The employer has effectively bribed an employee to stay . They know their employee ’ s heart wasn ’ t in it , and that they felt disgruntled enough to put themselves through the rigmarole of finding another position . My advice to employers : if you have people who are mission critical , make sure they know how valuable they are and they are happy with the salary and conditions you are providing . Consider what you would offer to make them stay and don ’ t let them get to the point of resigning .
The employee has made the decision they were unhappy where they are , that their head was looking elsewhere and their heart wasn ’ t in it . They may have already moved on mentally and become excited about their new role . To accept a counteroffer is effectively a step back into their comfort zone – and we all know that isn ’ t where the magic happens . My advice to employees : if there is even a tiny chance you would accept a counteroffer , then talk to your employer . Tell them how you feel and why . Be open and honest about what you need to feel loved and appreciated . You may get exactly what you want , even if you don ’ t then at least you have tried . They will not sack you for voicing your opinion and you have saved yourself , the recruiter and your potential future employer a lot of time and energy .
A better way So , in a nutshell , counteroffers are a bad idea for everyone involved . They simply enable an employer to kick the issue into the weeds . It ’ s a knee-jerk reaction to an immediate problem . It may solve the problem of today , but it is not a long-term strategy , because if an employer genuinely didn ’ t want that employee to leave then they should have acted before .
Employees need to also remember that if they accept a higher salary , they will be expected to do more for it . The employer will always regard them as the person who wanted to leave and they will look at them differently .
Saying all that , it is possible they are one of the 10 % who does well after accepting a counteroffer , so it ’ s not always a foregone conclusion , but I won ’ t be holding my breath .
The employer / employee relationship is just that ; a relationship . How would you feel about a spouse or partner who came back after saying they wanted to leave to pursue something new and shiny ? It just doesn ’ t bode well for any relationship , does it ? CN www . conference-news . co . uk