Counteroffers: 3 Important Things to Consider

Jul 25, 2022

Posted by: Greg Martakos, Senior Recruiting Manager, KBW Financial Staffing & Recruiting

Greg martakos​You’ve done it. You’ve hunted, interviewed and now you’re considering accepting a new position with a new employer. Many employees, whether seeking new employment or not, are being contacted by corporate recruiters who are looking to fill open roles with high-quality candidates.

These new offers are exciting, challenging, and often offer higher compensation, as well as more desirable environments, like work-from-home or hybrid scheduling options. Opening these discussions because a recruiter reached out to you can be an easy way to create a dialogue with your manager before using up all your vacation time.

Difficult Conversations

First, before you reach out to anyone, whether you’re just starting to seek a new job, giving a resignation, or just looking to discuss an impending career move, you’ve got to establish your baseline. Why are you dissatisfied with your current position? Is it pay? Is it the work-life balance or company culture? Are you just burnt-out and looking for a change? Identifying the driving reason behind your desire to leave your current company is imperative in how you’ll handle upcoming conversations, be it with your current or future employer.

Perhaps you’ve been entertaining the idea of moving into a new career for a while, or perhaps this is a last-ditch effort to add some extra padding to your wallet. If compensation is your reason for moving on, this could be a good time to open a dialogue with your current employer and let them know your new expectations, and how/why you came to that conclusion. Candidates are receiving counteroffers at an alarming rate recently, so be ready to discuss what would be crucial in helping you decide to remain with your current employer.

Reasons to Decline the Counteroffer

Maybe your current position has exhausted your patience and effort over the years and you’re ready to take on a new challenge. Stepping out of your comfort zone is a healthy way to keep your brain stimulated. Or maybe your future company sees something in you that your current company doesn’t, and it took looking for other work to identify that disparity. Perhaps your new company is offering you something that your current company doesn’t provide.

Whatever the reason for declining a counteroffer from your current employer, there’s no reason to burn bridges. Be certain to ensure your current employer knows you appreciate their interest in retaining you, and while it makes your decision difficult, your career journey is leading you in another direction.

Accepting the Counteroffer

Once you’ve received a counteroffer from your employer and you’ve decided to accept, let’s peek at what you can keep in mind while moving forward at your current company. You may be wondering if your current employer will continue to trust you, knowing that you’ve interviewed and received an offer, or if you’ve shot yourself in the foot by revealing your hand.

Truth is, there are always more reasons to decline a counteroffer from your employer than there are to accept them, one of the main ones being the broken trust between employer and employee. The main thing people should consider when thinking about accepting a counteroffer is if any changes will be implemented, or if you just obtained a higher salary. If a higher salary was your goal, then kudos to you! You’re walking away a winner.

However, if you were, for example, burnt out from your position and had previously expressed these concerns to a manager, and nothing was done to rectify the issue; Would taking a counteroffer with a higher salary help, or hurt you? Taking a counteroffer because of a higher salary can often feel like an immediate win, but if your reason for leaving was burn out, you may end up dissatisfied weeks or months down the road because your counteroffer only addressed your income, not your work-life balance.

About BANKW Staffing

Through its portfolio companies, KBW Financial Staffing & Recruiting, Alexander Technology Group, The Nagler Group, Sales Search Partners, and KNF&T Staffing Resources, BANKW Staffing, LLC is the leading regional provider of temporary and direct-hire staffing services in the areas of finance, accounting, information technology, office and administration, legal, human resources, and sales.

BANKW Staffing companies have received over 100 awards for rapid growth, business excellence, and workplace quality. Recognition includes Inc. 500, Boston Business Journal’s “Best Places to Work” and Business NH Magazine’s “Business of the Year”.

Learn More – https://www.bankwstaffing.com

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