Risky decision... doing the right thing?!

[Previous]

Hi all. Looking for the usual input, and this time perhaps some reassurance....

TLDR: I'm mid 40's, Planning to move- offered a lucrative counter offer. Giving up better money now, for a job with broader development potential. Worth it?

Having flirted with change for several years, I'm in the process of changing jobs.

New company - Head of department. Widely recognised title in our industry, smaller company than current organisation. This role comes with a need to rebuild, structure, manage and lead a team, and that's been a gap on my CV for a while (led various projects and programmes however).

+10% salary and a slightly bigger bonus.

My current company have said they recognise I feel I haven't progressed, and that they I) want to keep me and ii) want to offer me a new role to stay.

The new role on offer is fundamentally a strategy role - so continue doing what I'm doing at bigger scale. Leadership yes... But with no team it's 'influencing others'.

The kicker.... They'll match the new role salary, half now and half in 6 months.... Match the bonus.... And add a large ( nearly half my salary on top) Long term incentive plan in deferred shares annually (but they need to be held for three years). That could be worth 50k per year in theory.

It's a hard thing to turn down, and it could take years at the new job before I'm offered something that competes - if ever.

Equally, If I stay I become pigeon holed and would find it harder to move if I ever needed to in future (or I stay, love it and in 15 years retire with some shares)

So...become the strategy guy or back myself to broaden my skills and hope the value comes good in time?

What would you do / what did you do, and how did it work out?!

Thanks!

Edited by Previous on Monday 8th June 20:54

[Flint-head]

Previous said:

Hi all. Looking for the usual input, and this time perhaps some reassurance....

TLDR: I'm mid 40's, Planning to move- offered a lucrative counter offer. Giving up better money now, for a job with broader development potential. Worth it?

Having flirted with change for several years, I'm in the process of changing jobs.

New company - Head of department. Widely recognised title in our industry, smaller company than current organisation. This role comes with a need to rebuild, structure, manage and lead a team, and that's been a gap on my CV for a while (led various projects and programmes however).

+10% salary and a slightly bigger bonus.

My current company have said they recognise I feel I haven't progressed, and that they I) want to keep me and it) want to offer me a new role to stay.

The new role on offer is fundamentally a strategy role - so continue doing what I'm doing at bigger scale. Leadership yes... But with no team it's 'influencing others'.

The kicker.... They'll match the new role salary, half now and half in 6 months.... Match the bonus.... And add a large ( nearly half my salary on top) Long term incentive plan in deferred shares annually (but they need to be held for three years). That could be worth 50k per year in theory.

It's a hard thing to turn down, and it could take years at the new job before I'm offered something that competes - if ever.

Equally, If I stay I become pigeon holed and would find it harder to move if I ever needed to in future.

So become the strategy guy or back myself to broaden my skills and hope the value comes good in time?

What would you do / what did you do?

Thanks!

I made a similar call about eight years ago. Stayed for the counter offer. Regretted it within eighteen months.

Here’s the thing with counter offers: the company has just told you everything you need to know about how they value you. Not at the start, when they could have promoted you and given you the development you’d been asking for. At the end, with your resignation letter on the table and a replacement to recruit. That’s when you became worth matching plus a LTIP. Ask yourself why it took that.

The deferred shares are the interesting bit. £50k per year sounds compelling until you stress test it. “In theory” is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. What’s the share price done over the last three years? What’s the vesting schedule if you leave, or if they restructure your role, or if there’s an acquisition? Deferred comp is a retention mechanism first and a reward second. They’re not giving you £150k over three years out of generosity – they’re buying three years of you not leaving, during which time you’ll be exactly as pigeon-holed as you fear.

The CV gap you’ve identified is real and it matters. “Influencing without authority” is a perfectly respectable skill but it’s not the same line on a CV as “built and led a team from scratch.” At mid-40s you’ve probably got one or two more significant moves in you before the market starts treating you as a known quantity rather than a prospect. The Head of Department role fills a genuine gap. The counter offer fills your bank account while keeping you exactly where they want you.

What would I do? I’d take the new job. The money will come back. The window for genuine development in a new environment has a shelf life.

Good luck – sounds like you’ve already made the decision, you’re just looking for someone to tell you it’s the right one.

[Terminator X]

Why were you thinking of leaving? Always remember that imho as a leopard won't change its spots.

TX.

[Thebaggers]

Take the opportunity and learn from it. I regret staying in the same place for too long looking back. It will add value for future employers. No job is certain and the recent changes (don't quote me but I think they have arrived) protect you to a fair degree.

Edit to add that counter offers are often a bid for time from a smart employer to make other arrangements, i.e you are dead to them, when you have shared your intention they need to plan the contingency.

Edited by Thebaggers on Monday 8th June 21:04

[Hoofy]

Generally-speaking, if something improves your career prospects down the road but might not be so financially-attractive now, providing you can afford to lose money at the moment then it's probably worth it - only you can really appreciate the future upside to such a risky move.

And as for a promise of money in the future either from your current or new employer, GET - IT - IN - WRITING! All it takes is any random event (the number 34 bus no longer stops outside, cheddar cheese is now less popular than brie etc) as an excuse for them to change their mind. Or the person making such promises leaves the company and you have no proof to show HR or your new manager so you lose out.