Becki Hume
The Counter-offer conundrum | Part 1
#Help & Advice
Part 2 | The candidates perspective
In the HUGE candidate shortage the UK employment market has faced over recent years, most of us have been approached about several jobs on an ongoing basis and it can be really tempting to engage in conversation. You’ll likely find you’re in one of 3 categories as a candidate:
-
You’re desperate to find a new role and open to considering all opportunities. -
You ignore everything sent to you because you’re super settled and not remotely interested in moving company. -
You keep an eye peeled on a tentative basis and engage with new opportunities occasionally.
If you’re in category 1 it sounds as though you have some deep routed issue with your current employer and it could benefit you greatly to move on to your next opportunity.
If you’re in category 2, don’t fix what isn’t broken! Health and happiness in the workplace are so important, if you already have this, it’s worth bearing in mind the grass isn’t always greener.
If you’re in category 3 this article is for you!
It’s important to understand your own personal motivators for engaging with prospective new opportunities and react to those factors in the best way. It’s often helpful to ask yourself “Do I really want to leave my current employer”.
If the answer is no, consider sitting down with your line manager and addressing what could be improved for you in your current role. See how they listen to you and react and take it from there. However, it’s always worth taking in some solutions and suggestions to conversations with your Line Manager to show proactivity and cooperation on your side.
If the answer is yes, take the time to understand why that is, and factor it in to questions in interviews you have with potential new employers. It’s also worth being conscious of these factors in case you’re tempted with a counteroffer further down the line, be in a position to protect yourself from being bamboozled by the money!
Let’s take a deeper look…
❌ Accepting a promotion on the basis things will be different and you will have new responsibilities
✔️ Accept a promotion on the basis your original role is being backfilled to ensure you don’t end up doing 2 job roles! Be sure to get a full new job description and have the confidence that your employer is going to make adjustments
❌ Accepting a pay rise as an easy option and hoping it will mask the other issues you have
✔️ Accept a pay rise in fully understanding what your line managers expectations of you are with this increase, but this also needs to be alongside other developments being made
❌ Accept an increase in holiday allowance and a promise of better flexibility
✔️ Understand how your employer intends to support you moving fully with the flexibility you need and what they are putting in place to ensure these changes are successful for you both, otherwise it could just be empty words!
There’s usually so many factors to contend with when deciding if it’s the right time for you to move on from your current employer, whether to accept a new employment offer or whether to accept a counteroffer, and there really is no right or wrong, but there are things you can do and measures you can put in place to ensure the best possible chance of success for yourself with whichever avenue you choose to go down.
More insights and resources