​How effective is the counteroffer as a retention strategy – and is there anything else companies could be doing to hang onto their talent? We’re going to take a look at some of the reasons counteroffers fail and what else employers could be doing to stop their top talent slipping through their fingers.

How popular is the counteroffer?

We’ve been in the recruitment business for over 20 years and we have come to expect the counteroffer. It’s something we prepare our candidates for (you can read more about this in our blog How to avoid losing candidates between offer and start date).

We’ve also seen the trend for matching or beating a salary offer increase significantly over the last few years. In fact, according to research by the CIPD, 4 in 10 employers admit to having made counteroffers in the past year in an effort to retain hard-won skills.  

Here are three reasons why a counteroffer might not change your employee’s mind – and links to some of our past articles to help you improve your chances:

1.     Money isn’t the only reason they want to leave

Even if your counteroffer is accepted, the employee may not stay for very long if pay isn’t the only reason they want to leave. This is why employers should always use the counteroffer as an opportunity for a wider conversation around areas like wellbeing, culture, team dynamics and career development. There could be other things that need fixing in order to retain talent. By offering a safe space for open and honest conversation, employers can often learn about challenges that could lead to other people leaving too.

It can really help to understand what could be influencing your staff member to look elsewhere. We recommend reading our article Top 5 reasons why employees stay or leave their HVAC role

2.     The overall package is better elsewhere

Simply matching or beating a salary might not be enough if the whole renumeration package is more attractive elsewhere. Employers should ask their departing employee about bonus or commission and other benefits they are being offered, including holiday entitlement and flexible working. Competition for some sought-after roles in engineering and HVAC sales is high, which means companies are enhancing their incentive packages and becoming more flexible about working arrangements to capture hard-to-find talent.

To understand more about the motivations of staff who resign and how to retain them, you might be interested to read our article on incentive packages: What’s the difference between commission and bonus and which one is best?

3.     They want to work for a higher profile brand

There are firms in every industry whose reputation is so strong that people really want to work for them. Sometimes, candidates will take a job with a big-name firm even if the salary isn’t hugely different from their current one. This makes it very hard for the existing employer to compete. There are still things organisations can do to improve their appeal. Offering additional training or a defined career path or promotion are a couple of things that we have seen work well for employers who find themselves in this situation.

 You can find more ideas in our blog 5 unexpected ways HVAC companies are making themselves more appealing to candidates.

If you need help recruiting candidates to fill your skills gaps and meet your growth plans call us on 01158714777.