How consultants structure winning bids for international consortia

Building a high-scoring bid with international consortia is about structure, not luck. This guide shows the consultant playbook, from partner mapping and exploitation plans to IP, governance and proof.

Cross-border programmes reward teams that combine the right partners, a credible route to market, and a clean governance model. Experienced consultants help you turn complex ambitions into a tight plan that reviewers can score. Use the steps below as a checklist for your next multinational proposal.

What reviewers look for in international consortia

Evaluators tend to converge on six questions:

1. Is the problem important and clearly evidenced
2. Does the consortium have the right mix of skills and end-user access
3. Is there a realistic plan to create and capture value
4. Are risks owned with concrete mitigations
5. Is governance transparent and auditable across borders
6. Will results be shared, exploited and disseminated responsibly

Consultants structure the bid so each answer is obvious, skimmable and backed by proof.

Partner mapping: build from outcomes, not contacts

Start with outcomes, then pull partners to the plan.

• Outcome tree: Break the call’s expected outcomes into 6–10 measurable results.
• Role grid: For each outcome, name the owner, a challenger and a validator. Owners deliver. Challengers test assumptions. Validators supply data, sites or certification.
• Gap scan: Identify missing capabilities such as regulatory, scale-up facilities, or route-to-market.
• End-user anchor: Include at least one end-user or operator with a real test site. Their letters should mention success criteria and data access.
• Diversity of expertise: Aim for SMEs with novel IP, a university or RTO for deep research, an industry partner for scale, and a public body or end-user for validation.

Red flag: Consortia formed from existing contacts often duplicate skills and lack a credible exploitation route. Let the outcome tree drive selection.

Work packages that score

Consultants design work packages to mirror the evaluation headings. A common pattern:

1. WP1 Programme management and ethics
   Coordination, risk, quality plan, ethics and data protection. Clear roles and reporting cadence.
2. WP2 State of the art and requirements
   User needs, baseline performance, regulatory map, and KPIs. Evidence beats assertion.
3. WP3–WP5 Technical development and validation
   Experiments and integration grouped by theme. Each task has entrance criteria, tests, acceptance thresholds and named owners.
4. WP6 Pilots and demonstration
   Real settings with end-users, safety case or certification steps, and post-pilot adoption plan.
5. WP7 Exploitation plan and business model
   Market analysis, target segments, cost curves, pricing, partner-specific exploitation paths and investment needs.
6. **WP8 Dissemination and communication
   Audiences, channels, open-science commitments and a publication plan that respects IP strategy.
7. WP9 Impact, ESG and gender dimension where relevant
   Quantified societal and environmental outcomes, with monitoring indicators.

Each WP includes milestones, deliverables, acceptance criteria and risks with owners.

The exploitation plan, made practical

A strong exploitation plan is specific by partner and phased over time.

• Value proposition by segment: Who benefits, how much and when.
• Adoption path: Trials, approvals, procurement routes and any standards work.
• IP and freedom-to-operate: Prior art checks and planned filings.
• Investment map: Capex, opex and external finance needed after the grant.
• Partner-level tables: For each partner, state exploitable results, target market, sales channels, time to revenue and dependencies.
• Go/kill gates: Criteria that trigger pivot or exit to save public money.

Tip: Add a one-page logic model that ties inputs to activities, outputs, outcomes and impacts, with KPIs and data sources.

Intellectual property: clear before clever

Consultants keep IP rules simple and testable.

• Background IP register: Who brings what into the project, with access rights defined.
• Foreground IP rules: Ownership by default to the creator, with licence options for other partners.
• Access rights for implementation: Royalty-free for the project, fair and reasonable terms for post-project use where needed.
• Publication and review: A short notice period for manuscript or conference abstracts to check for sensitive content.
• IP committee: Meets quarterly, records decisions, links to the risk register.

Avoid: Ambiguous clauses that invite disputes. Reviewers prefer clarity over exotic arrangements.

Governance across borders that actually works

• Steering committee: One senior representative per partner, plus the coordinator. Quarterly decisions on scope, budget and risk.
• Technical board: WP leaders meet monthly to manage dependencies and change requests.
• PMO cadence: Weekly stand-ups, a rolling 8-week plan, risk burndown, and a dashboard of milestones and issues.
• Change control: Template for scope shifts, with impact on time, cost and outcomes.
• Data and ethics oversight: If working with personal or sensitive data, create an ethics panel and a data management plan early.

Make the cadence visible in a one-page governance map with responsibilities and meeting rhythm.

Evidence and letters of support that move the score

Thin letters cost points. Consultants use a simple script:

• Who is writing: Job title, organisation, and their role in adoption or regulation.
• Problem and need: One sentence on the pain or unmet requirement.
• Commitment and access: Test sites, data, equipment, or user cohorts they will provide.
• Success criteria: The KPIs they will measure.
• Adoption intent: If targets are met, what adoption or procurement path they would follow.

Pair letters with MOUs or site-access agreements where possible. Keep dates recent and signatories senior.

Budget and value for money

• From outcomes, not departments: Allocate costs to deliverables and tests, not line management structures.
• Evidence-backed quotes: Subcontractor scopes with market-rate checks.
• Eligibility map: Show which costs are eligible under the scheme and why.
• Cash flow realism: Claims in arrears, pre-financing assumptions and partner liquidity risks.
• Sensitivity: 10 percent and 20 percent downside scenarios with mitigation actions.

A one-page budget-to-work-package table helps reviewers track value for money.

Risk management that deserves the name

Replace generic lists with testable risks.

• Technical risks: Performance shortfall, integration failure, safety non-compliance. Link to experiments designed to learn fast.
• Delivery risks: Supplier slip, pilot access, recruitment delays. Add contingency and backup sites.
• Commercial risks: Price sensitivity, switching costs, regulatory change. Add market tests and stakeholder interviews.
• IP and ethics risks: Ownership disputes, data breaches. Add committee gates and audits.

Each risk gets an owner, an early-warning signal, and a dated mitigation.

Writing style that scores across languages

• Lead with the benefit, then explain how, then show proof.
• Mirror the question headings to make marking easy.
• Keep paragraphs short and use informative subheads and numbered lists.
• Define terms once, in bold, for example exploitation plan, consortium agreement, letters of support.
• Figures must earn space: Delivery flow, impact logic model, governance map, and a partner-outcome grid.

Mini case example

A digital health consortium needed clinical validation across two countries. Consultants mapped outcomes first, then added a hospital network as validator, a device manufacturer for scale, and a university lab for trial design. The exploitation plan split revenues between device sales and a data-as-a-service model. IP rules gave foreground rights to the algorithm owner with time-limited access for the clinical partners. Letters from two hospital chiefs specified patient numbers, data access and adoption criteria. The bid scored strongly on impact, implementation and value for money because the story, evidence and numbers aligned.

Actionable checklist

• Build an outcome tree and partner role grid before inviting anyone to the consortium.
• Draft the exploitation plan with partner-level tables and go/kill gates.
• Write a one-page consortium agreement summary covering background IP, foreground IP and access rights.
• Produce a governance map with meeting rhythm and change control.
• Script letters of support to include access, KPIs and adoption intent.
• Create a budget-to-work-package table and a risk register with early-warning signals.