Challenges arising in a partnership

The benefits generated by participation in a partnership are typically accompanied by several challenges for the project co-ordinator.

The co-ordination and leadership challenge

The co-ordinator of a partnership has to fulfil two roles: The coordinator should have the technical skills to be an efficient project manager and the personal qualities of an inspiring and assertive project leader. There are different approaches to choose from for both of these at these fundamental roles.

  The planning challenge

Partnerships in the Erasmus+ Programmes are complex undertakings which require considerable planning. It is challenging to prepare a detailed project proposal with a diverse consortium of partners with different institutional backgrounds, from different education sectors and in different countries. In addition, planning is not restricted to the application stage, but necessary throughout the project’s life cycle.

  The administrative challenge

The administrative requirements and regulations of the funding programme are considered to be rather rigid and burdensome by many project actors. A relatively high administrative workload with regard to documenting and reporting of the project’s activities and costs has to be dealt with.

  The co-operation challenge

Partnership require co-operation between different institutions which do not normally co-operate. A project manager is confronted with diverse motivations, interests, and organisational cultures in often so-called mixed partnerships of institutions with complementary expertise and different approaches. This concept of profiting from diversity constitutes a challenge as well as an opportunity for learning.

It is not only the institutions, but also people, (most likely of different professions, age, experience and status) working together for the first time and needing to be transformed into a committed and high performing team.

  The virtual challenge

As opposed to in-house projects, the team in a partnership is geographically dispersed all over Europe. Consequently, frequent or spontaneous face-to-face meetings are not possible. Communication and collaboration must be organised over distances, team building and conflict resolution likewise.

A consequence of the distance between partners is that communication and collaboration are mostly done virtually, supported by information and communication technologies (ICT). A project manager needs to have a sound knowledge of the existing tools and good user and facilitation skills with regard to ICT.

  The intercultural challenge

The project partners are not only located far away from each other but come from different countries. This involves cultural differences with regard to values, attitudes and beliefs, which will show up in the joint work. Moreover, education systems and approaches vary considerably in different European countries, and a common understanding and terminology needs to be developed by a project. Language barriers may influence the project, too.

  The quality challenge

Expectations of the funding programme for partnership are high. A project is selected for funding on the assumption that it will deliver innovative outcomes of high quality and thus contribute to improving the overall quality of education in Europe. Consequently, quality management and evaluation need to be taken seriously in a project.

  The impact challenge

It is not regarded as sufficient that a partnership develops something valuable and profits from this activity. In the participating countries, if not in Europe as a whole the educational community concerned should benefit. A project needs to make a real effort to reach these target groups and to make sure that they use the developed products.

These typical project management challenges are addressed in the following chapters of this publication. An additional chapter is dedicated to the start-up phase of a partnership Project, because this is a crucial phase in which the course is set for the whole project.

But this introductory chapter should not conclude without emphasising that the project management challenges introduced here do not merely constitute a burden for the co-ordinator of a partnership. They also provide opportunities for learning and development at personal, professional and institutional level and make participation in European co-operation such a rewarding endeavour.