Bonuses for Long Term Performance

At long last there is a recognition that bonuses should only be paid when businesses perform over a long period of time.

For far too long banks have rewarded short term success and that culture has seeped down to the front-line. Selling your than developing relationships became the mantra. If you failed to hit a short term sales target you went unrewarded at best and at worst were out of a job.

Analysis of requests for lending became less and less robust and the answer "if we don't do it xyz Bank will!". Bonuses were paid to aggressive lenders who built the asset book - they were successful and moved on to bigger and better jobs. The mess was cleared up by the 'steady-Eddies' and this continues to be the case.

It should now be the time of the Bank Managers who build business steadily, conservatively and soundly - building relationships with clients on trust and not just price. Clients need the Banks to be there in the bad times and yet, far too often, they are not.

It is a EUREKA moment - banking is a profession that can only ever survive on trust but it will take along time for clients to trust their bank again.