HR Playbook: The Counter Offer Conundrum
There’s an interesting, almost magical growth in a person’s value to the organization, as soon as they have another job offer. I’ve seen managers, who have very recently rated an employee as mediocre or poor, hurriedly change that rating to ‘irreplaceable’ as soon as the employee has an offer. Now, did the employee’s performance magically swing upward that morning, or did the manager find herself at risk of being short-staffed? If this is how an organization rates the value of people, are the most valuable employees the dissatisfied ones who are most actively seeking other opportunities? What to Do? Managers like the above will commonly come to HR, pleading for their very existence, and insist that we counter offer. And, of course, the counter is conveniently positioned right at, or slightly above what the organization has presented. As a general rule I have taught my HR teams and organizations that “we do not do counter-offers.” Of course, there are exceptions, bu...