One of the leading academics and authors on Business and Management Dr Henry Minztberg has written a thought provoking piece in the MIT Sloan Management Review on whether the executive bonus schemes should stay or be scrapped.

Mintzberg says, “Executive bonuses—especially in the form of stock and option grants—represent the most prominent form of legal corruption that has been undermining our large corporations and bringing down the global economy. Get rid of them and we will all be better off for it.”

It’s a controversial perspective and one that would no doubt be greeted with a lack of enthusiasm in some quarters, however, it also raises some intriguing questions about the ‘role’ of the CEO and management team in a modern organisation.

In the world of innovation, growth and corporate and cultural change it is often said, “show me the remuneration structure and I’ll show you the culture”. Maybe what have just experienced with the Global Financial Crisis is a classic example of this.

Worth having a read.