The senior executive is worried about whether he will get his entire multimillion dollar bonus this year, while the employee is worried about how he is going to pay off his debt.
Rather than force its customers to chase down sales help, Lowe's has a call button in most aisles to bring the employee to you (a store manager's bonus depends, in part, on how often help arrives within 60 seconds).
One is to lend employees cash secured on shares held in an employee-benefit trust, usually offshore, as part of their annual bonus but deferred for three to five years.
While showing gratitude for work well done is in alignment with the proper spirit behind a bonus, regrettably it is in this type of culture where I believe employee expectations can easily confuse the difference between a gift and a reward.