Resignation Counter Offer, are these rare?

discount81

Hi

So today I was offered a really good job working in an industry I never really thought I would work in, System Engineer role for a Movie Studio who works on major blockbuster films.
It's a nice 30% pay bump from my current role, only downside is the commute, but I think the extra money, and the experience of working in such a cutting edge environment like this will make up for the commute (not too bad 45ish minutes).


I've quit a few jobs before, but the circumstances were different, either I worked in a fortune 500 and I was just a small cog so leaving meant nothing, or it just wasn't a cultural fit so I left on amicable terms.

In my current job I am pretty integral to the sites I manage, they rely upon me pretty heavily so there will be a little bit of surprise when I resign.

I'm curious how many people have received counter offers upon their resignation from a job?
I doubt they will counter offer me anything, but I'm just wondering if it does happen, what can I expect ?

GreaterNinja

Ok, just a little background info: I only asked for a raise because I had money saved, I knew I could quit my job (I had a day job and a business I ran), and my girlfriend and I have lived apart now for about a year and a half (jobs).

My last day job: raise @ 12 months when contract came up for renewal 14.7% = 10k/yr
Then I asked for a raise at 24 months, they said no. I put in my two weeks notice.
They told me they need me and they moved me from FTE exempt to Hourly + OT. This bumped me 20-25k/yr more.
This put me at 110-115k/yr as a Desktop/ System Engineer in Phoenix, AZ. Definitely on the high end.
I still left because I was working 12-18 days straight at a time. I was so burned out I did not want to touch my school work for my MSISA program @ WGU. My health was taking a hit...I could literally feel a lot of blood pressure in my neck.

After I quit my job...life is so much better: Gym 3-5 times a week, School, Certs, and working on moving to Bay Area to live with my g.f. of ~5.5 years.

So the lesson learned: Life is short. Money is secondary. Don't let other people hold you down by guilt tripping you or saying you are worth X amount of dollars.

Other story: My 2 coworkers that asked for raises got laid-off last week. Be prepared to jump ship or get fired if you talk about raises or other job offers.

joelsfood

Resignation counter offers are not unheard of, but not common. Even if they make one, many experts say you shouldn't take it, as that resignation, even though not completed, will always color future interactions at this business.

Jon_Cisco

Work takes up a lot of your day. If your leaving because you were ready to move on then I would suggest moving on from any counter offer.

If the only reason you are leaving is because you could not pay your bills without the raise then maybe you have a personal choice to make. It's your life so do what fits your needs. When I left my last company they asked me to negotiate and I had a lot of leverage only because I filled a need pretty well. I politely declined because money was not what prompted me to move on.

In talking to people in IT I get the feeling companies are more then happy to turn over Tech talent so it might be less common. I have no real experience in that environment yet.

dave0212

Counter offers are very common, I have had a counter offer at my last 3 jobs, the most recent was also followed up with another job offer after I had already left.

I refused them all, I always move roles for a reason.

N2IT

I highly disagree money is secondary. If it wasn't for money most people wouldn't go to work. Money is always primary when it comes to a job or at least it should be. I agree other factors weight heavily into a job, but to discredit money is ridiculous.

I also don't buy into the static rule that counter offers are bad. I have several friends who moved up leveraging that strategy. One of which went from the NOC at Century Link/Savvis in 97 to a Senior Program Manager, head account HBO, which was Savvis's largest account. This was in ~8 years, he made 6 jumps. It all started with a counter offer, he said he was going to take an account management position with a competitor and they loved his work ethic and behavior. He ended up getting a 100% raise and a new set of responsibilities.

This is not the only time I have seen this either. I personally think the counter off is just as likely to pan out as it is to fail.

Either way the main thing is the OP is happy. I wish you the best that's what counts.

MrAgent

Years back I was ready to move on to another role. I only wanted to leave because I wanted more money and less travel.
I received an offer and told my company I was leaving. They ended up counter offering for 5k more and a promotion, with less travel. I ended up staying there a couple more years.

Some times counter offers aren't bad.