Microsoft Unlimited Potential: e-Skills for Employability Initiative 2010
Request for Proposals (RFP) Europe

30th June 2010

Step 1

/ Verify eligibility of your organization for RFP. All applicants need to complete the eligibility survey.

Step 2

/

Review RFP overview and evaluate project alignment with overall goals and criteria.

Step 3

/

Writeproposalresponding to RFP requirementsand submit to Microsoft contact in your country.

Step 4

/

Finalists will be notified and required to fill-out a brief online application to complement proposal for final review and processing.

Step 1:

Microsoft “eSkills for Employabilty” Request For Proposal(RFP) Eligibility Checklist

Yes / No / Comments
Is your organization a legally registered non-profit, non-governmental organization? / Please attach evidence of this status to your submission (eg, scanned registration document with tax or court authorization).
Does your organization’s mission and activities fall within Microsoft’s eligibility guidelines? See here or below for more information.
Has your organization been involved in training and employability projects for a significant period of time? (eg, more than two years)
Are there additional funding sources identified for your proposed project/program in addition to requesting Microsoft funds?
If your organization meets the required eligibility criteria – please proceed to step 2.
Eligible Organizations

All nonprofit or nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that hold charitable status in your country (equivalent to the 501(c)(3) status as determined by the United States Internal Revenue Service) are eligible to participate in this program. Eligible organizations operate on a not-for-profit basis and have a mission to benefit the local community that could include, but is not limited to, the following.

  • Providing relief to the poor
  • Advancing education
  • Improving social welfare
Ineligible Organizations

The following organizations are not eligible to participate in the program.

  • NGOs without the proper charitable status in their countries
  • Individuals
  • Private foundations
  • Government organizations [only as funding partner; not as grantee]
  • Educational institutions [only as funding partner; not as grantee]
  • Healthcare organizations
  • Amateur or professional sports organizations
  • Political, labor, or fraternal organizations [only as funding partner; not as grantee]
  • Religious organizations
  • Exception: Separate charitable entities with a secular community service or project may be eligible.

Step 2:

Microsoft Unlimited Potential: e-Skills for EmployabilityInitiative

2010 Request for Proposals - Overview

Background

Microsoft is committed to increasing global competitiveness of all Europeans by improving access to education and workforce readiness skills required for twenty-first century jobs.

According to the recently announced European Digital Agenda, “150 million Europeans – some 30% - have never used the internet. This group is largely made up of people aged 65 to 74 years old, people on low incomes, the unemployed and the less educated. In addition, Europe is suffering from a growing professional ICT skills shortage and could lack the competent practitioners to fill as many as 700,000 IT jobs by 2015. These failings are excluding many citizens from the digital society and economy and are holding back the positive impact that ICT can have on productivity growth.”

A 2009 study from independent analyst, IDC, ‘Post Crisis: eSkills are needed to drive Europe’s innovation society’ suggested that a widening skills gap will have serious implicationsand that within five years, 90 per cent of jobs will require eSkills, regardless of industry, sector or country.

To support this commitment and as part of our Unlimited Potential Program, Microsoft is supporting grants of technology, curriculum and software to support the work of charitably focused non-governmental organizations interested in strengthening workforce skills in all Latvian regions (in region of Riga maximum 20% of all trainings can be organized) who are unemployed or underemployed and in specific need of basic and intermediate level technology skills required to be successful in 21st century jobs.

Microsoft Unlimited Potential: eSkills for Employability Request for Proposal s

Microsoft is interested in supporting NGO community programs focused on innovative approaches to skills development to help those lacking digital skills to improve their prospects to succeed in today’s workforce.

Through a competitive process, Microsoft will award cash, software and other resources to eligible NGO organizations. Over the next two years, grant recipients will be funded to providetarget beneficiaries critical work skills while working in partnership with other resource organizations to help people into jobs. The services provided may include technology skills training, job placement, and career counseling.

This is a two year commitment from Microsoft.

  • Year 1: Through a competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process, this initiative aims to fund grantees with demonstrated expertise and innovative approaches to providing employment services with a focus on skills training, job placement and related support to connect beneficiaries to sustainable jobs and careers.
  • Year 2: A second round of the competitive RFP process will take place in 2011 to enable selected grantees from Year 1 to deepen their efforts based on early results, scale projects that have demonstrated effectiveness and/or consider new initiatives

Eligibility

All proposals must include at least one organization (in the case of a multi-stakeholder partnership) that is eligible to receive cash funding from Microsoft as defined by the criteria in Step 1 at beginning of this document.

Successful applications will include collaborative partnerships between two or more organizations in the nonprofit, workforce development sector. Contributing partners such as public agencies or educational institutions are welcome to participate, but will not be funded by Community Affairs grants. Priority will be given to entities with a track record that demonstrates effective performance in serving their target population group in job training and job placement and organizations or partnerships that provide the other critical support services these individuals may need to achieve success in their career transitions.

Support available through the Microsoft Initiative includes cash, software and Information Technology (IT) training curriculum.

  • Cash funding can be requested for support of programs, including training staff expenses. Funding cannot be used for operational expenses such as rent and utilities, scholarships, stipends or furniture. Hardware purchases will not be supported in excess of 15% of total grant and only if other programmatic funds cannot cover such costs.
  • Requests for funding must include a project budget with diverse sources of revenue for program activities in addition to Microsoft (not to exceed 60 percent of the total program budget). In an effort to maximize resources and foster sustainability, this initiative will only support those programs that have additional sources of revenue.

Request for proposal submission

RFP responses are due to Microsoft by no later than October 1st 2010 at 5 P.M.and should be submitted using the process outline below.

Organizations may request between $50,000-$150,000 cash, not to exceed 60 percent of the total program budget. Additionally, software and curriculum can be requested as part of this competitive RFP process. The grant request should be commensurate with the proposed program design.

This RFP presents an opportunity for existing organizations engaged in employability work to build on existing models or to test out new innovative directions. This is not an opportunity to develop a completely new program or found a new organization.

Viable applications for funding will present a comprehensive plan including the following components:

  • Programs/projects including one or more partners with organizations working across sectors (examples include: nonprofit organization and state employment agencies collaborating on specific target populations; nonprofit organizations working with industry trade organizations to meet specific demand with clear trajectory to jobs; etc)
  • An initial recruitment, training and enrollment strategy and an ongoing engagement plan to ensure targeted population is committed to the program;
  • Personal and skill assessments followed by career counseling to evaluate how to fill in gaps as well as achieve career aspirations;
  • Highlighting career pathways that include job placement and additional education/training as options;
  • Instruction on technology skills training, at a basic and intermediate level at a minimum;
  • Connections to employment and employers and demonstrated employersupport;
  • Clear evaluation metrics that gauge the success of the project and ensure program excellence and long-term impact;
  • A specific plan for consistency and quality control if working across a network of organizations and/or broad geography;
  • Demonstrated ability to leverage requested or existing program/project funds to maximize impact
  • Strong “value for money” with cost per participant not to exceed 400 euro and impact of minimum 250 people. Scale relative to country size and demographics will be considered in review.
  • Program/project scalability and sustainability

Timeline and Additional Instructions

Microsoft encourages eligible organizations to apply for funding through this initiative before the deadline of October 1stat 5 P.M., following the instructions below. Successful applicants will be notified of “finalist status” by October 11 and final decisions on grants will be made no later than December 31, 2010.

Step 1: Complete eligibility survey.

To verify organizational eligibility, all applicants need to complete the eligibility survey at beginning of this document.

Step 2: ReviewRequest For Proposalsoverview,

Organizations are required to review the RFP overview and evaluate alignment with the overall goals and criteriaset out prior to proceeding to the next step in the process.

Step 3: Write Proposal and submit to Microsoft in your country.

All applicants must complete and submit their proposalresponding to RFP requirements before October 1st2010 at 5 P.M.The written proposal is not confined to the format in Step 3 but should address each category and note requirements specified.

Step 4: Online Submission

Finalistswill be notified of status by October 11 and required to fill-out a brief online application to complement their proposal for final review and processing. Final awards will be decided by December 31, 2010.

Step 3:

Microsoft Unlimited Potential e-Skills for Employability Initiative

Request for Proposal

Written proposal is not confined to format below but should respond torequirements specified.

Please be prepared with the following information and materials which will be required for your application

  • Participating organization(s) name, address, website, Executive Director and main proposal contact (if other than Executive Director)
  • Tax exempt ID number or other substantiating documentation
  • Annual financial statements
  • Board members and affiliations of organization applying for funding, including tenure

Background

Organizational overview and programmatic capacity

Briefly describe the role of your organization and all partners in service delivery and program implementation:

  • A brief overview of each participating organizations mission, goals and programs
  • Summary of mission-specific activities, goals and mission
  • Description of the current programs that support target population to employment (e.g. wrap-around services and assistance leveraging other assistance and programs)

Funding Request and Specific Program Information

Description of program for which funds are being requested

  • Total cash amount requested from Microsoft, not to exceed 60 percent of total program budget
  • Total number of computers and/or servers currently in use or estimated for purchase within one year of this project in order to estimate potential software needs. Additional information and guidance will be provided in the full online application.
  • Microsoft Digital Literacy curriculum requests by quantity and language (See for the full list of available resources)
  • Program timeline
  • Overview of the local or regional occupational needs for specific training and skills development (employment and vacancy data by region, employer surveys, etc)

Please describe how your proposed program intends to align with the goals of Unlimited Potential: e-Skills for Employability Initiative.

An important goal of this initiative is to support the integration of technology and other 21st century skills training into all programs serving the digitally excluded and disadvantaged persons and demonstrating their long-term value in helping people be prepared for the 21st century workforce.

In this section, detail your initial recruitment, marketing, training and enrollment plan, client case management and follow up to ensure target beneficiaries are continuously supported to advance their careers including:

  • Conducting personal and skill assessments and offer career counseling to evaluate ways address gaps and help individuals to achieve career aspirations
  • Highlighting pathways to and options for job placement and additional schooling/training and where appropriate, the provision of coaching
  • Offering online and classroom instruction for specific 21st century technology skills at a basic and intermediate level as required by more than 50 percent of today’s jobs
  • Participating in IT skills training programs currently offered; gaps; role of partners; expected outcomes
  • Indicating facilities available for training including capacity, availability, etc.

Employer Connections

A key component of the Unlimited Potential e-Skills for EmployabilityInitiative is providing individuals with connections to long term employment.

  • What are your plans to focus your resources on training for the jobs that are in demand in your community/region?
  • How does your program or partnership proactively connect program participants with employment opportunitiesand employers?
  • How will your program or partnership work to help individuals obtain and retain long term jobs?
  • Where appropriate, please include demonstrations of employer support in the form of support letters or other means.

Metrics, Outcomes and Sustainability

Each grantee will be expected to provide demographic data on participants, including progress toward outcome goals, through quarterly reports. Please describe your approach to metrics and outcomes answering the following questions:

  • What overall goals do you propose for your grant?
  • What are the intended outcomes for participants (If there are both immediate and longer term outcomes, describe both)?
  • How many participants do you anticipate will be trained in the first year of this grant?
  • How many participants do you anticipate will be placed in employment in the first year of this grant?
  • How will you track, measure and report on program outcomes?
  • If you plan to work with community partners, or if you are providing training through multiple locations, how will you track outcome measures consistently across organizations and/or locations?

Sustainability

Briefly describe overall organization sustainability and how your organization plans to sustain the program after project funding expires in year two, three and beyond (if you did not receive funding from Microsoft, would this program continue and how?).

Budget

Please submit a copy of the following documents with your application:

  • Organizational budget
  • Project budget and allocation of requested funds (Microsoft funds not to exceed 60 percent) with other funding sources (identified)and amounts.
  • Audited annual financial statements

For questions about this RFP process and the Microsoft Unlimited Potential: e-Skills for Employability Initiative, please email us at .

Step 4:

Microsoft Unlimited Potential e-Skills for Employability Initiative:

Online Submission

Finalistswill be notified of status by October the 11 and required to fill-out a brief online application to complement their proposal for final review and processing by Microsoft. Final awards will be decided by December 31, 2010.