Effective strategies to mitigate staff turnover in Universities through the establishment of knowledge management units in human resources departments in Zimbabwe.

Abstract

The study explores effective strategies to mitigate staff turnover in Universities through the establishment of knowledge management units in human resources departments in Zimbabwe. The study tries to identify how knowledge management units can address the gap left by seasoned staff by leveraging knowledge sharing, employee engagement, and organisational learning. The total number of human resource personnel across these universities was 40, 18 at University A, 10 at University B, and 12 at University C. We selected a purposive sample of 13 participants, which included five from University A, four from University B, and four from University C. The study was guided by Knowledge Management Theory. The study indicated that there were no knowledge management units at these state universities. The study revealed that human resources personnel believed that KMUs can facilitate knowledge sharing among staff and address staff turnover challenges. The study established that by developing knowledge management units, universities can promote organisational learning and innovation, creating a healthy work environment. The study concluded that establishing KMUs in human resources departments can be an effective strategy to mitigate staff turnover in universities. The study recommended that university human resource departments should establish knowledge management units that facilitate knowledge sharing among staff within different departments using technology to capture, share, transfer, retain, and preserve knowledge. The study further recommended that human resources departments should develop robust programmes that promote staff development to avoid losing critical knowledge from their employees. The study recommended that human resources departments should foster a culture that values knowledge sharing by utilising experienced employees to share their field experiences and pass knowledge to newer staff members.