Everything you should know about Counter-Offers and is accepting one is right for you?

So you get offered a new job. You’re excited about it, but when you hand your notice in, your current employer starts panicking and asks what they can do to make you stay.

Employers know that it will be difficult (and costly) to replace those leaving, so instead, they try to do everything they can to make the person stay. And it’s nice to feel wanted!

A counter-offer is an offer from your current employer to rival the one you have received through an interview process, in the hope to make you reconsider.

It’s worth noting; Counter-offers often stem from the inconvenience that the company will face if you leave. And while sometimes they could be genuine (for example, fast-forwarding a pay rise or promotion that was going to happen anyway), it could also be a way of saying they didn’t value you, to begin with.

According to LinkedIn, on average, 80% of those who accept a counter-offer reopen their job search in as little as three months.

THREE MONTHS!

People, job searching, is hard, and time-consuming. Who has the time to stop and start this process?

Moving jobs can be a very stressful life event and it can impact a lot of other aspects of your life. So to save you the pain, we’re sharing everything you need to know before accepting a counter-offer.

First off, let’s rewind a second. You have to know very clearly why you want to leave your job in the first place before starting your job search. By doing this, at the beginning of your search, you’ll be able to work out whether a counter-offer is right for you.

Read our blog How to work out what you really want before starting your job search for help on this step.

If you are open to accepting a counter-offer, then listen to what they have to say, and think about it. There was a reason you chose to start job hunting in the first place. Don’t even entertain the idea if you’re not into it. But if you are considering it then take time to really think about what they are offering and what it would mean for you.

In essence, if a counter-offer overcomes all the issues you had with your current offer, then why not stay.  But if there were other factors (culture, work/life balance etc.) then chances are they won’t be fixed and you should think twice.

There are better ways to get what you want. Putting yourself on the job market with the intention of taking a job offer to your current employer and asking them to match it or offer something better is a huge gamble.

If you do this your relationship with your manager is probably going to be pretty damaged. They know you interviewed for another role. Your manager will constantly question your loyalty going forward, and because of that, your job security could significantly decrease. The better way to approach the situation would be to arrange a time with your manager to talk about the things that are making you unhappy and would like to change before starting your job search.