Comments on: What Kind of Bonus Excites You More?

By: Pete

Pete — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:28:23 +0000

I think having a trip, gifts, etc can be memorable and fun, but I still prefer the cold hard cash .

At my work the thing that everyone loves getting are Wild Hockey tickets, which the boss sometimes gives out as a gift/bonus.

Every year the company gives a big christmas party as well, which is nice. The one problem is that you hear a lot of grumbling about, “i wonder how much this cost? I would have rather had the money than all this fancy food and drinks”.

So.. cash please!

By: Bryce

Bryce — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:12:50 +0000

Assuming that a company can get more bang for the buck in a group purchase, a trip or something else may give you more value than a cash bonus. On the other hand, there are a lot of other things I would not spend my money on and having someone make that decision for me is typically not what I would want.

If it was an exact one-for-one trade in value, I would much rather have the money. I can then choose to purchase a week on the Vegas Strip with that money if that would make me or my wife happy. I can choose to purchase an X-box or Wii with that money. Or I can choose something not mandated by someone at the company. Perhaps I could apply the money toward our savings to go to Europe. Now THAT would make my wife happy.

Don’t forget you will have to pay income tax on the value of that bonus item, as well. Start saving now to pay tax on that pre-spent bonus. If you get cash, on the other hand, you can set the taxes aside and then spend the remainder on something fun.

By: Hunter Nuttall

Hunter Nuttall — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:10:06 +0000

Stuff can be more meaningful than cash, but the big risk is that maybe you’ll get something you don’t like, such as a trip to Hawaii when you’d really prefer Alaska.

By: Alex

Alex — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 04:44:27 +0000

I prefer cash. Regarding Dave’s comment about bonuses having come to be expected, I think that bonuses function as compensation that companies feel they can cut more easily than salaries. Many employees would be quite unhappy with a salary cut and would likely quit immediately; this is less likely with a bonus reduction. However, since employees have become used to cash bonuses, perhaps, this flexibility has diminished–hence, the switch to non-monetary forms of compensation. Employees would likely be more understanding if the yearly company trip were canceled than if their bonuses with cut.

By: Meg

Meg — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 04:05:45 +0000

Trip bonuses are great because they reward employees publicly with recognition rather than privately with money. Plus they encourage team building and company loyalty. Though usually they’re given to top sales people – who also earn financial bonuses based on their performance.

Personally I would prefer the money at this point in my life. I don’t have a spouse (or even a boyfriend currently), so while I might enjoy a trip to Hawaii , I could really use the $5,000 and I’d probably enjoy it more.

Also, smaller random gifts would probably just frustrate me, unless they were really tailor designed to my interests. I personally couldn’t want a Wii less, for instance, and I’d be mildly insulted if my company thought they could throw that kind of stuff at me periodically in lieu of financial bonuses (unless I was in an industry where bonuses weren’t standard/expected anyway).