monitor the whole project from the very first
steps (partner search, planning, etc.) to the very final successful implementation. They
are the decision makers who are trusted by the project promoters as well as the most
important stakeholders, in this way they have full authority. They manage the resources
(human, financial, and infrastructure) of the project, and all members of the project
team should support their work. Nevertheless, it is recommended to separate
professional management tasks and financial management tasks. The financial manager
is on the same level as the project manager(s) on the organogram (or organisational
chart) of the project team. In case of smaller projects, roles can be mixed and one person
can be in charge of more functions.
7.2 Administrative staff
The administrative staff is responsible for the correct filling of the official templates.
Members of the staff create the list of requested documents, keep in touch with the other
project partners, and check the received forms and annexes. Consequently, the role of
the administrative staff is always very important during the preparation of a proposal.
Once a project proposal has been approved, the administrative staff’s task is to collect all
the supporting documents from the very beginning of the project implementation in
order to justify the incurred costs since the Commission can require proofs to verify the
eligibility of the requested payments. The administrative staff is also responsible for the
elaboration of timesheets, and for the promotion of the project managers’ work (e.g.,
organisation of events; writing of meeting minutes; etc.). Usually, the administrative
staff consists of 1-2 persons per project partner.
7.3 Technical experts/implementers
Technical experts provide information on the project description during the preparation
of the project proposal. They are the intellectual authors of the project since they have
the necessary experience and knowledge concerning the specific target groups, markets,
developments, etc. They might ensure the audit reports including data concerning rate
of returns as well. Certain calls stipulate the involvement of experts on specific subjects
(e.g., environmental education specialist, marketing expert, etc.).
7.4 Communication experts
Not all project teams have the opportunity to employ a person for communication tasks;
however, there are always mandatory communication activities in each project. In these
cases, a member of the administrative staff or one of the project managers undertakes
the role of the communication expert. Nevertheless, in bigger and more complex

58
projects it is strongly advised to involve a communication expert in the project team
whose general tasks are the following: elaboration of the different communication
materials (e.g., information brochures, flyers, e-newsletters); writing of the press
releases and articles; taking care of media relations by following the instructions of the
visual identity manual; organising press conferences and project meetings; checking the
subcontractors (if applicable).
7.5 Evaluators
Basically, the project managers and the technical experts provide the quality assurance
of the proposal and the project implementation as well, thus, lots of organisations do not
employ internal evaluators. Nevertheless, the quality assurance can be provided by a
third person within the project team.

59
Administrative and Financial
Management
8

60
8 Administrative and Financial Management
Financial and Administrative management is one of the most important and must-be-
careful aspects in EU funded projects. In the first place, the budget table, prepared while
applying to the agency, plays a very critical role in the proposal evaluation by the
agency. If the budget table attached to the proposal is clear, realistic, effective and
reasonable, this brings the proposal one step further in the evaluation process.
However, providing a quality budget table only is not enough. It should be accompanied
with an effective and feasible financial and administrative management policy which is
to be established by the coordinator and confirmed by the partners. Even if an
organization implements a very successful set of activities within a framework of a
project, it may have problems with the agency and its partners because of a poor
financial management policy. Therefore, one of the first things to discuss and conclude
during the preparation phase of the project is establishing a financial policy with the
approval of all the partners.
The European Commission has adopted two main approaches to deliver its funds. The
first one is the centralized approach, through which the direct funds are allocated. The
Education Audiovisual & Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) is responsible for the
management of certain parts of the EU's direct programmes in the fields of education,
culture, audiovisual, sport, citizenship and volunteering. The other funding approach is
for the decentralized programmes, financed by the structural EU funds. These are
managed by authorized national ministries and/or agencies, under the strict monitoring
and control of the Commission. The reporting guidelines provided in this Short Guide 3,
refer to the centralized EU projects, as the reporting for the decentralized ones is a
subject to national reporting rules.
Detailed information and related Financial Guides can be found in each programme
section on the website of EACEA: http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/index_en.php
8.1 The role of the administrative management in a project
Administrative management is also as important as the financial management. It refers
to some crucial aspects in the overall project management:
 Time management and deadlines or what to do and when to do it: The
Coordinator is to set up corresponding deadlines for the financial activities and
the partners need to respect the timescales and deadlines set by the coordinator.
Those are the key points ensuring that the consortium can comply with the
deadlines set by the Agency.
 Collecting evidence for eligible expenses: Each project has different evaluation
and audit timescales during the implementation phase. Generally, the European
Commission might demand for quarterly progress reports, interim reports as
well as final report, based on the specific project needs. The coordinator is

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