Looking Ahead: How to Make Horizon Europe Part of Your Annual Strategy

The 2027 Cluster 2 calls will be the last under the current framework, FP10 is approaching, and AgoràEU is beginning to reshape Europe’s funding landscape. But above all: how can an organisation that isn’t yet active in Horizon Europe make it part of its annual planning? A practical roadmap for Impacto network members.

How do you integrate Horizon Europe into your organisation’s annual strategic planning if, today, it is not yet part of your regular activities or only appears occasionally when an interesting call is published?

Because this is the question we hear most often from members of our network:

“We’re interested in Horizon Europe, but we don’t know where to start.”

Our answer is never:

“Start writing a proposal.”

Instead, we suggest something different:

Build a year of work that naturally leads to a competitive proposal, instead of trying to catch up three months before the deadline.

First: Three Strategic Reasons Why This Matters

Before discussing planning, it is worth understanding why Horizon Europe deserves a long-term organisational investment.

1. Cluster 2 Is Changing, but Horizon Europe Is Here to Stay

The HORIZON-CL2-2027-01 and HORIZON-CL2-2027-02 (two-stage) calls will be the last ones published under the current programming framework.

From 2028 onwards, FP10 will become part of the new Multiannual Financial Framework (2028–2034).

The programme will evolve, but European collaborative research is not disappearing.

Organisations entering Horizon Europe today are not investing in a short-lived opportunity.

They are building networks and capabilities that will remain valuable well beyond the transition.

2. Programme Synergies Are Becoming the New European Language

The 2026–2027 Work Programme dedicates extensive attention to the connections between Cluster 2 and programmes such as Creative Europe, CERV, Erasmus+, ESF+, ERDF, Interreg and AMIF.

This is not simply background information.

It reflects the Commission’s long-term direction.

Increasingly, successful projects will be those capable of creating synergies across multiple funding programmes.

Organisations relying exclusively on one programme, whether Erasmus+, CERV or another, face increasing strategic risk.

Those able to diversify their funding portfolio will become more resilient.

3. SSH and Civil Society Organisations Are Expected Not Merely Accepted

This has been one of the central messages throughout this issue.

Contrary to common misconceptions, Cluster 2 explicitly seeks NGOs, SMEs, social partners and practitioners as structural consortium members.

For organisations in our network, this does not mean entering an exclusively academic world.

It means bringing your existing expertise into a programme that actively values it.

Building a One-Year Horizon Europe Roadmap

Turning strategy into action means one thing:

Allocate dedicated time to Horizon Europe throughout the year—not only once a call is published.

Below is an indicative roadmap based on the expected opening of HORIZON-CL2-2027-01 in May 2027 and its September 2027 deadline.

- Months 1–3 (June–August 2026)

Positioning and Relationship Mapping

Three practical activities should become part of your organisation’s business development plan.

• Choose one or two topics that genuinely align with your mission.

Avoid spreading your efforts across too many opportunities.

Our previous article provides a useful starting point, but you should carefully read the Expected Outcomes and Scope of each topic yourself.

That is where you discover whether a call truly fits your organisation.

• Map previously funded projects.

CORDIS is free, public and invaluable.

Who coordinated similar projects?

Who were the partners?

What outputs have already been produced?

This becomes your networking map for the months ahead.

• Identify organisations within your existing network that already participate in Horizon Europe.

This is perhaps the most underestimated—and most strategic—step.

Look at your Erasmus+, CERV and Creative Europe partnerships.

Think about universities, suppliers, former colleagues or sector associations.

Who is already involved in Horizon Europe?

Those organisations are your most natural bridge into the programme.

They already understand its language, its consortium dynamics and its European networks.

One conversation with an experienced Horizon partner is often worth more than ten hours spent reading the Work Programme.

- Months 4–6 (September–November 2026)

Activating Strategic Relationships

By this stage, the 2026 calls will have closed.

Coordinators will once again have time to engage in discussions about future opportunities.

Reach out to the contacts identified during the previous phase.

Avoid generic emails.

Explain:

• which 2027 topic interests you;

• what value your organisation can bring;

• and make a concrete request, a short meeting, a call or an introduction.

Where you do not already know potential coordinators, contact those identified through your CORDIS mapping.

Again, specificity matters.

Attend at least one European event related to your chosen topic.

Brokerage events organised by National Contact Points, scientific conferences and European Commission Info Days remain some of the best environments for meeting future consortium partners.

Finally, prepare a concise one-page organisational concept note.

Describe who you are, what you have achieved and what your organisation could contribute to a Horizon Europe consortium.

Sooner or later, coordinators will ask for it.

- Months 7–9 (December 2026–February 2027)

Building the Consortium

At this stage, one of two situations will likely apply.

Either you are already discussing participation with a coordinator or you are considering coordinating a proposal yourself.

If you are joining as a partner, contribute actively to proposal development.

Don’t wait for someone to send you “your section.”

Propose ideas.

Suggest methodologies.

Take ownership of your future work package.

That is the difference between being a contributor and being a co-designer.

If you intend to coordinate, recognise that this is a strategic organisational commitment.

Coordinating Horizon Europe requires financial, administrative and scientific leadership capacity.

If this would be your first coordination experience, seriously consider co-leading with an experienced academic partner.

By February 2027, preliminary roles and budget allocations should already be agreed.

Major structural changes shortly before submission rarely end well.

Months 10–12 (March–May 2027)

Proposal Development

Although the call officially opens on 13 May 2027, proposal writing begins well before that date.

Reserve dedicated internal capacity.

Whoever represents your organisation in the consortium should ideally devote 30–40% of their working time to Horizon Europe during the final three months before submission.

Without protected time, proposal quality inevitably suffers.

Focus your efforts where evaluation scores are won:

• Excellence

• Impact

• Implementation

Finally, schedule two complete internal review rounds before submission:

• one technical review (work plan, budget, consistency and responsibilities);

• one editorial review (clarity, readability and narrative flow).

Evaluators read dozens of proposals.

Clarity is not a luxury.

It is a competitive advantage.

- Month 13 and Beyond

Submission and Afterwards

Following submission (expected 23 September 2027), the evaluation process typically lasts four to five months before grant agreement negotiations begin.

If your proposal is funded, excellent.

If it is not, do not consider the work wasted.

A well-developed Horizon proposal remains an organisational asset.

It can be refined for FP10.

It can inspire proposals under other European programmes.

It can become the foundation of long-term strategic partnerships.

A Final Checklist

Over the next twelve months, keep four priorities in mind.

• Diversify your European funding portfolio rather than relying on a single programme.

• Build stable SSH capacity through strong academic partnerships or internally where possible.

• Follow the European Commission’s transition documents on the 2028–2034 MFF and FP10 as they are published. Organisations that understand these developments early gain a significant competitive advantage.

• Treat Horizon Europe as a medium-term investment rather than a one-off opportunity. The real return often comes in the second or third application cycle not the first.