Second Life founder Philip Rosedale let employees distribute the company’s bonuses to each other. Here’s how it worked: each employee got a thousand dollars and had 24 hours to decide how to distribute that money to fellow employees. They could distribute it evenly or give the whole amount to a single worker. But it had to be anonymous, and they couldn’t give any money to themselves. He found that the money always was distributed in the most equitable way. Workers are good at recognizing value in their co-workers when given the chance.
