Enhancing Impact through Collaboration with Sister Projects
Collaboration among sister projects funded under the HORIZON-WIDERA Talent Ecosystems call is a key strategic action of the CROSS project. Through structured cooperation, these projects seek to maximize impact, ensure coherence across initiatives, and reinforce the European dimension in the development of robust and sustainable talent ecosystems.
Talent ecosystems are inherently complex and highly interconnected. Coordinated action across projects addressing complementary dimensions enables the exchange of knowledge and good practices, supports methodological alignment, and fosters synergies that enhance the overall quality and relevance of project outcomes.
Collaboration is implemented through regular coordination meetings, which provide a structured forum for sharing progress updates, aligning strategic approaches, and identifying opportunities for joint action. As a result, a shared collaboration roadmap has been developed to define concrete and feasible areas of cooperation among sister projects, mapping synergies across project topics, activities, and deliverables. In particular, collaboration focuses on key thematic areas of common interest, including the development of platforms and virtual hubs, career services for researchers, including mentoring schemes, the implementation and advancement of HRS4R principles, training and skills development for researchers, the strengthening of intersectoral collaboration between academia and industry and the joint development of policy briefs. This roadmap serves as a guiding framework for identifying and implementing collaborative actions and will be continuously refined as cooperation progresses.
In parallel, joint dissemination efforts, such as coordinated communication activities and cross-project events, contribute to increased visibility and enhanced policy relevance. This collaborative approach generates significant added value. Joint actions ensure that project results reach a broader range of audiences, including policymakers and key stakeholders, thereby increasing visibility, uptake, and potential impact.
Coordinated outputs also contribute to strengthening the evidence base to form European research and innovation policies. Furthermore, these partnerships create opportunities for joint contributions to upcoming initiatives within the European Research Area, supporting the sustainability and long-term exploitation of project results.
Through strategic collaboration, the projects enhance the reach, relevance, and long-term impact of their outcomes, creating synergies that transcend individual project lifecycles and contribute sustained value to European research and innovation ecosystems.