D5.4 Network of interest meeting report (1)

WP.5 Dissemination & Exploitation D5.4 Network of interest meeting report (1) Page 1/19 Grant Agreement Number: 693171 Acronym: RECAP Project Full Title: Personalised public services in support of the implementation of the CAP Start Date: 01/05/2016 Duration: 30 months Project URL: www.recap-h2020.eu Deliverable Number & Name: D5.4 Network of interest meeting report (1) Work Package Number & Name:WP.5 - Dissemination & Exploitation Date of Delivery: Contractual: 30 April 2017 Nature: R - Report Lead Beneficiary: 1-DRAXIS Environmental SA Responsible Author: 11-ETAM SA Contributions from: 12-CREVIS SPRL Actual: 30 April 2017 Dissemination Level: PU-PUBLIC DOCUMENT HISTORY: Versions Issue Date Stage Changes Contributor 1.0 17/4/2017 Draft Draft for review ΕΤΑΜ SA 2.0 20/04/2017 Draft Review Feedback CREVIS SPRL 3.0 30/4/2017 Final Final version ETAM SA © RECAP Consortium, 2016 This deliverable contains original unpublished work except where clearly indicated otherwise. Acknowledgement of previously published material and of the work of others has been made through appropriate citation, quotation or both. Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Disclaimer Any dissemination of results reflects only the author's view and the European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Table of contents 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................................ 4 2. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................................... 5 2.1 Purpose of the deliverable ................................................................................................................. 5 2.2 Structure and content ........................................................................................................................ 5 2.3 Upcoming NoI deliverables................................................................................................................. 5 3. RECAP NETWORK OF INTEREST ................................................................................................................... 6 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 4. Definition ............................................................................................................................................ 6 Methodology of the NoI establishment.............................................................................................. 6 RECAP network categories ................................................................................................................. 8 Data entry ........................................................................................................................................... 9 Targets and metrics ............................................................................................................................ 9 ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................................................................10 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Group type ....................................................................................................................................... 10 Country ............................................................................................................................................. 11 Type of stakeholder .......................................................................................................................... 12 Social media and website network analysis...................................................................................... 13 5. DISCUSSION ...............................................................................................................................................15 6. ACTIVITIES PERFORMED SO FAR AND PROGRESS TOWARDS THE EXPECTED RESULTS ...............................16 7. FUTURE PLANS AND ENGAGEMENT WITH THE NoI....................................................................................17 8. CONCLUSIONS ...........................................................................................................................................18 ANNEX A - Webinar Invitation............................................................................................................................19 3/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Deliverable D5.4 provides an overview of the RECAP Network of Interest (NoI), a presentation of the actions that have so far been carried out to develop and maintain the network, as well as future engagement activities of the network. The NoI will promote collaboration among stakeholders and end users and it will also provide support and exchange of ideas at the development stage of RECAP platform. The Network is a community of groups and individuals, who share a common interest relevant to the RECAP objectives. Members of the Network will act both as a main dissemination pole for other stakeholders, as well as the future first customer base for the commercialization of the RECAP outcomes. The aim of the NoI is to create a pool of stakeholders to act as multipliers of dissemination activities and thus enable the attraction of potential users and future customers for the RECAP platform. The main outcome from building the NoI will be that the RECAP platform will be relevant to future possible stakeholders needs. The main tools that have been engaged to set up the NoI are email communications, newsletters, social media and also in person meetings. The tasks that have been carried out so far, following careful and frontloaded time-planning include the following: A list with contact details of 6,773 members of the NoI has been established. Each entry of the fore mentioned list has been assigned a set of categorical variables. A statistical analysis of the data collected has been carried out. The target set for Month 30 has been reached to a great extent as early as Month 7. The first two published newsletters were forwarded via mailing lists to potential user groups. Social media accounts in various networks have been created. A webinar with the participation of 37 users/participants (52 originally registered) has been carried out on the 20th of April. Tasks planned for the future include: The publication of semi-annual newsletters which will be sent to members of user groups throughout the duration of the project. Increase of the visibility of the project in social media aiming at the engagement of more members in the NoI. Organisation of a series of technical discussions through the project website. Provision of recommendations by the RECAP partners for further NoI expansion and diversification. The second version of the present deliverable will be published in March 2018. 4/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 2.INTRODUCTION 2.1 Purpose of the deliverable The deliverable attempts to analyse the methodology decided and the relative decision making for building the network, the actions planned to maintain key players amongst the initial pool of stakeholders or engage possible new ones crucial for the development of the network. Also describes the feedback received from them and statistically present the network’s results. Additionally all future activities planned for the development of the network until M23 (when the next deliverable is due) are presented. 2.2 Structure and content The deliverable is structured in the following chapters: 2.3 Chapter 3. The definition of RECAP NoI is given in this chapter as well as a description of the methodology used to approach the members. Additionally the tools used for data entry and the different types of group categories that form the NoI are defined. This chapter also includes the projected metrics and targets set in the Communication and Dissemination plan (Deliverable 5.1). Chapter 4. In this chapter the statistical analysis of the NoI entries is presented, followed by the description relative results. Chapter 5. The discussion on the statistical outcomes of RECAP NoI is presented in this chapter. Chapter 6. Description of the activities performed so far to build the network of interest are outlined. Chapter 7. Chapter 7 includes an overview of the progress towards the target metrics. Chapter 8. This chapter presents future engagement within the RECAP NoI, as well as plans for the network’s further expansion including options on the ways to maintain the communication, interaction amongst members, and interest on the network. Upcoming NoI deliverables Establishing and maintaining the RECAP NoI it is on-going process that spans throughout the entire lifetime of the project. For that reason a number of deliverables will be prepared for keeping up with the progress of the network development and members’ engagement. These deliverables have been carefully placed in selected time periods that reflect the overall progress of the project. The current deliverable is due on Month 12 (April 2017). The deliverable D5.7 Network of Interest meeting report (2), which will be an update of D5.4, is due on Month 23 (March 2018). It will be the 2nd report on the activities to enrich the NoI and the feedback regarding the platform received until that date. The deliverable D5.10 Network of Interest meeting report (3) is due on Month 30 (October 2018) and will be the final version of the report on the RECAP NoI. 5/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 3.RECAP NETWORK OF INTEREST 3.1 Definition RECAP’s Network of interest refers to a community of groups and individuals representing major stakeholders including paying agencies, agri-consultants, farmers’ organisations, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, private companies and academic / research institutions, collective bodies and scientific communities at a local, regional and national level, that share a common interest related to the RECAP project, as well as the CAP and environmental protection, remote sensing and ICT. The concept behind building the NoI is to gather potential stakeholders/users of the platform, in order to not only exchange information and thoughts on the RECAP platform and its components, but also offer them the opportunity to test the RECAP platform. The NoI will in turn provide useful feedback to RECAP increasing its chances for market uptake. The main objective of the NoI establishment is to act as a main dissemination pole for other stakeholders, but also to create the first customer base for the future commercialisation of the RECAP platform. 3.2 Methodology of the NoI establishment At the beginning of the RECAP communication activities, representatives of all the project partners acted as communication channels that ensured the identification and commitment of experts in the field related to high-level of knowledge and experience in the CAP, policy making and environmental issues. Consortium partner ETAM SA has been in charge of this process. Until Month 4, all project partners contributed in suggesting contacts for the project’s NoI. This process resulted in the establishment of two groups, a) the Core (user) Group which consists of stakeholders who are considered to be of particular interest for RECAP and b) the General Group which includes the rest of the contacts that may have an interest in the project. The Core Group was formed from a screening activity, with the objective to limit interested users to those who have both the interest and the potential to utilise the RECAP platform, or can be the future customers’ base of RECAP or can be major multipliers of communication. Members of the Core Group will receive a semi-annual newsletter depicting the project progress. They will be encouraged to participate in technical/scientific discussions through the project website or social media accounts, and they will provide their feedback for the successful implementation of the project. Press releases and constant updates through the project website and social media will be communicated to the General group. These individuals are expected to be interested in the results of RECAP and therefore, the RECAP consortium will try to keep them up to date about the project progress encouraging them also to actively participate in project activities. The active involvement of stakeholders in RECAP is of utmost importance for the success of the project, given that their collaboration and feedback are vital for the development of the RECAP platform. The RECAP NoI encompasses individuals of all relevant roles that belong to different categories of networks, associations and organisations, of private or public status. Specifically the NoI establishment efforts were focused on identifying and engaging representatives of public administration bodies, agricultural sector, environmental NGOs, representatives of EU projects with objectives similar to the ones of RECAP, experts in the field of CAP and environmental protection, universities and research centers active in the fields of agriculture, environment and the CAP, and experts with high-level knowledge and experience in policy making, remote sensing, information and communication technologies. The categories of stakeholders that were selected to build the pool of stakeholders were indicatively: 6/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Agricultural Advisory Centers/Service Providers Liaison Offices Agricultural cooperatives Agricultural Research Centers/Institutes Ministries (agriculture, environment, research etc) and Regional Authorities Agronomists News agencies Associations of Agricultural Cooperatives News portals Associations of producers or merchants of agricultural inputs Newspapers/magazines (fields: agriculture/rural development, technology, start-ups etc) Chambers of Agriculture NGOs Chambers of Agronomists Organizations promoting the environment Agricultural Consultants Paying Agencies Daily/weekly newspapers/magazines Producers Organizations Enterprise Associations for Crop Protection Producers Groups Environmental Management Bodies Rural Collective Bodies Europe Direct Centers Rural production portals European wide media Farmers Associations Scientific Societies (ICT, GIS, Agronomy, Agricultural Economics, Environment etc) Financial newspapers Technology Transfer & Innovation Organizations Firms processing agricultural products Unions for Conservation of Nature ICT developers Universities and Research Centers (fields: environment, remote sensing etc) Journalists / Journalists in the fields of agriculture, environment, technology etc Young farmers associations Additionally social media were also used as a tool for building a network of interest. Specifically the following were selected as most appropriate for setting up the RECAP NoI: Facebook and twitter being the most popular social networks allowing to expand the pool of possible stakeholders. LinkedIn being the most commonly used professional network in order to establish communication with professionals and academics of the agri-environmental sector. Yammer communities to raise dialogue with communication specialists on European Structural Funds and instruments. Youtube and Slideshare to promote videos, presentations and publications. Finally technical discussions / webinars are also an important tool that directly aims at engaging crucial groups of stakeholders in the platform design and decision making process. So far one out of a series of webinars has been carried out by forwarding an invitation (Annex A) and announcements made through social media. 7/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report The establishment, management and maintenance of the RECAP NoI will be an ongoing activity that will last throughout the duration of the project. The establishment of the RECAP NoI has the potential to boost the dissemination activities and visibility of the project but also to enhance the engagement of the RECAP target groups. Additionally it will provide the project partners with the necessary knowledge in order to disseminate the project objectives on local, regional, national and European level. 3.3 RECAP network categories In order to set the basis for the analysis of the collected contact list of individuals, the categories presented in the previous chapter have been narrowed down and grouped in the following ones: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Paying Agencies General Government and Public Administration Agronomists and Consultants Academia and Research Producers and Associations Official Bodies EU & EC Agencies Companies Media Various Paying Agencies: this category involves payment and control agencies that are responsible for controls on cross compliance and are actively involved in CAP implementation. Paying Agencies are the main user group being also the primary potential customers of RECAP. General Government and Public Administration: this network group includes Public administrations, Ministries and Departments of Agriculture of national and regional governments, other Regional and National Authorities related to the CAP and the EARDF Operational Programmes. This category includes individuals who work for public organisations and authorities that are responsible and actively involved in the CAP implementation, environmental management and monitoring, and can act as a main dissemination pole to the main (user) group. Agronomists and Consultants: including agricultural consultants, agronomists, Chambers of agronomists, public advisory and extension services and authorities that are expected to form the basis of the second user group, using RECAP data for delivering support services to farmers. Academia and Research: this category includes individuals from academia and scientists from universities, institutes and research centres that are active in agricultural and environmental research, remote sensing technology and/or policy making. Producers and Associations: including Farmers, Farmer’s Unions, farmers’ associations and federations, producers’ organisations and Unions, Agricultural cooperatives & associations and Chambers of Agriculture. This category will additionally constitute a third class of business target, whilst farmers as individuals will constitute a fourth market segment being the end users of RECAP platform. Associations are expected to use parts of the system to support their farmers in complying with the cross compliance 8/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report scheme, and farmers will be requested to use the application by their control and paying agency or their consultant. Official Bodies: this network group includes EU Citizens/ Environmental Advocacy Groups, NGOs, National and International Organizations in agriculture, accreditation bodies and other organizations and bodies that are deployed in sustainable agriculture, environmental protection and policy making. EU & EC Agencies: EU’s DG AGRI, DG INDUSTRY, DG ENV, DG GROW, SCAR, JRC, ENRD, EIP-Agri, etc that develop and carry out Commission's policies strategic planning and additionally disseminate relative initiatives and resources. Companies: this category includes individuals who own or work for SMEs and other private companies that are active in e-tools development and commercialization; private companies in the agri-food sector (ICT companies specialised in the agri-food sector, especially in farm management software (FMIS, DSS)) as well as companies that draw economic activity around agriculture (applications, equipment etc) and environmental technologies. Media: including various types of communication media (webpages, tv channels, radio, newspapers etc) as well as social media. Various: experts on regulatory issues related to environmental impact of agricultural production, fertilization, ground water and air pollution, relevant European Technology Platforms, Joint Technology Initiatives and Networks of Excellence etc. The varying profiles of the RECAP project stakeholders will allow the multiplication of NoI’s impact beyond its initial target groups. In this respect, the project has been designed in the way that its results may be further developed in other projects or adapted to other contexts (i.e. environmental monitoring), providing opportunities for influencing policies in a wide range of issues. 3.4 Data entry In order to list the members of the RECAP NoI, standard spreadsheet software was used. The following column variables were created to assist effective data entry: 1) Type of Stakeholder variable describing the type of organization, 2) Organisation, that includes the name of the organization, 3) Email of each individual, 4) Country, including the country that the organisation is based in and is active, 5) Group Type, variable describing if the individual belongs to the Core Group or the General Group. If necessary, the dataset will be enriched with more variables in the upcoming NoI deliverables that will enable a more in depth analysis. Examples of such variables are the level of engagement of each individual with RECAP. 3.5 Targets and metrics The establishment and maintenance of the NoI is a dissemination activity of the RECAP project. Therefore it has to be monitored for its progress and effectiveness towards the targets set in the RECAP Dissemination Plan. The dissemination impact indicator for the RECAP NoI is 1,000 registered individual stakeholders by the end of the project. 9/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 4. ANALYSIS This chapter is dedicated to the analysis of the list of individuals and groups that constitute the RECAP NoI. As of the date that the current deliverable was being written (April 2017) the NoI list contained 6.773 individual entries. 4.1 Group type From the total entries of the NoI, 3.246 belong to the Core-user Group and the rest 3.527 belong to the General Group. Group Type Number of Entries Core 3.246 General 3.527 Total 6.773 Figure 1: SHARE OF NOI ENTRIES PER GROUP CATEGORY AS OF END OF APRIL 2017 10/19 WP.5 D5.4 4.2 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Country The variable “Country” includes the country that the organisation is based and is active. The number of entries describes the number of individuals or groups or entities registered in the RECAP NoI. COUNTRY NUMBER OF ENTRIES % AUSTRIA 23 0.34% BELGIUM 177 2.61% BULGARIA 19 0.28% CROATIA 35 0.52% CYPRUS 163 2.41% CZECH REPUBLIC 98 1.45% DENMARK 156 2.30% ESTONIA 407 6.01% FINLAND 46 0.68% FRANCE 193 2.85% GERMANY 91 1.34% GREECE 3552 52.44% HUNGARY 29 0.43% IRELAND 30 0.44% ICELAND 1 0.01% ISRAEL 1 0.01% ITALY 151 2.23% LATVIA 260 3.84% LITHUANIA 455 6.72% LUXEMBURG 12 0.18% MOLDOVA 2 0.03% MALTA 22 0.32% NORWAY 1 0.01% POLAND 37 0.55% PORTUGAL 22 0.32% ROMANIA 76 1.12% RUSSIA 1 0.01% SERBIA 8 0.12% SLOVAK REPUBLIC 50 0.74% SLOVENIA 40 0.59% SPAIN 222 3.28% SWEDEN 83 1.23% SWITZERLAND 16 0.24% THE NETHERLANDS 64 0.94% TURKEY 2 0.03% UK 225 3.32% USA 3 0.04% TOTAL 6,773 100.00% 11/19 WP.5 D5.4 4.3 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Type of stakeholder The variable “Type of stakeholder” describes the type of organisation to which the registered individuals belong. TYPE OF STAKEHOLDER NUMBER OF ENTRIES % PAYING AGENCIES 2,184 32.25% GENERAL GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 993 14.66% AGRONOMISTS & CONSULTANTS 77 1.14% ACADEMIA & RESEARCH 888 13.11% PRODUCERS & ASSOCIATIONS 985 14.54% OFFICIAL BODIES 480 7.09% EU & EC AGENCIES 143 2.11% COMPANIES 121 1.79% MEDIA 611 9.02% VARIOUS 291 4.30% Total 6,773 100.00% SHARE OF PARTICIPATION PER TYPE OF STAKEHOLDER IN THE NoI 12/19 WP.5 D5.4 4.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Social media and website network analysis The data regarding stakeholder engagement from the RECAP website were provided by Google Analytics. Relevant data from social media was provided by the built-in analytics of the corresponding platforms. Website Sessions 5,141 Users 2,977 PageViews 12,501 Pages/Session 2.43 Avg. Session Duration 0:02:43 Bounce Rate 62.71% % New Sessions 57.73% Facebook Total Page Likes 203 Actions on Page 16 Page Views 523 Page Likes 100 Reach 6,379 Post Engagements 5,242 Twitter Followers 100 ReTweets 678 Post Likes 1,812 Engagement rate 12.75% Link clicks 230 LinkedIn Followers 64 Post Likes 675 Yammer Followers 19 Post Likes 212 SlideShare Total views 625 On SlideShare 625 Shares 11 Downloads 6 Likes 1 Followers 3 YouTube views 165 13/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report Likes 7 Total View Duration 4:39:00 Average View Duration 0:01:41 14/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 5. DISCUSSION This chapter presents a brief discussion on the results of the first list of the Network of Interest as statistically analysed in the previous chapter. It needs to be noted that with the contribution of all members of the communication team responsible for the compilation of the first list of members of the network, it was made possible to achieve such large numbers of members. Following the frontloaded work management plan, the team has put their best effort to identify, locate and engage most of the individual entries of the list. The development of the NoI is an ongoing procedure and despite the number of members already achieved, will last throughout the duration of the project. Additional members will be added to the RECAP NoI, whilst the RECAP project recognition and dissemination activities will expand the network of contacts which will be in the NoI. Regarding the variable “Group type”, the 3,246 entries of the Core Group represented 47.93% of the NoI whereas the General Group with 3,527 entries represented the 52.07% of the network. An even distribution of the two groups has successfully been established. Regarding the variable “Country”, a heterogeneous distribution of entries from 37 different countries is observed. The existence of 3,552 entries (52.44%) from Greece is attributed to the fact that four of the project partners have their headquarters there (ETAM, DRAXIS, NOA & OPEKEPE), whilst OPEKEPE being itself a paying agency has contributed in a great number of entries in the core group. Finally, regarding the variable “Type of Stakeholder”, 2,184 (32.25%) entries were personnel of Paying Agencies, while the contacts originated from General Government & Public Administration, Academia & Research and Producers and Associations had approximately the same representation in the NoI with 14.66 %, 13.11 % and 14.54% respectively. The dominance of Paying Agencies entries was both expected and targeted given that it is the main core target group of RECAP. Also, these results denote that for the next period, more attempts should be made not solely on collecting new entries, but on an effort to diversify them from different countries around EU and on the active engagement of members of the already established NoI. 15/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 6. ACTIVITIES PERFORMED SO FAR AND PROGRESS TOWARDS THE EXPECTED RESULTS The first and second RECAP newsletter have been prepared and sent to the initial contact list of paying agencies via a professional mass emailing solution (Mailchimp) in November 2016 (M07) & March 2017 (M10). The topics addressed were: The concept of the project. A presentation of the consortium. The technology used in RECAP. A brief description of the project progress. Updates and news on issues relative and important for the implementation of RECAP. Any member of the NoI is able to unsubscribe from the RECAP mailing list. However, only 4 of them asked to be excluded from the list. This is an evidence of the interest of most of the members of the NoI to the RECAP project. Moreover, 87 hard bounces occurred meaning that either the recipient email addresses do not exist or the recipient email servers have completely blocked delivery. These email addresses were fixed or deleted from the NoI member list. The dissemination impact indicator for the RECAP NoI, as mentioned previously, is 1,000 registered individual stakeholders by the end of the project (Month 30). Until now (Month 12) there are 6,773 registered individual stakeholders. Nonetheless this number that is almost 7 times higher than the set target, refers to the pool of possible stakeholders. The logic behind collecting such a high number of possible stakeholders is to create the opportunity to later on choose between them through a partner screening activity and limit them to those that have both the interest and potential to utilize the RECAP solution and be the future customer’s base of RECAP. 16/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 7. FUTURE PLANS AND ENGAGEMENT WITH THE NoI Future plans of engagement within the RECAP NoI include constant communication with the existing and future members of the network, maintaining their interest by constant feeding of channels of communications with news and achievements and sustain and enhance interaction with the network. Interaction with the members of the network has so far taken place through social media and relative comments or group discussion, the first webinar that was only recently organized, while their engagement was realized through individual or mass email exchanges. New tools and actions to maintain participation and encourage active participation and expansion of the network will be employed in the period to come. Such actions and methods include: A semi-annual Newsletter that will continue to be sent to all paying agencies of the network keeping them informed on news and progress of RECAP project. Press releases mainly following project meetings or major developments – progress, will be sent to members of the NoI. Increase the use and feeding of the RECAP social media accounts by inviting the members of the network to “Like” and “Follow” the accounts, or participate in group discussions, as well as by constantly feeding the accounts with news and publications useful for the network and thus maintain its members. A series of Technical Discussions – webinars, following the first one carried out on April 20th, will take place through the project website, encompassing actors from different stakeholder organizations. This process will give the opportunity to the members of the network to get familiar with the platform functionalities and provide their suggestions for improvements and thus increase the platform’s chances for market uptake. Additionally actions expected to reinforce the network’s development and multiply expected results, include: a) increase the participation rate of the user – core group in the network in order to attract new core group entries and b) diversify entries from different countries around EU, as well as increase entries from certain target network categories. 17/19 WP.5 D5.4 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report 8. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, to this date Month 12, the NoI has already been successfully established, largely overcoming the target set at the beginning of the project. The chapters dedicated to the analysis and discussions of results form a clear picture of the progress achieved so far and made possible suggestions for the future engagement and development of NoI. Two newsletters have already been published and forwarded via Mailchimp, the first webinar has been successfully organized and social media are being kept constantly fed with news releases. Given the progress on the total members of the network, the RECAP NoI will give focus to enhance interaction with the user group members, while actions for an overall increase of the diversification of members will take place attempting to succeed maximum results. 18/19 WP.5 D5.4 ANNEX A - Webinar Invitation 19/19 Dissemination & Exploitation Network of interest meeting report