Business gets interpreted at times as ruthless, cut-throat, and lacking care. By this definition, if you're doing business, or acting with business objectives in mind, you simply can't be interested in authentic relationships. People often see the two as opposites when, in fact, business and authentic relationships can be merged to form an uncommon link to success.

A business, no matter what the product or service, is always about serving people. And in today's global competition, it makes good business sense to develop and nurture relationships with all of our customers/ clients/audiences-both external and internal. Leaders at all levels of the organization need to balance the concrete demands of generating income, formulating a mission, and choosing strategies, with the finer points of networking and developing relationships. What's critical in business relationships is conveying that the people you serve matter. This is true externally with buyers of the service or product and internally with direct reports, peers, and stakeholders.

Can people keep the bottom-line issues in focus and at the same time develop meaningful and genuine relationships within the context of business? YES! Many leaders and managers think they can only be competent at one or the other. They may assign themselves the arduous role of 'towing the line' by focusing solely on staying financially viable, creating new ideas for growth, and holding down costs. They decide to leave the 'caring about people' to others because they can't imagine being able to do both.

Other leaders, and sometimes even whole departments, believe that their role is strictly to build relationships. They endeavor to make connections, satisfy the customer, and guide conflict management as amiably as possible. They decline their responsibility to appraise the budget, know how productivity translates into dollars, and recognize the importance of the team meeting quarterly goals.

If the workforce is divided in this way and people do not see the importance of combining the visionary and economic side with the relationship side of business intelligence, people are often at odds. There can be a tendency to measure whose role contributes more to the organization's success and whose is to blame for the roadblocks encountered along the way. If people discover and incorporate ways to combine economic savvy with relationship mastery, the business will thrive.

The first step in blending the two skill sets is for leaders and managers to recognize in themselves—and honestly identify—where they are capable and where deficiencies lie. Acknowledging this is a monumental step. It creates possibility and the opportunity to learn new skills and to awaken others that may simply be dormant. It also provides an occasion to look closely at your peers and tap into the strengths that exist within the team. Utilizing one another's expertise makes business sense economically, and augments the finer points of getting the most from relationships.