SIPU Course Portfolio: EU Courses

SIPUs EU courses provided knowledge on how to successfully apply for, initiate, manage and complete EU projects. Participants gained the ability to develop a realistic project with achievable goals, to successfully report outcomes and document the project correctly to comply with audit requirements. SIPU’s EU courses could be attended separately or booked as a package for a more complete overview.

Customized training:
In addition to the scheduled courses below, SIPU offered customised courses specifically designed for a team, organisation or institution. As much as 55% of the total budget/revenue of 2012 EU-courses came from its customised trainings.

EU Project Cycle Management:
Planning an EU Project – Reach Goals through Strategic Project Planning and Communication. This course was designed for project teams from municipalities and state agencies, who aim to establish better control, assure quality and save time through efficient planning. Using a unique EU project tool and working on their own projects, participants learned more about among other things:

• Project deliverables and timeframes Quality and risk management Communication plans, strategy and objectives Information management for efficient reporting.

Managing an EU project From Start to Finish:
Designed for EU project managers, this course offered participants enhanced proficiency covering the entire project cycle from start-up of a project to final reporting and managing auditing. EU rules and regulations were thoroughly reviewed, and presentations blended with practical exercises on subjects such as:

• Project planning – content, resources and planning systems Analysing risk – preventing crises Contracting and responsibilities of different parties Disseminating, evaluating and follow-up.

Applying for EU Funding – From Idea to Successful Grants Application:
This SIPU course covered the process from the initial project idea to designing a realistic EU project, including the steps of finding and securing the right financing. It included aspects such as:

• Developing the project idea into a state-of-the-art project plan Writing a successful application Finding partners Realistic budgeting and professional negotiations.

Financial Management of EU Projects – from Budgets to Audit:
The course covered financial regulations of various EU funds to successfully manage project finances and prepare for a project audit. Some of the following was included:

• Co-financing rules Warranted and unwarranted costs Management of donations and volunteers Records management and archives.

New programme period 2014-2020 – information on Structural and Sectoral funds in the coming programme period:
Being a member state in the EU, Sweden entered the fourth programme period. This course focused on the coming programme period 2014-2020, and gave insight on new focus areas and project strategies for the structural and sectoral funds. The course helped organisations to prepare for new projects in the programme period 2014-2020. It covered:

• From policy to project – the EU development work for new programmes From Lisbon strategy to Europe 2020 – Strategies and major objectives Update on negotiations for new structural and sectoral funds How to develop a project idea towards the new programme period.

Efficient project organisation – for sustainable results of EU-projects in learning organisations:
The focus of this course was on how to anchor a project in an organisation in order to establish ‘learning organisations’. The course content included:

• Methods for long-term development of the organisation through the results of EU-funded projects Different levels of project management: organisational management, steering group, project manager, working group leaders Different phases in EU-funded projects – initiation, implementation, completion and beyond How to develop a strategic project organisation – strategy, methodology and organisation.

Inspection and audit requirements.