Leaving Your Job What Smart Jobseekers Need to Know - Part 5 of 5 Part Series - Sterling Career Concepts

Leaving Your Job What Smart Jobseekers Need to Know - Part 5 of 5 Part Series Leaving Your Job? What Smart Jobseekers Need to Know Part 5 of 5 Part Series When a job seeker turns the page on his or her current position and is seeking new employment, it is rare they think about all the “what ifs.” One of the most commonly overlooked “what if” is: “What if they want me to stay?” Be prepared for a counteroffer from your current employer. When your employer finds out you are leaving, you may be tempted with an offer to stay. However, most research and anecdotal evidence on this subject finds that employees who accept a counteroffer often end up leaving the company anyway, often within a year. I witnessed this first-hand during my time as an executive recruiter. In many cases, your current employer may make a counteroffer out of panic and for their own best interest. If you are instrumental to a current project, for example, your supervisor may be desperate to keep you until the project is complete. Once that happens, however, you may find yourself expendable. Also, employees who accept another job offer â€" even if they ultimately end up staying in their current position â€" may be perceived as “disloyal.” You were seeking a new position for a reason. If your motivation was purely financial, you may receive a counteroffer that meets that need, but it may create dissatisfaction with your co-workers if they learn you stayed with the company and received a raise. If you were seeking a new job for other reasons, staying at the company may not resolve those issues. If you do accept a counteroffer and decide to stay with your current company, make sure you have an open and honest dialogue with your supervisor about any changes that need to be made. Again, look to your reasons for seeking a new position in the first place. Can these be addressed? For example, taking on different assignments, or making changes to the structure of the position (i.e., different hours) can be critical changes. Simply staying in exchange for more money won’t make you any more successful in the same position â€" which will likely lead to your eventual departure from the company anyway. If you handle your departure from the company with grace and tact, you may find the door is open for you to return to the company in the future. New positions don’t always work out, and mergers and acquisitions (especially in smaller industries) are a possibility. Without trying, you may find yourself working for the same supervisor or company in the future. *** Hopefully this five-part series provided relevant tips, strategies, and techniques to utilize in your job search. We are always available to coach you through the stages of negotiating and accepting an offer and resigning from your current position. It’s an exciting?yet nerve-wracking and still very critical?part of the job search process.