Derby squad bets big on promotion

Derby players have agreed to forego their normal win bonuses, opting instead for a £6 million gamble.

Instead of receiving the bonuses on a match by match basis, the money will be put into a pot that they will split next spring - just as long as the team is promoted. The process has started already, says the Mirror, with the bonuses for the team's win over Rotherham on Saturday remaining in the fund.

If the team does reach the Premier League, the regular players should receive around £500,000 each. But the club could expect to make so much money from promotion that this would represent small beer. If the team fails to make it, they won't receive a penny, and the money will remain with the club.

The idea was apparently the idea of the players themselves - although the club naturally jumped at the chance.

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While footballers may not be typical employees, research shows that performance bonuses don't generally have much effect on staff performance - despite the fact that UK businesses spent £36.9 billion on them between 2012 and 2013. In a survey from the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) last year, enjoying one's job emerged as the single most powerful motivator for almost 60% of staff, compared with just 13% for a financial reward.

"While a good basic wage is an important motivator for staff, bonuses and other financial incentives influence only a small percentage of workers," says ILM chief executive Charles Elvin.

"When it comes to encouraging teams, you can never really overdo what we call the 'five fundamentals' of good management: coaching, giving feedback, listening, rewarding and recognising success and performance management."

Some bonus schemes are odd, to say the least. Ten years ago, John Caudwell, owner of high street retailer Phones 4U, packed £1 million in cash into suitcases and promised it to the company's 25 senior sales directors if they hit sales and customer service targets.

More recently, a Chinese boss reportedly dished out annual bonuses on the basis of which employees could drink the most. Men were given around £60 for each shot of spirits, women twice as much. "We worked hard all year only to learn our bonuses would be decided by our alcohol tolerance. It was absolutely unfair to people who can't drink much," said one staff member.

Read more about pay and bonuses:
'Put pay rises into pension' plea
Reckless bankers face bonus losses
Seven tips for securing a pay rise