Partnership
The VESTA project is carried out by a consortium of six institutions from four EU countries that combine a wide range of competences: an economics university, training centres, sectoral organisations and innovation hubs. The consortium consists of: the Poznań University of Economics and Business (UEP) – the project coordinator from Poland; Conform S.c.a.r.l. (Italy); Kauno prekybos, pramonės ir amatų rūmai (the Kaunas Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts, Lithuania); the “Partners for Local Government” Foundation (Poland); Lovila Limited (Cyprus); and Consorzio Meditech – Mediterranean Competence Centre 4 Innovation (Italy). Each partner plays a defined role in the project, brings unique experience and is responsible for carrying out specific tasks:
🇵🇱 Poznań University of Economics and Business (Poland)
Poznań University of Economics and Business (Poland) serves as consortium leader and managing coordinator of the project. This university, one of the oldest economics schools in Poland, contributes scientific know-how and EU-project experience. UEP/BUEP is responsible for day-to-day project management, monitoring task and financial implementation and ensuring high-quality results. As leader, it makes sure that all activities proceed according to plan and that partners know their obligations. The university also coordinates substantive work on creating the AI model and application (together with the technology partners) and on ensuring methodological consistency of the results. In addition, PUEB plays a key role in quality assurance (see below) and in communication with the Erasmus+ National Agency.
🇮🇹 Conform S.c.a.r.l. (Italy)
Conform S.c.a.r.l. is an experienced training-consultancy company from Avellino that specialises in innovative teaching methods and the integration of new technologies in education. In the VESTA project, Conform acts as content leader for the creation of educational and digital tools. Thanks to its rich experience in developing transnational competence-development and e-learning initiatives, Conform leads the work on creating the VESTA application and the accompanying training materials. The company provides technological know-how – its experts design the application architecture and AI model and also prepare the storyboards and substantive content of the micro-lessons and tutorials (in close cooperation with the other partners). Conform is also responsible for designing the project’s promotional and communication package (communication kit) thanks to its experience in digital media. Conform’s contribution is crucial to giving the VESTA solutions a practical, user-friendly character that will work in different SME regions and sectors.
🇱🇹 Kauno prekybos, pramonės ir amatų rūmai (Lithuania))
Kauno prekybos, pramonės ir amatų rūmai is the Lithuanian Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts in Kaunas (CCIC) brings to the project the perspective of a business organisation that cooperates closely with entrepreneurs. As dissemination coordinator (WP 5) the chamber is responsible for promoting VESTA results in business and educational circles. Thanks to its extensive network of contacts among companies, training institutions and local authorities in Lithuania, CCIC ensures broad outreach of the project to end users. The chamber will organise information events, workshops and promotional campaigns and will also prepare a plan for strengthening the effects and sustainability of the project after its completion (Enhancement and Sustainability Plan). Moreover, as a representative of SME interests, this partner will ensure that the project results are adapted to business realities and can be easily adopted by entrepreneurs. CCIC will also play an important role in formalising the cooperation network – thanks to its involvement, additional organisations will join the network and the project solutions may, for example, be incorporated into the chamber’s training-service offer.
🇵🇱 “Partners for Local Government” Foundation (Poland)
“Partners for Local Government” Foundation is an NGO from Wielkopolska that specialises in supporting municipalities and local entrepreneurs in implementing modern solutions. In the VESTA project the Foundation serves as leader of testing and validation (WP 4). Its task is to plan and coordinate the pilot implementation of the VESTA application and tools under real conditions. Acting as an “SME aggregator”, the Foundation will organise and conduct a series of tests with companies – including validation workshops and pilot trainings for sales-department employees – each time collecting feedback from participants. On the basis of this experience the Foundation will prepare test reports and improvement recommendations so that the final product is maximally useful for the target users. As an institution operating at the interface between the public sector and business, the Foundation will also facilitate the project’s reach to local authorities and communities, which may help increase the impact of the results (e.g. by having the developed solutions taken into account in local competence-development policies).
🇨🇾 Lovila Limited (Cyprus)
Lovila Limited is a consultancy-training firm from Nicosia focused on lifelong learning, innovation and digital transformation. Despite its relatively young age (est. 2019), the Lovila team has rich experience in EU projects and in supporting companies in developing employee skills. In the VESTA project Lovila acts as leader for the development of educational tools (WP 3) – it coordinates work on preparing all the training content and teaching materials. Lovila’s experts will ensure that the micro-learning units, video tutorials and training scenarios being created are attractive, interactive and tailored to user needs. The company will draw on its experience in promoting green and digital competencies – it will make sure that the content reflects the latest trends (e.g. digital, ecological and entrepreneurial competences in line with the European frameworks DigComp, GreenComp, EntreComp). Lovila will also play an important role in dissemination – it is the one that will organise the project’s final conference in Cyprus, summarising the achieved results, with the participation of all partners and at least 50 participants. The company will also contribute to activities that increase the sustainability of the results, e.g. through its contacts with training institutions in Cyprus and by involving them in the VESTA network.
🇮🇹 Consorzio Meditech (Italy)
Consorzio Meditech is the Mediterranean Competence Centre 4.0 based in Naples, operating as a consortium of universities and enterprises supporting the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies (including artificial intelligence) in companies. Meditech is a research-innovation profile partner, playing a key role as AI expert in the VESTA project. The consortium, which includes, among others, five universities and many industrial partners, has extensive experience in carrying out R&D projects and implementing technological prototypes. In VESTA Meditech assists PUEB and CONFORM in the work on developing the AI model and application (WP 2) – it organises model-validation workshops. In addition, Meditech is co-host of a key training event: a five-day international training mobility for trainers and sales specialists focused on the application of AI in sales management. Thanks to strong links with industry, Meditech will also bring a perspective for applying the project results on a wider scale – it will initiate activities aimed at creating a multi-actor network (through signing an MoU) and encourage further organisations to join, which will consolidate VESTA’s effects in the long term.