My clients are growing. They need additional staff, and I am frequently helping them recruit. I posted an IT help desk position last week, and I have a plethora of qualified applicants. But it is rare that I get off the phone with a candidate as enthusiastically as I did yesterday after my call with Brendan.

His resume wasn’t perfect. He had minimal direct experience. He already had two degrees in different fields and was six months into an IT degree. His job history was all over the place. Sales. Marketing. Service. Tech. But it was his persistence that led to the opportunity. His desire and motivation won him a job that wasn’t even open.

Why do I share this with you?

Maybe you have seen the news. Americans are quitting their jobs at a pace we haven’t seen since the Y2K-era dot-com boom. Here are a few stats worthy of your attention:

• 4 Million people voluntarily quit their job in April
• Job changers saw a 30% increase in pay non-job changers in May
• Staffers under 35 are twice as likely to change positions
• Small business wages are increasing at a 3.3%

What does this mean to you?

Your best employees are probably job shopping, or worse yet recruiters are seeking them. If you are not actively retaining staff members, be prepared to replace them. Here are three things you can do today to guard against your team being poached.

Protect your high performers from burnout. Frequently, your best employees are tasked with increasing work until they see no other alternative than to make a clean break. Make sure they are taking their vacations. Are they working too many nights and weekends? Are they showing signs of stress?

Understand their motivation. Have a genuine person to person conversation about what motivates them to come to work every day. Or what would drive them to look elsewhere for a job? Is the work challenging enough? Are you sharing enough client success stories that your team sees the altruism of their work? Money isn’t the only motivator, but perhaps you can proactively narrow the gap.

Invest in the right leaders. Employees will leave a poor leader in droves. Evaluate whether your leaders are leading according to your values. Swiftly and gracefully exit any leader that isn’t a good fit. Then grow those that will lead the organization towards your future state.

Focus on retaining today to prevent recruiting replacements tomorrow.