Congratulations – you’ve successfully worked through my client’s interview process, you’ve beaten the competition to secure an offer of employment, and you’ve got yourself your dream new job!

At Pardoe Wray, our work is not finished until you are all settled into your new company, and we will offer as much assistance as possible in the coming months to ensure this happens as smoothly as possible. This document highlights some of what you can expect in the coming weeks.

Resigning
Handing in your notice is never easy – it’s not something we have to do often, so here are a few pointers

• You should hand your notice in as soon as possible once your Recruiter has supplied you with the confirmation of your offer in writing. Your new company is likely to want you to join them as quickly as you can, so why delay?
• Prepare your resignation letter – there are many examples available online, or your Recruiter can offer assistance with this. You will of course be speaking with your Manager when you hand in your notice, but they also require your notice in writing. It doesn’t need to be lengthy, just functional. State what your understanding of your notice period is, and what this would mean your (latest) leaving date would be.
• What should I include in the letter?
  • My decision is final
  • I am looking for the earliest possible release date.
  • While not required, it is common to express how you have enjoyed working for them, thank them for the opportunity, but it is now time to move on.

Your recruiter will be in touch before you hand your notice in, and you must call them immediately after to let them know how it went.

What can I expect after I hand my notice in?

• If they say Congratulations– work your notice period and Good Luck!
• If they say Clear your desk and leave this afternoon – in which case we will get you started as soon as possible at your new job.
• They may try to stall you, and delay your decision by saying things like
  • I’m busy at the moment, let’s talk at the end of the week
  • The Managing Director is coming into the business next week and will surely want to talk to you
  • We didn’t want to tell you about your promotion/rise until next month but…..

All of these last 3 are classic tactics related to Counter Offers, and are their way to save time and money in finding your replacement. It is always going to be flattering to have a company appear to move heaven and earth to keep you, so you need to be prepared to instantly become their favourite member of staff, and the tactics they will employ to try to change your decision to leave.

Counter Offers
In this challenging market, where demand for skilled candidates far exceeds availability, companies are always going to try to keep their existing staff. Your Manager will find himself having to re-organise his current team to cover your work, your replacement will not have your knowledge of the business and working practices, let alone the time and expense of actually finding your replacement in the first instance!

It is, of course, going to be hugely flattering to hear about how much your current company values you, whether that is financially or emotionally (by promising you a glowing future if you stay) but studies have shown that over 4 out of 5 candidates that accept counter offers are looking for a new role again within 12 months!

Some points that need to be considered include:

• The same situation that made you start looking for a new position WILL arise again. Any changes to work conditions, project work, additional training etc, will be a short-term fix to keep you with them.
• Where has this extra money come from? Your future training budget? Your next salary review? And more importantly, if they feel you are suddenly worth a pay rise just to keep you, does this mean they have been underpaying before you resigned? Do you really want to work for a company that only gives you what you want when you resign?
• Your company will immediately start paying attention to candidates who could replace you – chances are who are going to be cheaper! It may not happen tomorrow, but if you stay you are giving them the time to recruit. You’ve flagged yourself as a “flight risk”, and the short-term cost resulting from what they give you to stay will be a lot less than having an empty seat. It sounds cynical, but it happens.
• Promises made turn out to be not quite as good in the long term as you were led to believe. Your first few weeks will be like a honeymoon period, but the company is not going to change in the long term just because of you – it will be the same company you wanted to leave, and chances are will want to leave again.
• You’ve made them aware you are not happy – when future promotion opportunities arise, they will remember you were “disloyal”, and when times get tough the new role they created to keep you is likely to become “surplus to requirements”, and cut-backs will start with you!
• You do not need to give reasons for wanting to leave, so do not feel obliged to do so. If you do, you are of course giving them the information needed to attempt to keep you. If you started looking for purely financial reasons, a competitive salary increase can prove very tempting, but just remember it is a short-term fix. How long had they been underpaying you?
• If you started looking due to lack of progression, or for other company organisational issues, then will this really change because you almost left?

By remembering why you started looking in the first instance, and how good your new company felt after you interviewed with them, you can be sure you have made the right decision!