>> But the question is, can they do it without the bloat? My understanding is yes - and I can probably even tell you how.

I dont mean to be snarky, but isn't the "how" sort of obvious (though hard to achieve)? You'd have to align reward with value generated per unit of risk and nothing else. The more value you generate (on a risk adjusted basis), the greater your reward and promotion. When companies grow larger, it becomes difficult for them to measure value generated, or too tedious, or politics overpowers governance.

I'd be curious to hear your proposal on a fix.