What is a good way to structure a bonus program for administrative personnel?

Answer 1

If by "administrative pesonnel" you mean mangers, those who are exempt from the wage-and-hour regulations, then there are two common ways to structrure a bonus (technically, "incentive compensation"): 1. The bonus is based entirely on performance. For example, in retailing, it is common to determine a store manager's compensation entirely on his or her store's profit. [If there is a supplementary bonus program for a store manager, it might be based on such issues as store morale, perceived managerial skills, store-community relationships, or other issues not measurable as "profit."] 2. The bonus is based partly on performance and partly on company profits. For example, managerial support staff such as legal and HR contribute only indirectly to a company's profit. For such personnel, it is common to base part of the bonus on the manager's having met his or her personal goals, and part on the company's profit. If by "administrative personnel" you mean people who were formerly called "secretaries" but are now styled "administative assistants" [AA], there is no agreed on patten for a "bonus" system. When AAs hear of large comp checks that managers receive, they sometimes argue that they, too, should have a bonus. But how would such a bonus be structured? As non-exempts [not exempt from wage-and-hour laws], they are paid for overtime, and their "extra effort" is compensated by extra pay. For superior work, they may receive merit raises.