Abstract (English)
The introduction of multiannual financing agreements between ministries and agencies in accordance with the Austrian Research Financing Act (RFA) of 2020 marks a substantial shift in principal-agent relations. As an example, the article describes the process leading to the first agreement between the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation, and Technology (BMK) and the Austrian Research Funding Agency (FFG). The FFG is Austria’s central government agency for funding applied research. Taking the views of both BMK and FFG, the authors argue that the new system replacing a multitude of annual contracts opens up a completely new world of possibilities to establish a better governance with less but more targeted transactions between BMK and FFG. These options do not, however, come by themselves but need to be actively pursued. For that, the Research Financing Act was in fact the game changer as previous experiences had shown that efforts to disentangle principal-agent relations were in vain in the absence of a stable and reliable institutional framework that the RFA now provides. Aiming at a more strategic approach of the ministry and greater operational autonomy of the agency, it is crucial to clarify their respective roles and depart from established routines on both sides. The financing agreement provides a reference system for those executing these roles. Mutual trust can grow upon this basis while command-and-control should recede. At the same time, both BMK and FFG must refocus internally to adapt to new responsibilities a clear division of labour requires.