"offer decline"

i was training last week a group of Recruiters in Chennai. They work for a well known consulting company. While sharing their experiences they were of the opinion that their main concern was -

The increasing bane of offers being turned down by candidates (which i guess is the offshoot of the kind of offers that are being made in the first place)

Now every Company has its own compensation philosphy which guides it, based on which offers are made.
A consultant can attempt to bridge the gap between what the candidate desires and what the company can offer to the extent possible. After that there is not much he or she can do with respect to that.

However i am of the firm belief that all is not lost inspite of that not too fancy compensation offer.

Given below are some ways to ensnare that candidate who is not too happy with the compensation offer.
I have divided it into 3 types of strategy

The Icing Strategy

The Intangibles Strategy

The Tactics Strategy

The "Icing"
Offer him and his family a holiday trip within 6 months of joining
Offer him an attractive joining bonus (of course with a 6 month tie in - that is if he leaves within 6 months he will have to return it)
Offer him a relocation bonus
Offer to reimburse chidren's school expenses - related to relocation
Send him for a training programme on behalf of the new company
Send him a joining gift hamper - which includes coupons for shopping and dining

The "Intangibles"
Get Senior company employees to talk to him and even discuss loosely the future project pipeline(without compromising on confidentiality)
Involve him in any off sites if possible
Keep in touch with him to keep track of the progress on his exit from the current company - if there is no progress that is the surest sign of trouble in
paradise

The "tactics"

Ask him for a copy of his resignation letter email that he sent to his boss.
Get an acceptance email copy also if possible
Get copies of air or train ticket bookings if it is a relocation
Enquire about plans to relocate - spouse's job, children's education, transferring belongings
Discuss about any loans that he is presently carrying and which he would like to transfer
Ask if his replacement has arrived or not and when would that happen
Correlate all of the above through your own sources in the company

The list can go on and on - there is never that innovative idea that cannot be tried out....