Congratulations! You’ve accepted a new position with a new company and it’s time to give the boss your notice. You do, and they present you with a counter offer. Now what?

Not everyone leaves a job to make more money.

There’s the commute, the technology and tools being used, the work environment, a demanding boss or restrictions on upward mobility…you name it – there is a laundry list of reasons as to why people start looking and eventually, change jobs.

If you are an individual on the search, keep in mind that when you give your notice and receive a counter offer, there are very few things that can really change.

As a Sr. Technical Recruiter, I’ve seen many attempts, successful and not, on presenting or accepting a counter offer. Here are my top 3 observations and why they lead to just saying, “No, thanks.”

1. The most obvious change that can be made in accepting a counter offer is compensation, and likely the only other change could be gaining responsibilities/getting promoted. My question is:  Why did it take a resignation to get the raise or added responsibility you deserve?
2. Technology/tools being used will still be the same, the commute will still be the same, the environment will still be the same, and your boss will likely be the same. Nine times out of ten, these reasons contributed to the reason you sought out other opportunities in the first place.
3. Accepting a counter offer might get you more money and more responsibility in the short-term, but that doesn’t change any of the other factors. It also tells your employer that you were looking to leave, which if it were to come down to layoffs or workforce reduction, that could affect who they choose to layoff first.

That short-term win of getting a raise or promoted will likely wear off in six months as none of the other factors have changed. You’ll likely start looking for a new job all over again.

Save yourself the time and effort – don’t accept a counter offer.

Being prepared for a counter offer will put you in a good place when resigning from your current job. See my previous post, “Be Prepared for a Counter Offer When Giving Your Notice” for more on not getting caught off guard by a counter offer.

Rich Drennen, Senior Technical Recruiter at Talution Group brings more than 13 years in the industry to the Objective Paradigm team. Rich has immersed himself in the Chicagoland Tech Recruiting landscape, having supported clients that range from private startups to Fortune 500 global companies. Rich is a member of the 2017 Objective Paradigm’s President’s Club. Connect with Rich on Twitter @Talution_Rich