Roland Röhrs – Chairman: I made these learnings over a long period of time.
- Published my first (and just about only) article in my third study year (1972) on “Bonuses”
- Implemented my first real working bonus system in 1988 at Glamosa Glass factory – it is still in use 30 years later
- Implemented a full system at Wispeco in 1998 – complex operation – still in use 20 years later
- Implemented various others during this time; consulting companies etc.
Successful Bonus systems are powerful management tools, and operate optimal if the environment is receptive, thus:
- management attitude,
- worker attitudes,
- level of goal alignment from top to worker-level,
- ‘flatness’ of the organisational structure,
- open communication, etc.
If implemented in an environment which is not fully ready, bonuses can still work, but can also fail easily and sometimes fail negatively by doing harm to the relations in the organisation.
Successful bonus systems at least do require open and open-minded support from the top level in the organisation. If this exists, early corrections to areas where implementation is wobbly, for whatever reason, can still be done. (This is in any case how I stumbled to workable solutions over time).
Both Bonus Legs, and especially the Profit Bonus Leg only work successfully if there is integrity in the system. Integrity comes from the top!
Author: Roland Röhrs – Chairman
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