| A: About 90 percent of the time, leave counter offers on the table,
say thanks and move on. The other 10 percent? Accept counter offers with caution. Your
present employer may match or better the compensation package because top candidates are
in short supply. Even so, here are reasons not to look back after bailing:
- Many people really leave a job because of a personality rift, blocked advancement or
non-fulfilling work. How will a financially generous counter offer fix these problems?
- Your company may counter offer merely as a temporizing tactic and begin looking
immediately for your replacement. An employer’s comments in St. Louis-based "The
Fordyce Letter", a leading national publication for the employment
industry, illustrate the loss of trust:
"If it will cost me $30,000 or $40,000 to replace a senior person and an
additional $20,000 to make the person happy enough to stay, I’ll make the offer. But
I’ll keep my eyes open for a replacement and that person is no longer a part of my
inner circle."
- Renewing your enthusiasm can be an uphill challenge. In making the decision to accept
another offer, you’ve already counted up all the things you hate about your present
whereabouts. As time goes on, these negatives will haunt your mind like a pesky tune.
- Saying yes and then no to a recruiter will damage your credibility with that recruiter
and potential employer. In a small industry where the players know each other, a perceived
lack of integrity can whack your future.
New Orleans recruiter Rick Hornberger agrees with Fordyce Letter publisher Paul
Hawkinson, who unequivocally says counter offer acceptance is the road to career ruin:
"The best response to a counter offer is to listen politely, perhaps even sleep on
it, but decline. If your current firm denied you advancement before you secured an outside
offer, it will probably thwart you the next time you feel ready to advance."
Hornberger adds that a graceful resignation note adds more finality when you bow out:
"Thank you for all you have done for me here at --. It’s been a pleasure
working with you, and representing the company as your (job title). I have accepted an
offer with another firm and have decided to tender my resignation as of today. This
decision has nothing to do with the exceptional opportunity you have provided for me here.
You and the company have been more than fair with me, and I genuinely appreciate all your
support. Please feel free to contact me at any time if I can be of further assistance in
helping with a smooth transition."
But suppose your current company comes back with a magnificent counter offer that is
genuinely unrefusable – at least for the short term. If so, protect yourself.
"Get the counter offer in writing with a two year no-cut contract," advises
Hawkinson.
What about when you’re counting on a counter offer? When your aim was to ride an
offer right through the plate glass window shielding your boss’s mind from your true
worth? The strategy is risky. Any time you say "I’m off the team," be ready
to walk.
A safer move is to tell your boss that you’ve received an unsolicited offer and
want to share the information before you give it serious thought. Ask for advice. You
probably won’t get more money or a promotion on the spot, but you’ll crash
through your boss’s complacency. |
