At a bit of a dilemma with next move

[GuruJockStrap]

Bit of background.

Been working at my current employer for 3 years. Fintech company with approx. 100 employees. I'm a Business Analyst by job title but reality is my role is far more encompassing than that due to the small company nature and getting stuck in. Lots of projects and a busy pipeline of change.

My previous manager was made redundant before Christmas but then reached out to me mid January regarding a role in a contracting capacity (would be first contracting job for me). It would be a step up in company size for for (approx. 5000 employees). Role would be for a 6 month contract to begin, with a view to extending another 6 months and then permanent. It comes with a significant increase in pay for me; breaching the six figure salary. The projects I'd be working on sound great, are longer term strategic initiatives and will be something new for me to get stuck into. Pretty much a done deal for me as there was no way I felt current employer could financially match what's on the table.

I duly handed my notice this week and within 24 hours, had a chat with my current manager. She didn't want me to leave and has offered a significant pay increase to what I'm currently on. The standard pay would be 5 figures but with a 20% annual bonus. That bonus would push it over 6 figures but fall short of the contracting role by £8k (although my managers offer was a starting point, so room there to move).

I have my own list of pro's and con's to staying where I am or moving on but wondering if anyone here has faced a similar dilemma and what did they eventually decided to do. Any regrets?

 

[GuruJockStrap]

Thanks for the advice.

I've asked for my Manager to provide me the details of the offer in writing by tomorrow so I can mull things over the weekend and provide an answer on Monday.

 

[GuruJockStrap]

Are you excited by the new job? Do you want to grow into new challenges, or are you happier being in the comfortable position of your existing work? These seem to me to be the questions to ask yourself rather than looking at small differences in salary.

I'm more than happy where I am to be honest. I'm not in that "mailing it in" zone. There's lots of projects and initiatives always ongoing and each one is exposing me to new tech, skills and knowledge.

Couldn't say that about my previous employer in the final 2.5 years before my redundancy.

 

[GuruJockStrap]

It does sound like the new role interests you more, but I personally wouldn't go contract over perm unless the role and/or pay was significantly better.

Going contract you have to factor in loss of pension contributions, sick pay, redundancy pay and all that jazz.

I don't think £8k (at that level of income even more so) would be anywhere near enough to get me to switch from perm to contractor. Think about the other benefits - annual leave, pension, sick pay etc and you'll be losing money with the new job. Unless you'll get normal employee benefits? Would be rare but not unheard of.

Before the counter offer from my current employer, I would have been looking at a doubling of my income over a 12 month period (assuming contract was extended beyond the initial 6 months). So it was a bit of a non brainer for me.

With the offer on the table now, it doesn't seem appealing given the additional risk that comes with it.