IPOS Communications Agency
Q&A
A. Contract and eligibility
1. What is the duration of the assignment?
The assignment covers 13 months. The reference to a “total 12-month price” in section 6.5 of the Rules of Consultation is a clerical error. Candidates should therefore provide:
the total price for the full 13-month assignment; and
the corresponding monthly price.
The EUR 48,320 budget ceiling applies to the full 13-month period.
2. Are providers established outside the European Union eligible to apply?
Yes. Providers legally established outside the European Union are eligible, provided that they:
can legally contract with and invoice Fondation CNRS;
comply with applicable legal, tax and sanctions requirements; and
meet the requirements set out in the consultation documents.
3. May the proposal include a multidisciplinary team?
Yes. Candidates may propose a multidisciplinary team under a single contracting entity. The proposal must identify:
one contracting entity;
one reference contact person; and
the roles of the main team members.
B. Financial proposal and VAT
4. Which entity will sign the contract and receive the invoices?
Fondation CNRS will be both:
the contracting entity; and
the entity to which invoices must be addressed.
The Ocean Sustainability Foundation and IPOS are hosted by Fondation CNRS but are not separate invoicing entities.
5. What is Fondation CNRS’s VAT status for this contract?
For this assignment, Fondation CNRS is acting as a non-taxable customer for VAT purposes. It:
does not recover VAT;
does not apply the reverse-charge mechanism; and
will not provide an intra-Community VAT number for use in connection with this transaction.
The relationship must therefore be treated under the VAT rules applicable to supplies to a non-taxable customer.
6. How is the EUR 48,320 ceiling assessed?
The ceiling of EUR 48,320 includes VAT and all applicable taxes and costs. It applies to the final total amount payable or borne by Fondation CNRS, including:
professional fees;
VAT or equivalent sales taxes;
any applicable withholding taxes or mandatory charges;
external costs; and
any other costs included in the proposal.
Candidates must clearly present:
the professional fee excluding taxes;
the applicable VAT or tax treatment;
the amount of any applicable taxes; and
the final total amount payable by Fondation CNRS.
The final total must not exceed EUR 48,320.
7. How should a provider established in an EU Member State treat VAT?
As Fondation CNRS is acting as a non-taxable customer, has no VAT identification number for this transaction and will not apply the reverse-charge mechanism, the service is treated under the general B2C VAT rules.
A provider established in an EU Member State should therefore normally invoice the service with the VAT applicable in its own Member State, at the relevant national rate.
This VAT must be included within the EUR 48,320 ceiling.
8. How should a provider established outside the European Union calculate and invoice VAT?
For the communication, graphic-design and editorial services covered by this consultation, supplied to Fondation CNRS and used in France, the service is subject to French VAT at the standard rate of 20%.
The provider should therefore present and invoice:
the professional fee excluding VAT;
French VAT calculated at 20%; and
the total amount including VAT.
Fondation CNRS will pay the VAT-inclusive invoice. It will not apply the reverse-charge mechanism and will not recover the VAT.
The non-EU provider is responsible for declaring and paying the French VAT. It may normally do so through the non-Union OSS scheme, or through the applicable French VAT registration procedure.
The total amount, including French VAT and any other applicable taxes or costs, must not exceed EUR 48,320.
C. Production capacity and working arrangements
9. How does IPOS distinguish between simple, intermediate and complex deliverables?
The classification is indicative and will depend on the amount of content, editorial work, original design and number of formats required.
Simple deliverable
A straightforward creation or adaptation, usually based on an existing template. Examples:
one social-media visual;
one banner, cover or thumbnail;
resizing an existing visual;
minor adaptation of a small number of slides.
Intermediate deliverable
A deliverable requiring an original layout, some content structuring or several connected pages or formats. Examples:
a social-media carousel;
a simple infographic;
a short briefing document;
a short presentation;
a coordinated set of event visuals.
Complex deliverable
A deliverable requiring substantial content structuring, original information design, data visualisation or a multi-page layout. Examples:
a detailed infographic;
a substantial policy or institutional report;
a full presentation deck requiring visual restructuring;
a multi-format package associated with a major report or institutional event.
The final classification will be agreed when each brief is validated.
The Terms of Reference indicate an expected monthly capacity equivalent to approximately 8–12 simple materials, 4–6 more complex materials, or a combination of formats.
10. How many revision rounds should be included?
The consultation does not impose a fixed number of revision rounds. Candidates should indicate in their proposal:
the number of revision rounds included in the fixed fee;
how consolidated feedback will be managed; and
how substantial changes to an already validated brief would be treated.
Reasonable revisions remaining within the approved brief should be included in the normal production process. Major changes of scope may require reprioritisation or a separate quotation.
11. What turnaround time is expected for urgent requests?
No mandatory turnaround time is imposed. Candidates should specify:
their normal turnaround times for simple, intermediate and complex deliverables;
their proposed turnaround time for urgent requests; and
any limits or conditions applying to urgent work.
Urgent requests will remain subject to available monthly capacity and may require reprioritisation of other tasks.
D. Miscellaneous
12. How will communication content be evaluated during the TEST-IPOS phase?
We do not envisage systematic A/B testing. Given the targeted and institutional nature of IPOS communication, evaluation will rely mainly on internal validation, qualitative feedback from requesting States and intended users, basic digital metrics, and iterative improvement of formats and messages. Priority audiences include States and public authorities, UN bodies, scientific institutions and expert networks, and institutional and financial partners. This reflects TEST-IPOS’s focus on targeted communication supporting engagement, dissemination and uptake rather than broad awareness-raising.
13. What communication capacity will be available within the IPOS team, and how should the selected agency complement it?
A full-time Communication Officer will be the agency’s main operational counterpart and will lead content, editorial planning, digital channels, publication and community management. A Policy Officer will coordinate the organisation of communication activities within TEST-IPOS and their links with service delivery, MEL and reporting. The TEST-IPOS Co-Lead will provide strategic oversight and ensure consistency with IPOS positioning and the project’s wider objectives. The agency is expected primarily to provide graphic production, visual translation, layout and light editorial support.
14. What is the intended purpose of the monthly coordination meetings with the selected agency?
These will mainly be operational planning and production meetings, used to agree priorities, briefs, formats and deadlines, review work in progress, and anticipate upcoming service outputs and events. During this first year, the agency’s role is expected to remain primarily execution-focused, while providing practical advice on readability, visual consistency and suitable formats, as set out in the Terms of Reference.
E. Production assumptions
15. What production volumes were handled during the previous phase?
Available records show 63 social-media outputs over 11 months, averaging approximately 6 per month, with monthly volumes ranging from 2 to 10. The same period also included four major report or publication outputs and several project-based presentations, templates, event materials, website materials and identity assets.
As the previous phase included substantial one-off development work, these figures are provided for context only. Candidates should base their proposals on the indicative monthly capacity set out in section 6.3 of the Terms of Reference and Question 9 of this Q&A.
16. What assumptions should candidates make about publications, active materials and urgent outputs?
The assignment is based on an agreed level of monthly production capacity rather than a predetermined list of publications or a fixed number of pages.
As provided in section 6.1 of the Terms of Reference, the start-up review will identify which existing templates, identity elements and communication materials remain active. Candidates should not assume that every historical material must be continuously maintained.
Reports, summaries, presentations, digital materials and other outputs will be prioritised through quarterly planning, monthly coordination and individual briefs. Rapid Response work does not follow a fixed monthly schedule and may occasionally require reprioritisation within the agreed capacity.
English light editorial support is included as described in section 4.2 of the Terms of Reference. Specialised translation and long-form drafting are excluded unless specifically agreed. Graphic adaptation and publication of translated text supplied or validated by OSF may be included within the monthly production capacity.
F. Licences, assets and website management
17. Does OSF’s Messina licence cover use by the appointed provider?
Yes. OSF’s Messina licence includes a contractor extension covering use by the appointed provider for this assignment. A separate licence will not be required provided that use remains within the existing licence limits, including the licensed font weights, a maximum of three computers in total and web use of up to 20,000 monthly views.
Any requirement exceeding those limits must be identified before use. The font files may not be redistributed or used for unrelated assignments.
18. Will the provider have access to an image library, and who is responsible for third-party rights?
OSF will give the appointed provider access to the image and visual resources available for the assignment, together with the licence or credit information available to OSF.
The provider must verify and identify the rights, restrictions, credits and costs attached to any additional third-party asset that it proposes before integration. No paid or restricted asset may be used without prior written approval. Preference should be given to assets that OSF can continue to use after the assignment.
19. What work on the Squarespace website is included in the assignment?
Routine management of the existing Squarespace website is included in the fixed fee and monthly capacity. This covers creating, updating and publishing pages and content; uploading and formatting text, images and documents; making ordinary layout or navigation adjustments using the existing theme and standard Squarespace functions; and providing any related routine assistance. Such work cannot generate a separate website charge.
Only genuine technical development — such as custom code, new functionality or integrations, platform migration or major technical restructuring — is excluded. It may not be undertaken or invoiced under this contract without a separate prior written agreement. OSF will retain administrative control and pay platform subscriptions directly.
20. Which Lazy Snail licence may apply to the appointed provider?
The appointed provider will determine whether Option 2 is necessary for its proposed working method. Option 1 is sufficient where the provider uses the delivered materials and creates its own original outputs. Option 2 may be selected if access to or adaptation of Lazy Snail’s source files and design systems is considered useful. Its fee is waived for the initial 13-month assignment.
Option 3 is not part of this consultation and must not be included in candidates’ prices or operational planning.
