With news of Wall Street’s Bonus Culture: RIP and Goldman Sachs changing their compensation structure after investor pressure, “bonus” may become a four letter word. And indeed dropping the B puts the onus on real performance.

In this traditional end-of-year bonus season, we surveyed UK workers on bonuses. The Bonus Barometer revealed a number of important insights about how well the bonus component of compensation relates to actual performance:

39% of respondents are expecting to receive an end-of-year bonus.
21% are based on the general success of the business.
30% are based on individual success.

But yet:

Just 19% of respondents stated that their employer calculates bonuses using personal performance targets linked to business goals.

It’s not surprising when:

Only 38% of employees have access to tools that show how their role helps the business.

Clearly it’s time to make the compensation connection that aligns individual and corporate goals, performance, and compensation. Not just for Wall Street, but for everyone.