Governance

The aim of the Platform’s management and co-ordination structure is to provide effective, flexible delivery of project results, and to ensure high- quality outcomes.

The Trans-Atlantic Platform’s management structure and decision-making procedure have been designed to facilitate the functionality of the Trans-Atlantic Platform and to guarantee sufficient clarity regarding the division of labour between partners. The structures and procedures have also been designed to ensure that the overall governance of the Platform and its activities is a collective responsibility. The structure provides a framework for good governance, a platform for decision-making by all partners, and arrangements for monitoring and reviewing progress.

The Trans-Atlantic Platform’s management structure is organised into three bodies—the Co-ordination Team, the Steering Committee. and the Management Team—each with different responsibilities. Projects will be supported by these three pillars, all stabilized by the solidarity of the existing, open network underlying them. Platform projects will be guided by the Steering Committee, and executed by the Management Team, with the Co-ordination Team providing the day-to-day project and quality management.

The Trans-Atlantic Platform’s activities reflect the priorities of all partner organisations. The Platform partners’ extensive experience in national programmes and also in international networks —such as ALCUE NET, NORFACE, net4society, and HERA —is of great value. The Trans-Atlantic Platform builds on the success of these networks, aiming to further develop a solid network of national funding agencies.

Learn more about the Platform’s partners >

The European Commission acts as observer for the Platform.

Co-ordination Team
The Co-ordination Team consists of representatives from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research—Social Sciences (NWO—Social Sciences), with special responsibility for Europe; and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), with special responsibility for the Americas. The Team is led by its chair, SSHRC President Dr.Ted Hewitt, and its co-chair, NWO—Social Sciences Dr. Renée van Kessel-Hagesteijn. Both partners have extensive knowledge of, and experience with, managing and coordinating bilateral and multilateral networks. NWO acts as the formal coordinator of the Trans-Atlantic Platform consortium and contract with the European Commission.

The Coordination Team is responsible for the overall scientific co-ordination and technical organisation of the Platform. During implementation of the activities, it is responsible for monitoring progress and the day to day management of the Platform. The Coordination Office is responsible for preparing all necessary tools for management of the Platform. It cooperates closely with the Steering Committee to ensure procedures for giving input and final reviewing of project results. The Coordination Team also stimulates the contact among partners and ensures that the project deliverables will be provided to the European Commission on time.

Steering Committee
The Steering Committee is the body that debates major development lines and the strategy of the Platform. It is the forum for consultation and networking of the Partners. The Steering Committee is the ultimate decision-making body on strategy, contractual and financial issues, analysis and management of potential risks, and other project-level issues in order to ensure efficiency and a high quality project outcome. The Committee provides guidance and advice to the Partners, acts as a sounding board for core management, and contributes to the visibility of the Platform. It promotes the activities and programmes and works to further the development of the Platform. This includes, for example, promoting the Platform in the context of other networks and organisations.

Each partner has a representative on the Steering Committee. The partners are represented by the following persons in the Steering Committee:

Management Team
The Management Team is the forum for joint consideration for the implementation, management and monitoring of the Platform work plan. The responsibilities and tasks of the Management Team include planning, organising and guiding the execution of Platform activities; reporting to the Steering Committee on the state of play; and disseminating and informing Platform activities.

The Management Team consists of a staff member from each partner and functions as a forum to meet and discuss Platform activities. The partners are represented by the following members of the Management Team:

Funding
Launched in October 2013, the Trans-Atlantic Platform is the result of a successful bid for funding to the European Commission 7th Framework Programme.

In order to encourage effective, structured and coherent international scientific cooperation in the social sciences and humanities, closer cooperation among the national programmes of member states, associated countries and international partner countries is essential to fulfill European Research Area commitments. Supporting the networking of research activities and communicating with partners on findings and research priorities is crucial in this context. The European Commission has therefore created a funding opportunity—confirmed after a summer 2013 competition—in the 7th Framework Programme. This opportunity will complement the existing bilateral and other multilateral activities carried out by EU Member States and Associated Countries with Canada, the USA, Mexico and Brazil.