When confronted by an employee who has a job offer in hand, management is often faced with a decision whether to make a counteroffer or not.
This places management in a difficult situation, one that should never have been allowed to happen. In my opinion, management should be able to recognise staff dissatisfaction early on and then implement measures to ensure a high-noon situation is avoided. The situation arising in which a counteroffer needs to be made is often, I believe, symptomatic of the poor management that pervades the IT industry.
There are numerous managerial challenges that present themselves in today`s evolving society. These changes offer new opportunities for all people who are currently operating in supervisory, managerial or leadership roles. This call for a re-evaluation of interpersonal skills will obviously, however, be a growth challenge for a number of individuals but in my opinion is an absolute necessity for companies that want to survive the new economic challenges that are facing our industry.
One of the key reasons for staff receiving a job offer and requesting a counteroffer is because they are trying to communicate something to their manager.
Jill Hamlyn, MD, The People Business
What are some of the more basic ideals that need to be addressed in this new wave of management? My initial response to this question has to be the harnessing of basic communication skills. A good manager will be aware of unhappy staff or someone who may require a more challenging position if they take the time to recognise each individual in their team.
In many scenarios it may often initially appear that the any person leaving an organisation is doing so for better financial rewards. Having been involved in numerous climate surveys and exit interview processes, I would categorically state that this is not in fact a true representation of the current market. In my experience, a large percentage of employees surveyed over the years count money as equally important to job satisfaction, working conditions and career opportunities. Blanket rules and regulations within organisations are, in my opinion, killing both loyalty and more importantly production, leading to unnecessary turbulence and dissatisfaction.
With this fact in mind, I would argue that the need for counteroffers should seldom arise. A good manager will address the soft issues and through an open-door policy become more in tune with staff needs and work towards meeting them in the medium- and long-term.
Valued employees?
A sad factor is that many companies across a variety of industries claim in their mission statements that people are their most precious asset. This is often not the case.
Managers should be better trained in interpersonal skills. One of the key reasons for staff receiving a job offer and requesting a counteroffer is because they are trying to communicate something to their manager. It is a way of expressing possible frustration in the workplace since they may not always have the opportunity to make this known. The prospective job offer is often their only way of communicating unmet needs.
However, having said this, should a staff member approach management with an offer from another company in hand, I believe that a company should not always force the issue or rise to the bait with a counteroffer. A counteroffer is often detrimental both to the company as well as to the employee. It is usually an eleventh hour strategy used to retain staff, but once the staff member has demonstrated a lack of company loyalty, they may be sidelined and promotional prospects greatly diminished.
Threats to leave are often taken seriously by the company whether a counteroffer is made or not. In my experience, companies may retain employees who have signalled their intentions for progress for a short time, but then force that person to leave on the company`s terms. This is a sadly lacking state of maturity at all levels and should be addressed head on in a reasonable manner from both sides. The learning opportunity that presents itself in such a situation can be hugely beneficial to both parties but the opportunity is often missed, leading to a separation of trust that can never be mended when the two parties meet at a later stage. In an industry as small as ours, this scenario plays itself out many times as the paths of ex-employees and managers cross within the market.
The solution to counteroffers rests squarely on management`s shoulders. A good manager will address the soft issues and by putting an open-door policy into practice, become more in tune with staff needs and work towards meeting them in the medium- and long-term.
Overall, while the onus is on management to ensure that staff are happy, staff also have a responsibility to management. It is only after staff trust management that employees will respond in a positive manner, leading to the productivity benefits management expects.
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