What is the role of the responsible person in projects funded by Kone Foundation? 

Kone Foundation funding is based on trust, which means that the responsible person plays an important role as the link between the funded project and the Foundation. 

Kone Foundation funding is based on trust, which means that the responsible person plays an important role as the link between the funded project and the foundation. 

Kone Foundation awards the majority of its research funding and art funding to working groups. These groups may be affiliated with an organisation or they can be entirely informal. Each working group must have a responsible person – usually the one who applied for funding for the project. Previously, we referred to this person as the project leader, but we have since adopted the term responsible person, given that the Foundation awards individual working grants that involve a high degree of independence. Individual working grants do not create employment relationships, and the responsible person does not hold the employer’s right of direction over those who are working in the same project with their own personal grants. 

The responsible persons are accountable to the Foundation for the use of the funds awarded to projects. They also serve as the project’s primary point of contact with the Foundation: they request the payments of the awarded grant, submit any necessary change requests, and prepare the interim and final reports. It is therefore advisable to appoint someone as the responsible person who is able to manage these practical matters throughout the project’s duration. 

As mentioned, the responsible person is not the boss of those receiving personal grants. Employment relationships are, of course, created in cases where salary funding has been awarded. In such instances, those receiving salaries will have a boss within an organisation, but not within the Foundation. For example, research assistants or producers who are paid through the project are not employees of the Foundation. 

The responsible person is also expected to ensure that the project is free from discrimination. Naturally, everyone involved in the project is expected to act fairly and respectfully. Many organisations have codes of ethical conduct that provide additional guidance – including Kone Foundation’s own safer space guidelines. In the field of academic research, ethical guidance is provided by Finland’s National Board on Research Integrity (TENK) in the form of the Responsible conduct of research (RCR) guidelines. However, this guidance focuses on research ethics, such as research misconduct, and does not cover the ethicsof project collaboration or university supervision. For those working in the arts, we recommend the ethical guidelines for the arts and culture sector compiled in Finland by Forum Artis, which offer broader coverage than the RCR guidelines. 

In cases of difficulty, the Foundation’s staff can assist where possible. However, in many matters, we must refer enquirers to the appropriate service providers. For example, we cannot influence issues related to taxation, the legal aspects of Mela insurance, or decisions made by the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri). 

The work of foundations, and of Kone Foundation in particular, is grounded in trust. Trust is not listed among the foundation’s values, because it is the very basis of our operations. Through peer review and decisions made by its board, the Kone Foundation has chosen to place its trust in the responsible person and others involved in the project. Nevertheless, in particularly difficult situations, the Foundation reserves the right to change the responsible person, revoke the funding, or even reclaim the funds.