As a recruiter dishing professional advice and an employee myself, it is a personal long-held belief that a counteroffer should not be accepted.
If you're still undecided about accepting a counteroffer, read on.
A counteroffer has short benefits
If I receive one as an employee today, it is merely beneficial on 2 counts:
- Not every employee has the privilege of receiving a counteroffer, so it allows me to feel good for a day or two about receiving one.
- It can be a useful leverage tool for offer negotiation with the new company that wants to hire me. More on this in my previous blog post here.
The truth behind a counteroffer
Counteroffers are often made with some form of flattery such as: "you're too valuable, we need you", or "you've been with us for so many years, we can't bear to see you go...so here is a counteroffer".
Don't be fooled. Learn to look beyond the flattery.
What the employer really mean is:
- Keeping you on the job with a counteroffer is still more economical than the cost of hiring your replacement.
- There is a talent shortage in your industry, function and/or skillset required for the role.
Fundamentally, everything comes down to dollars and cents when operating a business, including manpower costs.
Every for-profit company has to keep tabs of the ROI of their hired headcounts, ensuring investment into their training, time to nurture and unlock network value, time-to-performance, etc. is well spent.
So, let's get real.
Let's ask ourselves (and our employers) some tough questions.
1. If receiving a counteroffer means that my market value is finally being recognised, does that mean that my employer has failed to recognise my true worth before the counteroffer?
2. Why did it have to take a resignation notice on my end before my employer finally adjust my salary to reflect to my true market value?
3. If keeping me on the job with a counteroffer is still going to be more economical than hiring a replacement for the company, doesn't the alarm bells go off at all levels that...
(i) I am out of touch - it's time to get up to speed with my true market worth!
(ii) I am likely to receive at least what I command in the counteroffer, if not MORE if I join a new company with new/better opportunities.
If you are not earning what you should have before the counteroffer, it might be good to consider leaving the company for another that will appreciate your work (Apollo Technical, 2021).
And if there is a talent shortage in your industry, function and/or skillset required for the role, please recognise that this means you are holding high bargaining power. Do not put it to waste.
Being high in demand, do consider taking the opportunity to explore other industries or companies for greater exposure if you have already been with your present company for a while and experiencing career stagnation.
Exposing yourself to a different set of challenges in a new environment can do great things for your career trajectory.
Final words
Even before allowing yourself to end up in a resignation-and-counteroffer situation, give yourself and your employer (line manager and/or HR) ample time and opportunity to talk through any dissatisfaction you may have regarding your paid salary.
Have open, honest and respectful conversations during your tenure with them if you find that your salary is not reflecting your true market worth.
The best window to strike these conversations would be during performance review / appraisal periods.
Lastly, for more comprehensive insights of why you should not accept a counteroffer, this write up that I came across sums up everything well.
Do you agree with my point of view? Let me know your thoughts!
Comments