Wise men say only fools accept counteroffers (and also ‘rush in’ apparently, but I ain’t gonna break out into a rousing chorus of ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love With You at 10:03 on a Tuesday morning).
Accepting a counteroffer is one of the biggest no-nos in the recruitment field. Everyone, with a half decent standing in the HR and recruitment sector, will tell you that accepting a counteroffer (or a gilt-edged, bad intentioned, last-ditch, mega desperate, dirty bribe as we like to call them) is the most terrible-ist of terribly terrible ideas.
The thing is if you’ve already done your darndest to improve your working conditions, pay, job satisfaction, etc. then how will a simple pay rise solve those other long-standing issues?
You also have to question the actual intention behind a counteroffer.
Does your current employer think you are more valuable than being replaced by someone else, or can they just not be bothered with the hassle of finding your successor and think bunging you some extra cash will save the effort? You’ve also gotta ask yourself where’s this extra cash coming from?
Spoiler: It’s out of your next pay rise. You aren’t getting any pay rise for years now.
What’s more, it sours your entire relationship with your boss. From now on you’ll be known as the problematic wantaway who’ll be first out of the door when cutbacks are needed and consistently overlooked for promotions.
Also, think about the poor company you agreed to work for before accepting the dirty counter offer bribe? Do you like it when you make plans to get banana milkshakes with your friend, and then they flake on you because they’ve been made a better offer? No, you don’t. You love banana milkshakes!
So don’t do the dirty on your new employer, it’s not nice, and you never know when it might come back to bite you. Stick to your guns, remember your reasons for leaving in the first place and what attracted you to the new company.
Between 75-90% of people who accept counteroffers end up leaving in 6 months anyway for the reasons, we’ve mentioned above.
Don’t be a fool, don’t accept the counteroffer.
