The good thing is that you are in the driver seat and you have two or more companies who were impressed with your qualifications and chose you out of the entire pool of applicants. Now it is time to make the decision that is right for you and your career goals.
Here are some ways to handle multiple job offers so you can feel confident and excited about your final decision.
Don’t Accept the Offer Right Away
When you are first offered a job, never accept the offer right away. This is especially true if you are still waiting to hear back from another potential employer. Even if the company that you have your heart set on gets back to you first, don’t jump at the offer. Having multiple job offers will help you in negotiating benefits and salary matters later on.
When you first receive an offer email or verbal offer, you should thank the hiring manager. Don’t shy away from expressing your excitement and interest in the role. You want to let the potential employer know that you appreciate their confidence in you, but don’t accept the proposal right away. You should ask the hiring manager when they need to receive a decision and politely agree to let them know by that date.
When You Are Still Waiting To Hear Back
In some situations, you may still be waiting to hear back from another potential employer when another decision deadline is quickly approaching. If this is the case, first, you should politely follow up with the hiring manager to ask when you can expect to receive a decision. Then ask the prospective employer who made an offer if you can have additional time because you are waiting for another response. Make sure that you still express your interest in the role to ease any potential doubts that they may have.
Another possible strategy is to express your interest but stall in a professional way. You could ask to meet the rest of the team that you will be working with to get a feel of the company culture or visit the office to shadow someone in a similar role. Contingent job offers will also buy you some time while they perform a background check and other pre-employment screenings.
In any case, it is best to be as honest as possible and respect the potential employer’s time. If you drag out their hiring process too long, you could lose the opportunity or sever a connection that may be valuable in the future.
Assess Your Options
When you have a couple of job offers, it is best to lay everything on the table and compare your options. Highly effective job seekers will outline their ideal job responsibilities with an expected salary, work-life balance, and additional perks before even beginning a job search so that they have an end goal in mind. If you did this, which job lines up best with what you desire in your next career move?
Take the time to read through the offers in full and take notes. Compare Company A to Company B by looking at the salaries, health insurance plans, other benefit plans, and perks. More than just the compensation package, you should also reflect on your interview experience and the personalities of the company employees and supervisors that you met. Can you see yourself fitting in at ABC Company? Consider schedule flexibility factors, vacation time, and the daily commute time. All of these aspects contribute to the decision process and your ultimate happiness in the role.
You should also consider the long-term view. Does this future employer offer career advancement or development opportunities? Does this role fit in with your career objectives? Will this position get you closer to reaching your overarching career goals? When you hold up the different job offers to your bigger picture career ambitions, it will be easier to weigh the pros and cons and make an informed decision.
Negotiate the Offer
After an in-depth comparison, maybe the decision is still too close to make. You could value Company A highly because of the compensation package, but you might like the core responsibilities and company culture of Company B more. In this situation, you should try to negotiate the offer.
It is completely feasible for a company to offer you a higher salary if they know that you have another offer. Research salary negotiation tips and request to meet with the potential employer to negotiate. In the meeting, you can present your other offer and make reasonable requests. At least one round of negotiations should never hurt you and it will only increase your chances of securing an offer that is more aligned with your dream role.
As long as you go into the conversation with an open mind and a positive attitude, you are sure to walk away with a better offer than before. If the potential employer doesn’t make a better offer, then it will be easier to choose the company with the best offer. When you make that final decision, you can write your job acceptance letter with confidence and excitement.
No matter what you decide, be sure to keep it positive and appreciative in communications with each hiring manager. You never know when these connections could benefit you down the line!
Check out our Recruitment Services to learn about how FirstPro can help you navigate the hiring process. Contact Us to be matched with a recruiter.
