Training Dogs, Dolphins--and People?

Is it true what they say about it not being possible to teach old dogs new tricks? And, if it's true, is there an age-based enrollment cut-off at leading canine institutes?

Now, if the same holds true for animals that have canine incisors instead of eye teeth, what else is the same for non-human animals and their two-legged counterparts?  Many of you have psychology degrees, so what's the latest scientific thought on giving workers Hershey Kisses or ice cream sundaes following completed tasks as a method of training? Does something basic enough to inspire an English Springer Spaniel to sit, beg and heel, work as a corporate incentive, or is something much more sophisticated like, say, a fancy digital camera really necessary?

I read an article in the style section of the New York Times about six months ago that got me thinking of possible human mammal/non-human mammal training parallels:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/25/fashion/25love.html?ex=1168664400&en=62448da0c44ba3a5&ei=5070

As you'll see, it's about a lady who realized her husband has a lot in common with residents of Sea World. So, the same tactics used to train a dolphin, she surmised, had a decent chance of working with her spouse. And,  lo and behold, it did the trick!

So, if you're workers aren't jumping through hoops yet, have you tried anything akin to dangling dead fish over their noses?

I'm fairly skeptical myself because I think that while training and corporate incentive strategy are closely related (the publisher of Training also publishes magazines devoted to that very subject), they're distinct. You may be able to get employees to do what you need them to do through bribery, but you can't  improve the skills that impact the quality of their work that way. Am I wrong?

So, you probably won't start holding classes in dog kennels, or requiring trainers to "bone" up by watching The Animal Channel, right?