A candidate I worked with was close to an offer from another company and hid it from everyone. Then he overplayed his hand: he went to my client and the other company asking both for increases, assuming he could start a bidding war.
The whole thing blew up. Both companies pulled back, and he started his entire search over from zero.
Multiple offers put you in a strong position, and if you’ve never been there before, it can feel awkward. As a software sales recruiter, I’ve watched candidates handle it with grace and transparency, and I’ve watched others play it like a poker game. The second group tends to start new searches. Here’s how the first group does it.
There’s usually a clear winner among the companies you’re talking to. Make that decision and know exactly why.
Once you have a first choice, your rule is simple: they get preferential treatment at all times. Take their calls and answer their emails promptly. Book every interview at the first date that works. Tell them they’re your number one choice and that you’re still interviewing elsewhere until you have an offer in hand. Be transparent about where you stand in your search.
Share your timing with the hiring manager and pay close attention to the response.
If they accelerate their process to compete for you, that’s a good sign. But you may hear something like: “John, I know you need to do what’s right for you and your family. But this is our process, and it may take us longer than you apparently have. I understand if you’re not available when we’re ready for final interviews.”
That’s your cue to turn your attention to your second choice. It stings, but it’s a clear signal. You want to work for the people who want you there, and you don’t want to be the backup candidate in a process built around someone else.
One of my candidates told me from the start which role was his number one, and when he expected that offer to land. He also told me that if it fell through, my client would be a great second choice. He was upfront the entire way.
Because he was honest, I knew to keep recruiting for my client’s role instead of counting on him. He got his first choice. My client and I got ours. Nobody wasted a minute, and every door he touched is still open to him.
The bidding-war candidate had the same leverage and ended up with no offers and a longer search. Transparency was the only difference.
Some candidates hide competing offers because they don’t know how to talk about them. Don’t. Employers assume strong candidates have options, and most respect your right to choose what’s best for you. What they refuse to be part of: bidding wars, being used to trigger a counteroffer from your current employer, having their offer driven up purely as leverage for your real first choice, and turndowns they never saw coming.
Let each company know where things stand and what your timing looks like. That’s all it takes.
If you ask an employer for more of anything, be ready to accept the offer on the spot if they meet your terms.
Say the base comes in at $120K and you need $135K, or you want the ramp guarantee raised to $8K a month. Ask for it only if a yes means you sign. When a hiring manager goes to bat internally for your extra $15K and you turn the offer down anyway, it gets contentious, and the industry is small enough that it follows you.
Starting over in sales is never easy. New products, new protocols, a new boss to figure out. It’s also how careers accelerate.
Trust your instincts and have faith in your ability to choose. Multiple offers are only stressful when you don’t know what you want. Decide who your first choice is, tell the truth about where you are, and have your references ready, because when you play it straight, the finish line comes fast.
