When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
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When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
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Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#2The scary part about this is the change it makes in the dynamic with the original employer - they know that you have once before sought other opportunities and decided to quit. It wasn't a purely economic decision - there had to be a lack of excitement to justify the uprooting of your career.
Perhaps the counteroffer is a guise as they hire somebody to replace you, then you'll be let go as soon as they hire somebody.
The relationship can never be as "warm and fuzzy" as before you tried to quit.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#3Article was a little unfocused, jumping from here to there, but the advice is sound. If you're so unhappy where you are that you're interviewing around, negotiating pay & benefits, etc, then you need to go. Your current place has proven that they are not a right fit -- which could mean as little as that you don't feel comfortable bringing up concerns to your manager.
Any way you slice it, you've shown your hand: you're out the door. A company where it takes a resignation letter to spur them on to pay attention to you is not the right place for you.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#4The scary part about this is the change it makes in the dynamic with the original employer - they know that you have once before sought other opportunities and decided to quit. It wasn't a purely economic decision - there had to be a lack of excitement to justify the uprooting of your career. Perhaps the counteroffer is a guise as they hire somebody to replace you, then you'll be let go as soon as they hire somebody.…
Good way to put it, the "relationship".
Two people are dating, one is an alcoholic. The other says, "I'm leaving, we've talked about your drinking 100 times and nothing changes so I'm leaving you. Bye." The drunk says, "oh no, stay with me and I'll stop drinking!"
Does that situation ever turn out well?
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#5The scary part about this is the change it makes in the dynamic with the original employer - they know that you have once before sought other opportunities and decided to quit. It wasn't a purely economic decision - there had to be a lack of excitement to justify the uprooting of your career. Perhaps the counteroffer is a guise as they hire somebody to replace you, then you'll be let go as soon as they hire somebody.…
Good way to put it, the "relationship". Two people are dating, one is an alcoholic. The other says, "I'm leaving, we've talked about your drinking 100 times and nothing changes so I'm leaving you. Bye." The drunk says, "oh no, stay with me and I'll stop drinking!" Does that situation ever turn out well?
Well. In this case, the company could offer money, and maybe even contractual guarantees of continued employment. If structured properly these may be worth more than empty promises.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#6The scary part about this is the change it makes in the dynamic with the original employer - they know that you have once before sought other opportunities and decided to quit. It wasn't a purely economic decision - there had to be a lack of excitement to justify the uprooting of your career. Perhaps the counteroffer is a guise as they hire somebody to replace you, then you'll be let go as soon as they hire somebody.…
Precisely...
I would say never accept a counter offer. If you decided to leave there must be other things that bother you besides money.
Those reasons aren't going to change. So if you accept more money you would be happier for about 6 months and then reality will settle in... and would still be unhappy and planning to leave anyway.
Even if you are happy with your current job and the only reason to leave is to have a pay increase, when you receive a counter offer with more money you shouldn't stay either. Because a raise by means of counter offer, means that salary at your current employer aren't fair and are based just on negotiation skills alone.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#7If it's a large organization - get out.
If it's a small organization - stay if you actually like it.
The difference is that small organizations understand people, the risks, the sacrifices, etc, because they're still human. Large organizations only care about their bottom line. They will hire your replacement, probably a junior level person, train him up, replace you, and then do the same thing to him years later when he realizes he hates it for the same reason you do.
Besides, life is about growing and doing new things. Not the same shit forever for a 2.5% raise (if you even get that)
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#8If you ask your current company for higher salary/responsibility/etc and don't get it until you quit to take another offer, you have learned that your current company is reactive and only responds to threats. In other words, your current company is not a good place to work.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#9I think that an important step is to pre-empt the counter-offer.
When you even start to consider another opportunity, think about why you actually want to move to the new opportunity. Is it that you need more money? Is it that you want to work on a different kind of project? Is it that you need more stimulation?
Then go to your employer, and without bringing up the other opportunity, see if they are willing to make the change that you want. Don't be angry that they haven't already done it for you, until this point you didn't even necessarily know you wanted it, you can't expect them to.
If they accept, then you are in an environment where you're happy, and your employer is probably happy that you are motivated and taking steps to make things happen. If they reject your offer, then pursue the better opportunity.
In that case, if they do give you a counter-offer, it's either going to be less than you need, which makes it easy enough to say no to. Or they will be offering you the same thing you've already asked for and declined to provide, which means they are doing it out of desperation and you can expect they will to an extent resent it if they feel it's something they can't afford, or they will have been actively trying to take advantage of you by denying you fair treatment when you asked for it directly.
I think first decide what it is you need, then give your employer the opportunity to provide what it is you need of their own accord, then accept an offer with another employer who can provide what it is you need. Then you don't have to worry about the counter-offer. You've already gone through it once on your terms.
If you don't make your employer aware that you want a change prior to your resignation, and they would have been willing to offer it to you all along if they knew, you're both in an awkward position. If the counter offer is exactly what you want and you take it, there will be some soreness and a passive-aggressive attitude that will persist. If you ask for what you want and get it prior to saying "Or else I quit" it's much smoother sailing for everyone.
Re: When You Get a Job Counteroffer: Should You Stay or Should You Go?
#10From my experience, an employer should only counter-offer if they're truly desparate. Just like this article says, the employee has already decided to leave once, it's not going to take alot to get them to decided to leave again. In addition, though, counter-offering one employee signals to others that they can route around the usual process for promotions and raises by coming in with an offer of their own.
I worked at a place where they counter-offered two above average (but not great) developers who were working on an important client project. The two accepted the counter-offers, but still left for good in a few months. Everyone else in the office that wanted a raise or promotion now knew what they had to do to get raises: find another job and bluff. It put a big dent in the company culture.