Counter-Offers: A Bad Idea in a Good Disguise

Nearly everyone who has ever left one company for another has had to struggle with that ever-alluring proposition known as a counter-offer. This seemingly genuine display of appreciation for your worth is surely the brainchild of Dilbert's pointy-haired boss, for no one actually wins if an employee comes crawling back. When a worker returns to their old position with a few extra perks after he/she has actively sought out and obtained another job, the damage has already been done; metaphorically speaking, it's like trying to treat a gunshot wound with a Band-Aid.

Accepting a counter-offer is quite literally bad news for everyone involved: the potential employer, the recruiter, your present employer, and even yourself. While it may seem like the current company is benefiting by retaining "key" personnel, they have just created a whole new mess of problems. First, they should expect every other employee within earshot to try strategies similar to yours. The management has inadvertently rewarded an employee for seeking opportunities elsewhere. Anyone else who was previously even considering posting their resume online and/or "testing the waters" will surely do so now, for what do they have to lose? Your boss has also just created more work for himself. After all, it would be foolish for the company to not anticipate your eventual departure, if not begin looking for your replacement outright. Allowing you to leave at your convenience instead of on the company's timetable would wreak havoc on the team's workflow, the department's budget, and (God forbid) the vacation schedule. And as a final insult, your boss would experience some backlash for letting a good employee leave and for not having a contingency plan to deal with your absence. It is in the company's (and your boss') best interest to make a counter-offer, but not reveal to you that it is a temporary solution.

An employer will not soon forget that you wanted to leave once, and are likely to leave in the near future, which means your loyalty will forever be in doubt. The near certainty of being replaced is a good example of why there is rarely a solid reason for accepting a counter-offer, but if that isn't enough, consider these factors:

• Your co-workers will never see you the same way again; for one, you've demonstrated that you don't really want to be there, and two, some may consider your tactics to a better position underhanded.
• You may have just won some extra benefits or a raise, but what about future promotions? Has the time until your next advancement been prolonged, or, worse yet, will you just be permanently blackballed?
• Why didn't the company offer you what you deserved before you threatened to leave?
• Sure, you're likely to be raking in the big bucks, but has the counter-offer remedied the real reason you wanted to leave? The paycheck may be different, but the working environment you previously dreaded every morning will be exactly the same.
• You accepted a new position elsewhere because you thought it was a move in the right direction; a counter-offer shouldn't change your opinion of the new company

The disadvantages to the would-be employer are obvious. After investing a significant amount of time, effort, and money into filling the position, they might have to start the process all over again. In the time you were negotiating with this company, it is not unlikely that the other candidates who were told that the job was taken have already gone on to something else and are no longer available. Even if they were, there is something to be said for both parties' perception of this arrangement. The alternative individual realizes they were the second choice and may fear being replaced when someone more qualified turns up, plus the company knows that their selection was forced, leaving them with a less than ideal new employee.

The recruiter hired by this company is equally out of luck. They have lost face, commission, and client confidence. The financial setback for them is nowhere near as severe as the damage that has been done to their standing in the business. Their sole responsibility is to provide companies with dependable workers, and if rumors abound that an agency can't deliver, those recruiters will soon be searching for new careers themselves.

Why should you be concerned about the recruiter and former future employer? It may not be immediately obvious to you, but it will be crystal clear when your egocentric past comes back to haunt you after departing from the current company. And statistics show you will leave. The National Business Employment Weekly reports that four of five people who accept counter-offers end up leaving in the following 12 months anyway; sometimes it is by their choice, sometimes they are given the pink slip. Either way, once the job search begins anew, you may find that your reputation precedes you, especially if your career is set in an industry where competitors know one another and word travels fast. When you burn bridges like that, you might want to consider training for a new vocation.

Remember that counter-offers aren't really about you. More often than not, your boss is in a panic and his first reaction is to devise a plan that will convince you to stay. The idea is flattering, but do not forget what is likely to follow that thought in your boss' mind: "I need to find a replacement right away." When you've found a new job, the best thing to do is hand in a written resignation, walk out of the office, and don't look back. Think of that inevitable counter-offer as an insincere compliment that someone was coerced into making, then decline it. Be proud of your decision to improve your career, and embrace all the wonderful qualities of the new company that made you want to work there in the first place - you won't regret it.