October 2025 – Why Counter‑Offers Are the Next Battlefront in Hiring

The trend line clearly shows we’re not imagining it, the role of SEEK in attracting talent is fading fast.

Despite having more active roles than all of our competitors combined, we practically run zero ads. Why? Because SEEK isn’t delivering like it used to. That shift forces a new approach.

Recruitment today is a proactive sport. We’re not screening applicants, we’re identifying talent, building rapport, creating interest, and carefully positioning your opportunity. It’s less job ad and more headhunt. Even if we avoid the word, that’s exactly what it is.

But here’s the challenge: when you approach someone who isn’t actively looking, you also increase the chances they’ll be counter-offered. They weren’t unhappy, they were intrigued. And that makes them easier to retain with just a few tweaks to their current role.

I can remember a time when you’d send out the first wave of emails about a role and start receiving applications before the final merge had even completed.

Now, every unicorn we find needs a carefully crafted message, along with a plan for how they’ll be retained or countered when they try to leave their paddock.

So how can you position your hiring process to handle this reality?

• Anticipate the counter-offer
  Ask early: “If your employer made a play to keep you, what would change your mind?” This isn’t just about money, it’s about motivation, values, recognition.
• Build an offer that sticks
  Don’t just sell the job. Sell the whole value proposition. That includes team dynamics, leadership access, visible career pathways, development, flexibility, and recognition. Show them how your business is planning for their next two years, not just their next pay cycle.
• Move with urgency
  Time is a competitive risk. Every day between offer and start gives their current employer time to prepare a counter, or for second thoughts to creep in. Contracts, references, onboarding — speed matters.
• Create a loyalty arc
  Make it easy for candidates to imagine themselves with you long-term. Visual timelines, induction plans, leadership access, early wins. The more they feel part of the future, the harder it is to stay in the past.
• Debrief losses
  If someone accepts a counter-offer, ask why and learn. Was it pay? Security? Status? It’s intelligence for the next candidate.

2. Understand the candidate’s perspective and how to help them through it

When a candidate receives a counter-offer, the emotional weight is huge. They feel wanted. Validated. Maybe even guilty.

But unless money was the only issue, research and experience suggest counter-offers rarely deliver long-term satisfaction.

According to Robert Half, 58% of Australian employers report seeing more candidates accept counter-offers in the past year. Yet just 20% believe those counter-offers are effective for retention beyond the short term.

The Cornell University HR research brief What Are Best Practices Relating to Counter-Offers? found that only 16% of those who accepted felt better about their employer afterward. Most reported declining engagement or trust, and many still left within a year.

SHRM-based insights suggest over 50% of employees who accept a counter-offer end up leaving within six months. The number rises to 80% within a year in broader industry studies.

The Harvard Business Review outlines the hidden costs of counter-offers, not just financially, but in trust and perception. Once someone resigns, their psychological contract with the employer changes. They may be viewed differently by leadership or overlooked for future advancement.

So when you’re hiring, don’t just walk the candidate through your offer. Help them anticipate the headwind.

Here’s what they’ll need to ask themselves:

• • Why did I consider leaving in the first place? Has that issue been addressed, or just covered over?
  • Why did it take my resignation to be recognised or rewarded?
  • Is this counter-offer a short-term fix or part of a longer-term change?
  • What does the next 6–12 months really look like if I stay? Will I still trust my employer? Will they trust me?
  • Does the new role excite me, or am I staying because it’s easier?

As the hiring manager, your role is not just to pitch, but to guide.

• • • Acknowledge their situation: “It’s flattering to be counter-offered. It shows your value. But let’s look at the bigger picture.”
    • Compare depth, not just dollars: What leadership, scope, and momentum do you offer that their current role can’t match?
    • Reaffirm their reason for exploring: Often they’ve already mentally left, remind them why.

The right nudge, the right conversation, the right roadmap, that’s how you help them make a long-term choice.

Final Word

If you’re going to play in the talent market today, you need to be thinking three moves ahead. Counter-offers aren’t rare, they’re expected. They’re part of the hiring journey now.

Whether you’re in-house HR, a DP, or a department head trying to hire that game-changing candidate, the reality is clear: it’s not over when they say yes. It’s over when they start, and stay.

Counter-offers complicate that path. But with the right prep, the right conversations, and a clear plan, you can win more often than you lose.

And if you’re a candidate? The same applies. Think about where you want to be,  not just what you want to earn.