Countering counter offers

As a recruiter, fighting a counter offer is a multi step - multi terrain battle. Candidates have choices. They are in demand, and they know it. No matter how strong your offer is, existing employers will try and beat it and for the candidate a known devil is better than an unknown angel.

So, that means recruiting and retaining top talent until the actual start and sometime even beyond becomes part of the job. Attracting and retaining skilled workers has become an extreme challenge with 54% of companies globally report talent shortages. Talent shortages in the U.S. have more than tripled in the last ten years, with 69% of employers struggling to fill positions, up from just 14% in 2010. ?Skilled workers are in control and companies understand employee's priorities to compete. It has always been that way but if covid and the recent talent crunch has anything to teach us...it's the need for recruiters to manage counter offer and competing offers.

So how exactly does that work in 2022 ?

1) Pull factors

Gauge factors in your initial discovery call as well as during early stage of ?interviews. What are you looking forward on your next position? Follow it up with accessing whether the role in offer fits the needs.

2) Push Factors

Why exactly is the candidate looking for a change? Good chance it could be money. But it's always good to explore beyond that. Some most common factors to check

    burnout and depression
    
    increased cost of living
    
    location disruption
    
    need for Skill improvements
         

3) What if

Its always good to ask the questions with a what if scenario. It’s a common mistake made by recruiters to sell their roles as a solution to all problems. Explore the candidate's needs with what if scenarios?

What if you are

???????????????presented with a different supervisor in your current role

???????????????presented with a role in a different org within the company

???????????????provided a fully remote working opportunity in your current role

4) Power of spoken word

Don’t leave it to chance. If you practiced mock interviews with the candidate, its worth practicing Mock resignations too. Its not a bad idea to coach your candidate on the following structure

Announce->

Thank the opportunity->

Showcase sound Judgement ->

?Suggest transition and knowledge transfer

5) Reason

When it comes to time to tell your boss about leaving…everybody dreads it. Before they stress out too much, Educate your candidate these 3 things :

• You accepted the new job for a reason. There was a real motivation for why he/she became interested in that job
• You have to do what’s best for you. Not that you shouldn’t care about the other people in your company, but it’s your career and you have to be honest about it
• Your boss has probably done the same thing before.

6) Time is against you.?

A candidate deliberating on the given offer or counter offer is a ticking time bomb...quite literally! You are expected to deliver the candidate but morally obligated to prepare your client/stakeholders in the event of a back out as early as possible.

Work with your candidate to clear any doubts in your offer rather than let it stick out to being a thorn of contention in the future. According to Glassdoor these factors do make a difference

Benefits. ...

Is Salary Negotiable? ...

Other Perks. ...

Vacation Time. ...

Company reputation. ...

Incentive Compensation

Remote work

7) Cover the Cheese and chalk

In the event of a counter offer, go over the specifics of the counter offer and break it into actionable wants and fluffs. A long list of counter offers when dissected comes down to a few minor goodies and less of a match up to benefits from the existing offer. It all comes down to unlocking the actual value of such items.

8) Get the Commitment to move

Decipher precisely what it is that will encourage them to accept BEFORE THE OFFER. Those priorities might swirl around topics like salary, employer brand, flexibility, workstyle, responsibilities, opportunity, and much more. Do not remain laid back with the efforts from step 1. Its always important to cover them before the offer stage ...and its only fair considering the candidate's motivation to change itself changes over the duration of the interview.

9) Offence and Defense

Even if you performed all of these, it's no foolproof formula and the candidate might still accept a counter offer and you could be back empty handed. At this point, the best thing to do is to keep in friendly contact, especially for the first 6 months. If it's a great candidate, then the chances are you’ll still have a need for them in the future or they might provide a great reference. Call them a few weeks later to check in and arrange to meet them for lunch/coffee/beers for a friendly catch up. Think about it: guess who they’ll be calling first when they’re back in the market ?

10) Statistics and External factors work in your favor

At times, existing employers are aware that counter offer does not buy back loyalty. Instead they are aware

56% of candidates do not negotiate for higher pay when they are offered a job;

51% of candidates are uncomfortable asking for more money; and

47% of candidates are concerned employers will decide not to hire them if they ask.

About 80% of candidates who accept a counteroffer from their current employer end up leaving within 6 months;

9 out of 10 candidates who accept a counteroffer will leave their employer within 12 months; and

50% of candidates that accept a counteroffer from their current employer will be back on the job market after two months

Above all...Let the universe conspire for you.

P S Murthy

#referpra7