Why do companies make counter-offers?

Hiring new employees can be challenging and expensive.

Assess their motives:

1️⃣ Although on the surface, a counter-offer may make you think that your company is finally pulling out the stops to make you feel appreciated, this is not usually the case. A counter-offer is not about the business reaching out to meet your needs, it’s about meeting the needs of the company at that point in time.

2️⃣ Counter-offers are frequently used as retention tools, for times when a particular employee leaving is inconvenient. This could be for a multitude of reasons, perhaps because a significant project is yet to come to fruition, or because several other team members have recently departed. Equally, in exceptional circumstances, such as hiring freezes, a manager could be keen to retain you rather than have a gap in their department. Although on the surface it seems by increasing your salary the company is taking a financial hit, in fact, they are saving money overall.

3️⃣ Often counter-offers are delivered alongside emotional leverage about your value to the team and your time spent there. Your manager will insinuate that the elusive promotion was in fact imminent or that the team would struggle without your expertise. While many of these comments could be genuine, a good business that values its staff would have made you feel appreciated before you felt the push to leave.

In simple terms, because you have the skills and experience for the position already, your value as a commodity is now higher

4️⃣ Those who accept counter-offers end up leaving within the next 6 months – either because they accepted another offer or were let go. Pay increases often don’t fix the other pre-existing issues that lead you to look for another job initially, meaning many candidates that do accept counter-offers resume their job search quickly.

Consider the future:

There are some crucial factors to consider before accepting a counter-offer:

1️⃣ Broken trust

In many ways, leaving a job is a little like leaving a relationship. Once you have handed in your notice and expressed your desire to leave, you’ve had a palpable effect on the trust of the relationship which cannot be reversed. Consequently, your relationship with your employer may be irretrievably altered if you plan to move to a competitor. This could impact the projects you are given or potential pay increases in the future.

2️⃣ It’s not all about benefits

Although it’s possible you will be happy in your existing role, it’s more than just money that led you to initiate your job hunt. The truth of the matter is that you were looking for a new job for a reason. An increased salary or improved benefits package from your current employer might present an attractive offer, but there’s more to job satisfaction than a salary.

3️⃣ Deal breakers

If you expressed potential issues to your employer before you handed in your notice – you wanted a pay rise, increase in responsibility or more flexibility – and these were not dealt with effectively, then it’s likely that issues will persist in the future. These so-called ‘deal breakers’ that made you look for a new role will persist if you stay.

4️⃣ Expendable

Your job security will drastically decrease; if redundancies happen soon, you might inadvertently find yourself at the top of the list, after all – you’ve already expressed a desire to leave. Equally, could your company be developing a contingency plan, keeping you on in the meantime while they find a replacement?

Always consider your employer’s motives for the counter-offer carefully before deciding about the next step in your career.

If you’ve made up your mind to accept an offer to leave your current company, stick with your gut and be true to your word – follow through with it!