If you are about to resign from your job, be warned.
To save yourself a lot of time, effort and frustration, decline the counteroffer.
Otherwise, you are almost guaranteed to end up back on the job market within a year.
Should You Tell Your Boss Before Starting A Job Search?
Some people elect to have a conversation with the boss before getting too deep into their job search.
If you have a good working relationship with your supervisor, there’s nothing wrong with mentioning that you’re considering exploring other options.
A reasonable manager will appreciate knowing you may be leaving soon.
Having this conversation also gives your supervisor an opportunity to make an offer before you secure employment elsewhere.
With that being said, it shouldn’t take a competing offer or notice of your intention to leave to encourage your current employer to increase your salary or give you other perks to stay.
The organisation should have been taking care of you properly throughout your time there. When you have one foot out the door is not when they should take notice of your value and reward it.
Only a small percentage of employees notify their supervisors prior to starting a job search.
There is no harm in doing so, particularly if you are looking to change industries or at the end of a contract. It’s also necessary if you want the supervisor to serve as a reference for you.
The number of people who notify their boss before a job search in hopes of remaining with the company and securing a better benefits package and salary is limited.
Remember Why You Want a New Job
Before embarking on a job search, ask yourself:
Why do you want a new job? Or perhaps, why do you want to leave your current company?
There are plenty of reasons people leave an organisation or role.
Perhaps the pay is bad. Or maybe they haven’t gotten the expected promotions.
Others leave because they’re bored and aren’t being challenged.
Do you feel overworked? Or underappreciated?
Maybe you can’t stand the boss.
Is the company culture too political? Or too competitive? Or unsupportive?
Is there something about the job that lowers your quality of life or goes against the idea of work life balance?
Counteroffers Address Money, But Little Else
In the end, a counteroffer will probably just be more money. It will not solve the other problems that prompted you to look for another position in the first place.
Accepting a counteroffer is simply delaying the inevitable.
And research has proven this. Most people who accept a counteroffer leave within the year.
Why is that? Quite simply, counteroffers address money, not the things that actually impact workplace happiness and job satisfaction.
Reasons to Reject a Counteroffer
There are number of reasons accepting a counteroffer is not in your best interest.
Over the last few years, the frequency of counteroffers has increased. This is due in part to increased competition.
Companies don’t want to lose high performing employees.
Of course, one way to avoid employees looking for greener pastures is to reward them proactively rather than reactively once they look to jump ship.
If your company offers you a higher salary to stay that indicates they know they’ve been underpaying you for your talent and dedication.
Accepting a counteroffer may lead to colleagues resenting you for being given special treatment and the increased salary they feel entitled to.
Another repercussion of accepting a counteroffer is that it may result in your employer questioning your loyalty.
They will be happy you stayed because you’ve delayed their need to fill a vacancy.
But chances are management will never fully trust you moving forward. They will wonder how long it will be before you return with another resignation letter.
In terms of your career as a whole, there are two more reasons to reject a counteroffer.
A New Role Offers Increased Growth Opportunities
When you are offered a new position, it is a gamble for the new employer.
A new hire is always risky. But there is obviously something the new employer sees in you that makes them willing to take that risk.
There is some potential they recognise and they’re looking at you not just for what you can offer today but how you can grow and add value to the company in the future.
By contrast your current employer probably hasn’t put much though into your future growth.
If they were fully invested in your professional development, you probably wouldn’t have considered leaving in the first place.
As a result, your career trajectory is almost certainly more positive moving into a new role instead of remaining in the current one.
Finally, choosing to stay with your current employer is remaining in your comfort zone.
Moving into a new role forces you out of your comfort zone and results in new opportunities and growth.
In the end, if you decide to resign, do not waiver.
There are very few examples of people who have accepted a counteroffer and been successful long term.
If you prefer to take your chances and negotiate a counteroffer, remember all those reasons you wanted to quit in the first place.
Don’t just renegotiate your salary. Renegotiate the whole package.
Whether it is asking for a corner office or work from home arrangements, request everything that caused you to look elsewhere.
And whatever you do, get in writing all the details of the new counteroffer so you don’t end up back on the job market in six months’ time.
