Show notes
Strategy, partnerships and proposal work with limited resourcesCheck out the episode websiteIn this episode I’m joined by Alessio Caracci from Unknown Group to talk about what it really means to work across multiple funding schemes at the same time. Alessio’s role touches different parts of the organisation — the university, the campus and startup-related activities — so he has to navigate very different programme logics, target groups and funding opportunities. We talk about how that changes the work compared with specialising in a single scheme, and why the first task is not writing proposals but building a strong map of what is relevant, what is strategic and what the organisation actually wants to become in the next few years.From there we move into the practical side: how a small team can survive this complexity, why trusted external partners matter so much, and how long-term collaboration makes proposal work faster and more realistic under pressure. Alessio explains how Unknown works through a mix of self-led initiatives, alliances, consultants and ecosystem relationships, and how this lets them stay involved in different programmes without pretending they can do everything alone. We also talk about deadline clustering, the danger of tunnel vision, and why the most important discipline is often not chasing more opportunities but staying close to your organisation’s real mission and strengths.Time codes:01:55 Guest introduction and fly in 12:21 Working Across Many Programmes21:09 Managing Complexity – Systems, Shortcuts and Survival38:51 Partnerships and Collaboration as Strategy49:44 Reflections and advice 54:21 The toughest challenge
