Return of the Hourly

Today’s featured startup is bringing scalable bonus systems to industries where time once ruled over results.

Project Overview

Protiv is a performance-driven platform built to boost efficiency among hourly employees working on deadline-bound projects — particularly in industries like construction.

The setup is simple: companies add their workers to the system (integration with 40+ HR platforms makes this quick), set time or output-based budgets for each project or phase, and define bonuses for staying within those limits. Foremen can receive additional rewards too.

Once assigned to a project, team members are notified via the Protiv mobile app. The app keeps everyone aligned with regular updates — encouraging when things are on track or pushing when extra effort is needed.

Importantly, Protiv is designed for accessibility: Spanish is already available, and more languages are coming soon.

When the work is done, a manager approves the result — and the system automatically distributes bonuses, which can even be delayed until the client pays. Thanks to integration with payroll systems, payouts are added seamlessly to the next paycheck.

Protiv claims it boosts productivity by 20%, while companies recoup their investment in the platform and bonuses 20 times over. Pricing starts at $15 per user per month (minimum $96), with custom deals for larger companies.

Though Protiv has been operating for three years, it raised its first $2.4M funding round only recently.

What’s the Gist?

Protiv tackles a fundamental flaw in hourly wage systems: the lack of motivation to work efficiently. Since more hours usually mean more pay, there's little incentive to speed things up — unless penalties are involved.

This issue affects a massive part of the workforce. In the U.S. alone, 78.7 million people — over 55% of all salaried employees — were paid hourly in 2022. Protiv offers a clear fix: performance-based bonuses layered on top of standard hourly pay.

The results speak for themselves. On average, workers earn just 10% more — but that drives a 20% productivity jump. Even better, 80% of team members receive bonuses on their first Protiv project. That early win is crucial: it reinforces motivation from the start.

And once they’ve experienced this, 99% of workers say they wouldn’t go back to jobs without performance bonuses. That’s powerful. A well-designed incentive system should feel not just rewarding — but indispensable. Protiv seems to have nailed that.

The implication? Bonus systems like Protiv's may soon become the new standard wherever hourly labor is the norm. That could force every company using shift-based work to adopt similar platforms — opening up a huge market.

Investors seem to agree. Similar platforms are emerging rapidly:

• Trunk Tools raised $9.9M for construction worker bonuses.

• Onaroll raised $20M for courier and warehouse worker incentives.

• SocialCrowd secured $2.15M for team-based bonuses.

• Applause raised $7M to reward technicians based on customer reviews.

• Grata targets the retail and service sectors, tying bonuses to customer feedback and raising $6.3M.

• Edge (formerly EyeRate) raised follows a similar approach and has raised $5.9M.

While some platforms — like Salt Labs, which rewards hours worked instead of results — take a less targeted approach, the trend is clear: measurable performance bonuses are gaining traction fast.

Key Takeaways

If performance bonuses on top of hourly wages really do become the new standard — and all signs say they will — there’s still time to build something in this space.

Now is the moment to launch your own platform. The market is massive, and models already exist to learn from.

Focus on a specific industry — one with unique workflows, budgeting needs, or HR systems — to build deeper integrations and offer a sharper pitch. That focus will help you gather testimonials and grow faster.

The question isn’t if hourly work incentives will go mainstream. It’s: which industry will you disrupt first?

Company info:

Protiv

• Website: protiv.com

• Latest round: $2.4M, 04.04.2024

• Total funding: $2.4M, across 1 round