United Airlines’ experiment with a new employee rewards programme — replacing modest monthly bonuses with a lottery that offered large awards to only a few employees — did the exact opposite of what was intended.

Instead of motivating employees, who needed a record of perfect attendance for the quarter to be eligible to win big prizes, such as $100,000 in cash or a luxury car, the airline infuriated people. According to The New York Times, United has paused the programme.

What are the best incentives to offer the individuals and teams in your organisation? And how do you decide as a leader whether to choose between relative incentives — those based on how individuals perform compared with their peers — or team-based rewards, which are tied to collective performance?