Often when it comes to handing your notice in after you have been offered and accepted a position with another company you may be asked to stay by your current employer - this is also known as a counter offer.

In this circumstance you will usually be offered:

• More Money
• Sometimes Promotion
• More Responsibility

Whilst at the time this may seem like a good offer there are some things to think about. It can often be a daunting prospect moving to another company, however it doesn't necessarily mean that it isn't a positive thing;

Too Little Too Late

Think about why only now the company are willing to pay you more money or offer you a promotion. Surely if you are worth that much to the company they would have acknowledged that before now. Why do the company want you to stay - is it because of what they think you are worth or are there underlying reasons? Would you leaving the company jeopardise an important project, would it cost the company more to replace you than to offer you a slightly higher salary. Would it affect other members of your team causing low morale? Would workload suffer?

Short-Term and Long-Term Benefits

Whilst in the short term a pay rise or promotion sounds good think about the long-term prospects. What would happen the next time you felt you deserved a pay rise - would you have to threaten to hand your notice in again? Also think about the reasons why you wanted to leave the company in the first place - are any of those reasons going to change long term or is it just a short term fix? Think about relations with your boss and your colleagues - would it be awkward in the office - if it came to redundancies would you be first out? 80% of candidates accepting counter offers will leave or are asked to leave within 6 - 12 months of initially handing in their notice.

New Opportunity or Lost Opportunity?

It is also important to think about the opportunities that are on offer with your new employer. Why did you accept the offer in the first place? Which company holds the most potential for your future career development? Why was the offer so appealing? If you decide to accept a counter offer from your current employer the chances are you will have lost your chance of a new opportunity with the new company.