Frequently Asked Questions about the Partners Service
- About the Partners Service
- Creating a Partner Profile
- Updating a Partner Profile
- Searching for a Partner
About the Partners Service
1. How many organizations have their details on the Partners Service?
At any one time you can access between 5,000 and 10,000 organizations actively looking for partners. The service is dynamic and the numbers increase or decrease depending on the collaboration needs of the organizations entering their partner profiles.
2. Does the Partners Service really "work"?
CORDIS has been helping organizations to make contact for almost 10 years. Over the years tens of thousands of organizations have entered their collaboration needs on to and searched the Partners Service. Recent communications advancements have made it even easier for a broad spectrum of organizations to take advantage of the service. The service provides an easy, comprehensive "first contact point" to help bring complementary organizations together. Click here to view a successful example.
3. I am not interested in participating in a research project but l need to find business partners in other countries.
In the Partners Service you can find the profile of various types of organizations from across Europe and around the world for private collaboration. From http://cordis.europa.eu/partners-service/ click on "Search for partners" and choose your search criteria from the "Private collaboration" section of the search form. More refined searches are possible through the Advanced and Professional search interfaces.
4. I do not have a specific project idea, but I would like to participate in a project consortium
When creating your profile in the Partners service, make sure that you have selected the profile of TYPE A and specified that you offer your company expertise by clicking on the appropriate radio button.
Creating a Partner Profile
1. Two hours ago I submitted an entry in the Partners database. However, I can not find my record when I search in the service.
The fact that you have submitted an entry does not mean that your data will appear automatically live on the service. CORDIS needs first to process them, check their authenticity and quality, and they will appear in the database within a short period of time.
You will receive an automatic email notification once your profile is available online.
2. How long will my organization's profile stay online?
In order to keep our records up to date on the service, the expiry date of Partners records is set to 12 months maximum. However, users can define a shorter period. Close to the expiry date, users are notified and invited to update their record in case they wish to keep it in the database.
3. Do I have to register with CORDIS before I create a new profile?
Yes, before you create a new profile you will need to register on the service. You will be prompted to do this if you choose to create a profile.
4. I don't have a specific project idea, but I would still like to participate in a project consortium, can CORDIS help?
Yes, you can specify on your partners profile if you have a project idea or are looking for others to collaborate with you. You can also offer your expertise in a certain area if you do not have a specific project in mind.
5. I am not going to participate in a research project right now, but I do need to find business partners in other countries, can CORDIS still help me?
Yes. The service includes profiles on all types of organizations from across Europe and around the world. Simply explain clearly the types of partners you are looking for when you create your profile.
6. Can I enter my profile in more than one service "segment"?
You may, but it is not necessary. If you have several collaboration needs, you can simply enter your details on the Global Partners Service listing all your requirements. This will enable organizations to find you no matter what segment they search.
7. What does the "Project reference number" mean in the Partners service?
The project reference field enables users to specify the projects they have already participated in. Currently, It is limited to projects that are contained in the CORDIS Projects database and the reference entered by the user is checked against this database. Thus, a link from the partners profile to the relevant Projects database record is automatically created. If a project reference number cannot be found in the Projects database and therefore can not be entered in the Partners service, users should contact their project coordinator who then need to ask the responsible Project Officer in the EC to take the necessary action so that the project is included in the EC internal database and from there to CORDIS. As long as a project is missing from the Projects Database, users can enter a relevant comment (i.e Participation in the XXX Project) in the field "Partners already acquired".
8. I get an error message when I try to submit my entry.
Make sure that you use the Western European character set (ISO-8859-15). The use of foreign non-standard character inside the entire record (including the working area) are not recognized by the system and may complicate or delay the publication process.
9. An error message is returned everytime I try to save or publish sections 2 and 3 of my profile
This is a timeout problem. This occurs when a user has been working longer than an hour on the profile and tries to save it. Some users just go back to their profiles after receiving the error and try to save it again, which obviously does not work. In this case, users need to insert the data again. To avoid re-entering their data, users should save their profile to the working area more frequently. Normally, users receive a warning before the complete timeout of the session, but if their browser blocks popups, they might not receive it.
Updating a Partner Profile
1. How can I update my Partners profile?
You can update any aspect of your profile at anytime. To do so, go to the page http://cordis.europa.eu/partners-service/, click on "Update existing profile" and login
2. I have submitted an entry in the Partners database and I want to modify it. Is this possible?
Yes. Records on the Partners service can be deleted or modified by the users. Simply choose Update Profile from the home page and follow the instructions accordingly.
3. What do I do if my collaboration needs change?
With the CORDIS Partners Update facility, you can easily revise your collaboration requirements - or any other aspect of your profile at anytime using your username and password to log in.
4. We need to update our record but the record owner has left our company
Contact the CORDIS Help Desk, providing the record control number (RCN), the full name, email address and username of the record owner, as well as the full name, email and username of his successor, who also needs to be a CORDIS registered user (registration is free of charge from http://cordis.europa.eu/guidance/helpdesk/registration_en.html). This will enable us to transfer the record from the old owner account to the new one.
Searching for a Partner
1. Will the service automatically "match" me with another organization?
No, through the service's search function, you can narrow down your search to include only organizations that meet your criteria. When you locate a description that corresponds to your needs, simply contact the organization using the contact details included in the profile.
Last updated on: 2008-04-14