Counter Offers
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Counter offers are becoming more and more common within the pensions industry. These may be offered very quickly, or towards the end of your notice period, when your employer has realised how difficult finding a replacement with the same skill set and level of experience can be! Recruiting and training new staff can be costly and time consuming, plus they will lose all the expertise and knowledge you have of the company and role. An employer will therefore be trying to make you reconsider your resignation, either by offering a financial incentive or a change to your role.
It can be very flattering to receive a counter offer, however, always bear in mind the following points no matter how much they offer you or how many promises they make. Statistics prove that accepting a counter offer is rarely in an employee’s best interests and the majority of those who do will have left their employer within 6 months.
Always bear in mind the following points when considering a counter offer:
- Your resignation was a shock. Undertaking a recruitment campaign/additional training is most likely to be an inconvenience to your employer, therefore convincing you to stay makes their life easier. They will be very aware that if you accept it, it is likely to only be a short-term solution. Your employer will probably now be on the lookout for a reserve replacement whether you stay or not. However, your staying buys them extra time to consider their options and potentially locate your replacement. Unfortunately this is not the case for you. Once you have turned down the other offer, it is very unlikely to still be there six months down the line.
Your loyalty is now in question. You will lose the trust that you have built up with your employer. The working environment and the way your colleagues view you will not be the same (at least for a very long time) once they know that you have been interviewing elsewhere. When promotions, company perks or training opportunities arise, you may find yourself missing out to those who have shown a greater loyalty and dedication to the firm.
- If there are future cutbacks, could you be the first to go?
- Post-resignation life with your employer is not going to be easy.
- An increase in salary or a promotion ‘out of the blue’. Why were you not offered an increase in salary previously or told about the changes to your role? Did you have to get a job offer for your employer to notice your hard work and dedication? Even if the promises that are made are sincere, have you just got your next year’s pay rise in advance? Anything offered now is clearly a knee-jerk reaction, surely this only adds weight to your decision to move on?
- Think of your situation in 3 months time. Nothing has actually changed, promises have not been kept. You had been feeling frustrated and discontent before and the extra cash in your pay packet suddenly does not seem so enticing. Now you are even more anxious to leave, unfortunately you may not be able to secure a role similar to the one offered previously and perhaps even end up accepting a ‘less than perfect’ opportunity just because you want to leave your current employer. By staying in a job which does not offer the progression that you craved, you could now be limiting your career potential.
Always remember:
- The reasons why you decided to look for a new job in the first place.
Never take a counter offer because of:
- Guilt, this is your career and you must put yourself first. If you don’t, then no one else will e.g. would it ever work the other way around? If your employer had to make you redundant they may feel guilty initially, but that would not stop you losing your job.Feelings of guilt just demonstrate the loyalty you have had with your employer, a very good thing, but now it is time to transfer that loyalty to your new employer.
