Its important that at the very start of the interview and job hunting process that you consider the chance that you are going to get counter offered, if and when you hand in your notice to your current employer. After all good people are hard to find, so to your employer its worth paying a bit more just to remove the need to recruit your replacement.
But that's it, that's the only reason why they have counter offered you, and you should remember that the limit to your current employers valuation of you. If that wasn't the case they would have been working with you to resolve your issues way before you had to threaten them with resignation.
Most employers think that employees resign because they have been offered more money and that's a mistake. While new opportunities tend to result in increase remuneration and rewards it's not normally the real reason for an employee's unhappiness. The fact is that in the majority of cases, it's about a broken down relationship, between line manager or company views and goals.
Its good practice at this early stage to make a note of the reasons why you are considering new roles, not only will you have a good set of answers when asked at interview stage, you can refer back to this if the Counter Offer does appear.
WATCH OUT FOR THE HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR
Under a sudden barrage of emotional pleas, flattery and coaching against your new offer you are at risk of forgetting why you wanted to leave in the first place – especially if your boss or other management team member are a good "Hostage Negotiator" – because let's face it – you have just taken your boss hostage, in their minds at least! You're leaving and their profits are at risk (not to mention the cost of replacing you that has to be allocated somewhere) – you effectively have a gun to their head and they will do anything to talk you out of it.
If you're not careful you will forget that people rarely change and that if you don't like your boss now you won't like them next month either. You will temporarily forget how horrible you have been feeling.... And like a victim of an abusive partner, you are at risk of falling for the promises to change, the pleas to forgive and give them another chance. They will slowly but surely try to make you doubt yourself and in that moment they will come at you with a counter offer.
Why is it a mistake to accept a counter-offer?
Because the counter is not about YOU! It's about THEM! The counter offer is never about the individual – it's about the situation. Your boss does not need the headache of another vacancy to fill. They really don't need a drop in their staff retention figures. They definitely don't need a loss of bonuses due to a loss of fee income or indeed the extra workload of managing your work and recruiting another staff member
• So be warned!
• Yes, they will flatter you
• Yes they will make you feel good
• Yes they will give you a counter offer to make you stay....FOR NOW.
• And if you do accept a counter is only FOR NOW, because I can assure you this relationship is now over.
Your boss no longer trusts you. Your boss won't change and the minute you reject your lovely new offer you will regret it. Why will you regret accepting a counter offer?
• Because literally from day 1 you will have one eye on the door wondering what could have been.
• Because your boss now doesn't trust you and will be following your every move, email and call.
• Because you will slowly realise that your boss hasn't changed.
• Because you will see (almost immediately) that your business is moved or changed in some way to accommodate your back-up replacement. Sometimes this will be disguised as having a Trainee to Manage, but what your Boss is really doing is getting you to train your replacement. Because guess what? They know it's only a matter of time now too – but guess what – now it's on their terms.
So before you even start to consider a counter offer:
• Sit down and write a list of the original reasons for you wanting to leave
• Score them on a scale of 1-10 for how miserable they were making you
• Now write a list of the reasons why you want to accept your new role
• Score them on a scale of 1-10 for how happy each element will make you
• Now look at your counter offer. How many of the reasons to leave are you actually really confident will change? How valuable are they to you?
• To accept a counter offer you need to be 100% confident that your boss is going to keep their word and that you won't regret losing your original offer
SER Limited – Technical and Engineering Recruiters
www.serlimited.com
T: 01254 781300
E: info@serlimited.com
