You have been looking for a new role over the past however long, you have committed your time to interviewing (more than likely on several occasions), you have accepted an offer which you are happy with. Now comes the tricky part of handing in your notice. It is never going to be a pleasurable experience, unless you hate the role and your manager and you can’t wait to tell them to stick the job right up their arse, but in the majority of cases it is going to be along the lines of “ I have thoroughly enjoyed working here, but, I have been offered an excellent opportunity and would like to hand my notice in, as I said I have really enjoyed working here but I feel this is the right move for me”, which straight of the bat is a bit of a white lie because if you loved working there that much you wouldn’t be leaving and wouldn’t have even began to search and interview.
Now comes the counter offer – “We really don’t want to lose you *****, you are a real asset to the company and a valued member of the team, what can we do / offer to make you change your mind?”
I have seen the articles saying 70% of people that accept counter offers will be looking again within 6 months, 90% of people who accept counter offers regret taking them…. If I am completely honest it may be true, but I don’t fully buy into it, there are to many moving parts for this to be a true reflection.
What I do buy into though is that accepting a counter is the wrong thing to do and below is my reasoning behind this statement.
THE REAL REASONS FOR LEAVING DON’T MAGICALLY DISAPPEAR.
“I feel that I am being underpaid” or “I didn’t get the promotion I was expecting” are both very valid points for beginning to look for a new role, but when we dig a bit deeper they tend to be only one of a number of factors to why you are looking to leave.
What it boils down to is this, you may well get a pay rise or that promotion you wanted, BUT, the other underlying factors as to why you want to leave have not magically vanished into thin air. John is still going to be a dick, Katherine in accounts is still going to bitch about everyone and everything and create a toxic environment, you are still not going to enjoy the company culture of the, the unrealistic expectations from your boss are still going to be there and in fact will only become more unrealistic with the pay rise….
NEVER -ENDING BATTLE FOR FUTURE PAY RISES OR PROMOTIONS
They gave you the pay rise or that promotion – Congratulations – But have they actually?
First off, they haven’t given you a pay rise – they have given you the money you should have been on already (and maybe a small sweetener) and likewise the promotion you have been given is where you should have already been.
Further to this what is going to happen next time – “But **** we gave you a pay rise and promotion only a few months ago!” – are you going to have to threaten to leave every time you deserve a pay rise or promotion? Have you just started a never-ending battle to get to where you want to be in the company?
“Call me loyal”
You have accepted the counter offer, without a shadow of a doubt your boss will now question your loyalty and commitment to the company. It is like any relationship once that trust has been broken there is always a seed of doubt there that just won’t go away no matter how much you want it to. Will they actually trust you with big projects or pieces while thinking you are out of there when you get a better offer.
WORK RELATIONSHIPS WILL DEFINITELY CHANGE
Office gossip is a terrible thing, but like it or not, office gossip happens. Whether you work in a company of a thousand or an office of 5, people will hear what happened. Some people will be happy for you and feel you got what was only right, but do not be surprised if there are people who feel you got to were you are unfairly and by using threats…. Katherine in accounts will definitely have something to say about it….
YOUR REPUTATION WILL BE DAMAGED
If you have already accepted a solid offer made to you by a company who now feel they have got the right person for the role, you have now wasted a lot of their time and money. Employers have long memories, people talk and managers who are good at what they do are very well networked with other good managers.
DO THEY REALLY WANT YOU?
Ask yourself this – Do the company really want to keep you onboard and actually value you as much as they say they do OR is it easier to keep you than it is to replace you? You have just gone through the interview process at the company you where you have accepted the offer from and seen what it is involved – taking time out of numerous peoples day to interview ( they are not making the company money when they are not doing their job), negotiating pay and package, if there is a recruitment consultant involved there will be a fee to be paid, then there is all of the back office work that needs to be done to bring on a new start (and there is a lot) and this is only the beginning.
GOOD EMPLOYERS DON’T MAKE COUNTER OFFERS!!!!