Norway – Research and development consultancy services – Competence brokers for research mobilisation in Troms.

Background Troms County, c/o the FORREGION Troms section development and innovation, needs external assistance with research mobilisation in business. The aim is to strengthen the link between companies and relevant research and development environments and contribute to having several entities in Troms initiate research and innovation projects. FORREGION is responsible for research based innovation in the regions and is a subsidy scheme aimed at companies with little or no experience with research and development work. The procurement shall support the scheme's aim of increasing the share of R&D in business through mobilisation, closer connection between businesses and R&D environments and that preliminary projects to a greater degree lead on to main projects and other continued research activity. The procurement will be implemented as the county needs capacity and expertise to work systematically, outreach and needs managed towards companies, particularly small and medium sized entities who have little experience with research and development. At the same time, there is a need to make relevant R&D environments, financing schemes and other means more accessible for businesses in the region. The assignment shall support the aim of increased research efforts in business, several qualified applications for relevant research resources and better regional coverage in the mobilisation work. It is particularly important to mobilise research-independent companies in prioritised branches, facilitate more lasting co-operation relationships between businesses and R&D actors and contribute to the continuation of promising initiatives from early idea phases and preliminary projects to major development and research projects. Description of the assignment The contracting authority shall procure assistance from a total of five competence broker teams for research mobilisation in Troms. The resources shall collectively cover the topic areas seafood, space activity/space, KI and technology development as well as Circular Troms, where two of the sub-contracts shall be related to seafood. Each sub-contract shall be taken care of by a competence broker team with relevant and complementary competence within the relevant input area. The target group for the assignment is small and medium sized companies that belong to Troms county, or who have considerable activity in Troms. Competence brokering shall be a free offer to the target group. The assignment requires that the competence brokers act independently and neutrally and that they do not represent business actors who can be in a competitive relationship with the companies that receive assistance. The competence brokers shall sign a confidentiality statement. The delivery includes outreach contact with companies, needs analysis, mapping of relevant R&D partners, connection between companies and research environments as well as guidance in the development of R&D projects and applications for research resources. Follow-up shall be adapted to each company's need and maturity, and can include assistance from early idea clarification and preliminary project for further mobilisation with main projects and other relevant schemes. The competence broker shall be a consultant and supervisor in application processes, but shall not write applications on behalf of the companies or act in competition with private actors. The competence broker teams shall be able to identify the companies ́ need for research and innovation, contribute to finding relevant research competence and guide the companies towards appropriate sources of financing. This includes FORREGION and other relevant schemes, e.g. Tax Finds, The Research Council of Norway, Innovation Norway, Horizon Europe and other relevant means. Where it is natural, the competence brokers should also refer to other actors in the funding apparatus. The assignment includes further follow-up of companies that have previously carried out preliminary projects financed by FORREGION Troms, with the aim of contributing to further development and execution of main projects. The competence brokers shall also be able to arrange network meetings between businesses and R&D actors in order to identify common problems, possibilities for research and development, as well as strengthen the sharing of knowledge and cooperation. Resources are requested with relevant experience from research mobilisation in business, a good understanding of regional innovation and R&D environments, knowledge of relevant businesses in the region and the ability to work needs controlled. The role requires good collaboration abilities, good communication comprehension and the ability to build trust in both companies and research environments. The competence brokers shall furthermore cooperate with other competence brokers in FORREGION, other innovation actors in Troms and participate in relevant regional and national gatherings, including obligatory training and gathering activities managed by the Research Council of Norway. The assignment also includes reporting to the contracting authority through fixed digital reporting systems and templates. The reporting shall, among other things, provide an overview of completed mediations, resource use, contact with R&D institutions, projects that are brokered on to relevant schemes, preliminary projects, network meetings and other relevant results and activities.