Libraries in the shadow of history: the Dominican Republic

This paper focuses on problems of accelerated staff turnover by looking in retrospect at the staffing phases that the University of Zimbabwe Library went through. Between 1991 and 1993, staff turnover culminated in a loss of over 55% of the professional staff from an establishment of 25 (professional staff). The paper discusses three categories of problems and situations that led to the accelerated staff turnover, and the turnover's impact on the library service. Suggestions are made on ways in which the situation could be remedied and possibly prevented from recurring. Staff retention strategies discussed include among others, human resources planning and development, staff motivation, organizational redesign, and competitive remuneration packages. This paper concludes that human resources are perhaps the most vital resource required to run an institution, and as such, should be given a corresponding priority in the strategic planning process.