Love 'em & leave 'em

"One in four team members is actively looking for a job at any given time," says Sheila Grosdidier, BS, RVT, a Firstline Editorial Advisory Board member and partner at VMC Inc. in Evergreen, Colo. "So it's not really an increase that, during a recession, 35 percent of team members are on the hunt." But the vast majority of team members say they're happy in their current positions. So why leave—especially now?

Money is an incentive, but it may not be the driving force. More likely, team members are looking for professional growth. "Many clinics present themselves as a dead end," Grosdidier says. "They say, 'Today you'll be a receptionist and tomorrow you'll be a receptionist.'" Team members need the right balance of challenge and opportunity to love work. So even if your pay doesn't grow this year, try to increase your professional responsibility—and job satisfaction.