Call for proposals - Elrha ready to scale pipeline: Scale accompaniment tool (SAT) design

Overview‍

The humanitarian sector is facing ever-escalating complexity, dealing with the convergence of protracted and rapid-onset crises, climate-driven emergencies, and reduced funding globally.  

In the face of sector-wide fatigue, constant calls to reform, and increasingly stretched resources, the humanitarian sector is becoming less ready and open to adopting new, impactful solutions. Without a purposeful and collaborative approach to scaling innovations, the sector risks reverting to ‘business-as-usual’ programming, with impact stagnating against increasingly complex needs. At the same time, social, sectoral, and technological shifts are rapidly creating opportunities and risks in the humanitarian innovation space, though conventional and standardised innovation scaling pathways are not well-equipped to respond to these dynamics.

We know that scaling is complex, non-linear, and can take many forms – scaling is not simply the process of reaching more people, but it is a process of shifting cultural norms, changing policies and process, and affecting systemic change. The fact that each innovation takes its own unique and winding path towards scale means that there is no single indicator to identify an innovation’s scaling potential, nor is there a standard sign that an innovation is ready to operate at scale. What we do know is that funding alone is not enough to take an innovation to scale. Traditional grant funding mechanisms provide little time for innovations to prepare, build effective partnerships, and properly position themselves to successfully navigate complex humanitarian implementation contexts.

As part of our new 5-year plan, we are focussing on strengthening the practice of scaling innovation in humanitarian settings. We will directly address the gap between promising innovations and their ability to achieve sustainable impact at scale in humanitarian crises. This programme fills a key strategic gap in humanitarian innovation, by building a problem-led and responsive scaling infrastructure, with emphasis on preparedness, systems thinking, and taking a futures approach.  

‍Objectives

1. Consolidate and translate insights into practical design criteria for the SAT.
2. Develop and prototype a beta version of the SAT that reflects user needs, is accessible to a diverse range of innovators (particularly local organisations), and aligns with Elrha’s Ready to Scale approach.
3. Test the beta version with a small group of innovators and stakeholders, gathering feedback on usability, relevance, and value.
4. Refine and finalise the beta SAT for wider piloting, with clear documentation of design choices, functionality, and recommendations for next steps.

Timeline

Deadline for proposals: 7 November 2025

Interviews: 17 -21 2025

Project start: 1 December 2025‍

Project concludes: 31 March 2026

Only service providers with availability to meet this timeframe should consider participating in this tender. 

How to apply

Full application details and submission instructions are available in Call for Proposals.

Attachments you require include:‍

Schedule 1: Cost Structure Proposal  

Annex 1: Proposal Submission Letter (Template)

Annex 2: Non-Collusive Proposal Certificate (Template)

Annex 3: Terms And Conditions Acceptance Letter (Template)

Annex 4: Bidder Information Questionnaire

Annex 5: Consortium Information Form

Appendix 1: Elrha Contract Terms and conditions

Appendix 2: Elrha Incident Prevention and Management Policy

The deadline for submitting proposals in response to this Call for Proposals is 17:00 UK time on 7 November 2025

Please submit the Technical and Cost Structure Proposals, the completed Annex 1 & 2 & 3, and any supporting documents (as relevant) as per the following instructions:

• Email address: to Maisie Jeffreys ([email protected]) with [email protected] in copy.
• Subject line: Call for Proposals – SAT Design – [your organisations name]
• Signed with the name and title of the person making the submission

Submissions emailed to any other Elrha email address will not be considered. Submissions not following the ‘subject line’ instructions might not be considered.