Call for external experts who would be interested in assisting ESFA in implementing the ESF+ Social Innovation+ initiative

The European Social Fund Agency of Lithuania (hereinafter – ESFA) is issuing an open call for external experts who would be interested in assisting ESFA in implementing the ESF+ Social Innovation+ initiative (hereinafter – ESF+ SI+ initiative) on behalf of the European Commission. The initiative is financed by the European Social Fund+ (hereinafter – ESF+) and it is scheduled to be implemented between 2022 and 2030.

In particular, experts will assist in evaluation of project proposals; monitoring of grant agreements; capacity building, mutual learning, networking and support for of ESF+ bodies, social innovation support structures, relevant stakeholders; networking and support for communities of practice related to employment, education and skills, social inclusion, social innovation, migration and material deprivation; analysis, monitoring, evaluation, policy development of social innovation activities, ecosystems and supporting policies at national and at EU level; assessment and further development of tools and models for developing social innovation, in particular for scaling-up social innovation; validation and support to scaling-up of social innovation initiatives; moderating meetings, etc. To this end, experts will be required for ad-hoc, or longer-term thematic assignments, to be conducted at their place of residence, in Vilnius in collaboration with ESFA’s team, or at events in EU Member States.

ABOUT THE ESF SOCIAL INNOVATION+ INITIATIVE AND THE EUROPEAN COMPETENCE CENTER FOR SOCIAL INNOVATION (THE CENTRE)

At the end of 2021, the ESFA received significant recognition in being chosen by the European Commission to become an entrusted entity for the ESF+ SI + initiative.

The ESF+ SI+ initiative is aimed at supporting the transfer and scaling up of innovative solutions through transnational cooperation and the dissemination of good practices, in particular for the policy areas set out in article 4 of the ESF+ Regulation, i.e. employment, education and skills, social inclusion, smart and green transitions across Europe.

ESFA has been entrusted with the implementation of this initiative in two ways: by organizing calls at the EU level in the field of international cooperation and the implementation of social innovation, and by establishing and coordinating the activities of the European Competence Centre for Social Innovation. The Centre will organize activities, which brings together the National Competence Centers for Social Innovation, ESF+ managing authorities and other stakeholders in the EU Member States in 27 EU countries.

REQUIREMENTS FOR EXTERNAL EXPERTS

We are looking for experts with a high level of expertise in the fields of ESF+ SI+ initiative. These may include:

1. EU policies:

• ESF+ Regulation and related rules, including Common Provisions regulation;
• European Pillar of Social Rights and its implementation;
• Smart specialization;
• Rural development;
• Community-led local development (LEADER, EQUAL);
• Urban development (Urban agenda, Urban Innovative Actions);
• The European Green Deal and its implementation.

2. Employment:

• Improving access to employment and activation measures for all jobseekers especially the most vulnerable (disadvantaged groups, long-term unemployed, inactive people, people with a migrant background);
• Youth employment, education and activation (incl. Youth Guarantee) and integration into employment of disadvantaged NEETs, including through youth mobility actions;
• Self-employment;
• Social economy;
• Promotion of decent work, and quality of work;
• New forms of work, including platform work;
• Employment, social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis;
• Employment, social and economic consequences of the war in Ukraine;
• Skills, assistance, support, transition and mobility through modernizing labour market institutions;
• A gender-balanced labour market participation, equal working conditions and work-life balance;
• Healthy ageing and adaptation of workers, enterprises and entrepreneurs to change;
• “Soft outcomes” and alternative ways to measure outcomes (outside of “hard” indicators such as employment rates, etc).

3. Education and Skills:

• Education and training relevant to labour market, including through validation of non-formal and informal learning;
• Inclusive education, training and learning mobility for all and accessibility for persons with disabilities;
• Lifelong learning, entrepreneurial and digital skills, career transitions and promoting professional mobility.

4. Social Inclusion:

• Active inclusion of disadvantaged groups: equal opportunities, non-discrimination, participation, employability;
• Child poverty, in particular in relation to the development and provision of early childhood education and care (incl. workforce), professional engagement and parental support to ensure integrated services to address child poverty;
• Deinstitutionalization and the transition to independent living and community-based services, notably for children, the elderly and people with disabilities;
• Homelessness, in particular Housing First approaches;
• Promoting the integration into the labour market and society at large, of third-country nationals, migrants and people with a migrant background living in the EU;
• Promoting the socio-economic integration of marginalized communities, such as Roma people;
• Enhancing equal and timely access to quality, sustainable and affordable services including but not limited to person-centred care, access to housing, modernizing social protection systems and accessibility, particularly for disadvantaged groups;
• Promoting social integration of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (formerly addressed by the Fund for European Aid to the most Deprived – FEAD);
• Addressing material deprivation through food and/or basic material assistance and providing accompanying measures supporting their social inclusion (former FEAD)

5. Fair, green, and digital transitions:

• Jobs creation and decent work in sectors and fields related to sustainability (environment, climate, energy, the circular economy and the bioeconomy);
• Jobs creation and decent work through digitalization and the use of digital tools and applications, including artificial intelligence, and the protection of privacy;
• Adaptation of skills and qualifications of citizens to meet the needs of the green and digital transitions, of changing labour markets and the transformation of industrial ecosystems;
• Improvement of education and training systems necessary for the adaptation of skills and qualifications.

6. Social Innovation:

• Development tools, strategies and practices for social innovation initiatives and activities;
• Tools and methodologies supporting the upscaling and transfer of social innovation initiatives and activities;
• Social innovation experimentation and upscaling;
• Social impact measurement/assessment, and reporting;
• Partnership and collaboration (in particular innovative social economy operators);
• Support in mapping and assessing social innovation ecosystems and support policies;
• Support structures such us National Competence centers of Social innovation in exchange knowledge and experience;
• Community-led local development;
• Support in developing and financing social innovations.

The main working language will be English. All experts are required to have at least C1 level skills in English based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Language skills.

REGISTRATION

Please, read the Personal Data and Privacy Statement. If you do not agree with the Personal Data and Privacy Statement or its conditions, we will not be able to accept your application form and will not be able to evaluate your candidacy.

Registrations must be submitted via EXPERT REGISTRATION FORM

Please note that registration in the Expert Database does nothing more than declare your interest in working for us. We do not check your eligibility or any other conditions at that moment and registration does not entail any entitlement to receive assignments. If you are contacted for a task assignment, you will need to sign an Expert Contract. This will depend on our business needs and the fulfilment of certain formal requirements.

TIMETABLE AND SELECTION

This call for expression of interest is permanently open for the entire duration of the ESF SI+ initiative period 2021-2030.

Selection of experts will be made (as and when needed) from the Database, on the basis of selection criteria such as professional expertise and experience, language skills, geographical and business-sector balance, gender balance, regular rotation, and absence of conflict of interest. The procedure will be objective and follow the principles of non-discrimination and equal treatment. We reserve the right not to comment regarding the reasons of non-selection to serve for external quality assurance procedures run by the ESFA.

Data protection Personal data of experts will be processed under the responsibility of the data controller of ESFA due to the GDPR enforcement.