In recent years, I have witnessed far too many C-Level professionals deliberately — and I mean strategically — play the “counter offer game”.
These senior leaders work their way through a lengthy executive recruitment process and successfully secure a new employment offer — simply to use it as leverage to bait their current employer into paying them more.
For many, it appears to have been their intention from the very start.
As someone who has worked as a C-Level recruiter in Indonesia for more than 15 years, I know the local recruitment market and its culture very well. Sadly, “the counter offer game” is a growing trend.
Why This Behavior Is Not C-Level
Such strategic conduct is not the mark of a true leader. It is, in fact, a form of scamming.
For everyone else involved in the executive search process — the client company, the headhunter, and the hiring panel — it represents an incredible waste of valuable time and resources.
It is also deeply disrespectful.
A persons reputation, built over many years, can be tarnished quickly when it becomes clear that they have deliberately manipulated the executive recruitment process.
And in senior circles, word spreads fast.
From my experience as an executive recruiter in Indonesia, a true C-Level leader never engages in counter-offer games.
Yet I have seen a number of younger executives attempt this “tactic” — and it always comes across as low-class and short-sighted.
The Cost of Playing the Counter Offer Game
This behavior doesn’t just damage reputations; it also creates tangible losses.
For my clients, my team, and myself, wasted time is wasted investment.
But my concern goes beyond financial cost.
What troubles me most is how these professionals are willing to belittle their own careers and appear unprofessional in the eyes of both potential and current employers.
Why Executives Choose This Path
From what I have observed, many who play the counter offer game believe they are being clever. They feel important, even irreplaceable, as leaders.
Yet paradoxically, they often lack the courage to directly ask their current employer for the salary increase they believe they deserve.
Instead of holding an honest conversation with their current employer, they rely on external offers to make their case.
In my mind, this is a blend of weakness and narcissism — not a good combination.
The Illusion of the Counter Offer
If someone accepts a counter-offer, it raises a very simple question: why did they apply for a new role in the first place?
If the answer is purely money, then why not approach their current boss and make that case directly?
Why commit months of effort to an executive search process, only to use the resulting offer as leverage?
In some cases, candidates may have applied to “test the market”, only to find themselves nervous when they received an actual offer.
They retreat to the safety of their current role, using the new offer to extract more money.
But if their current employer truly valued them at that level, why did it take an external offer to prompt recognition?
The right course of action is clear: if you are not serious about making a move, withdraw from the process before the offer stage.
Respect the time and trust of the company that is looking to hire top talent and the headhunter firm working on their behalf.
Why Accepting a Counter Offer Is Weak
Using a counter-offer as a bargaining tool is, in truth, a weak way of asking to be appreciated.
It is certainly not C-Level behavior.
Mentally, too, accepting a counter-offer reflects weakness. It is always easier to stick with the familiar, to remain in the comfort zone of routine.
What takes real strength is committing to the unknown — embracing a new role, a new challenge, and the personal growth that comes with it.
A genuine senior leader doesn’t apply for a new role unless he or she is prepared to embrace that change.
The Long-Term Damage to Your Career
In the end, accepting a counter-offer is just bad practice.
It stagnates your career, damages your reputation in the market, and erodes trust with your current employer.
Once you have attempted to resign, you have revealed your intent to leave.
Even if you stay, that trust is gone.
Your employer may accommodate you temporarily, as you leaving creates a large short-term headache that needs to be fixed — but they will likely plan to replace you as soon as a credible candidate appears — on their terms, not yours.
Deliberately using a genuine financial offer from a new employer to manipulate your current employer is highly unprofessional.
Ultimately, it is unethical, and certainly not C-Level behavior. Simply put, it is a form of scamming.
About ProCapita: C-Level Headhunters in Indonesia
ProCapita Headhunter Indonesia is one of Jakarta’s leading executive search firms, trusted by companies to deliver top-tier senior talent across all industries and functions.
Since 2014, our highly experienced consultants have completed 1,000+ executive placements, for business-critical roles located throughout the Indonesian archipelago.
Our headhunters work from the C-Level down to the Manager level, combining best-in-class executive search methodologies, deep Indonesian market knowledge, and a professional network spanning 450,000+ candidates to quickly identify, approach and secure elite talent.
We offer traditional executive search services — focused exclusively on targeting high caliber passive talent through discreet, direct, personalized outreach.
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