> Using it as leverage with your current employer will damage your relationship with them, even if you win that negotiation. In larger companies at sufficientl

> Using it as leverage with your current employer will damage your relationship with them, even if you win that negotiation. In larger companies at sufficiently deep levels in the hierarchy, often the person you are really negotiating against is not the line manager you have a tight relationship with (the other party is usually a Director/VP + their HRBP + some remote comp analytics team by proxy). In fact, assuming this is not a high frequency event, bringing a competing offer may make your boss's job easier and give them extra ammunition and help them justify your extra comp request outside the preallocated budget (which can often be too limited or too inflexible). Of course they can't explicitly tell you this but always watch for the nudges and signals.