Table of Contents Introduction Communication management Employee relation management Team building strategies How the Elements Interact Importance of the Integration of Individuals and Systems Ethical and Social Responsibilities Summary References Introduction The current business environment is experiencing massive competition as many firms struggle to expand their operations to the global market. The only way through which firms can manage this competition is through effective leadership. There are various aspects of leadership and management that need to be given proper consideration if a firm is to achieve success in its operations. In this study, the researcher will focus on three major aspects of the human side of management and leadership. The research will analyze communication management, employee relation management, and team building strategies as three major aspects of management and leadership that can help a firm to overcome its challenges. Communication management Managing communication is one of the most important tasks to managers in the normal running of an organization. In order to manage a group of people, one would need to have a system that allows free communication between various entities within the organization. The leader needs to be informed about the successes and challenges the firm is experiencing in the market by the marketing department. He or she will also need to be informed about the financial position of the firm by the finance unit. The human resource unit must always update the leader about the quality of the current workforce, their ability to meet the expectations of the firm, and any other need to expand or reduce the number of employees (Collins, 2001). The leader needs information from the logistics unit, the insurance unit, and the legal department about various issues that affect the firm. It is, therefore, important to have a proper communication management approach that will make it possible for the leader to get this information from all the responsible individuals. When the decision has been made, the manager will also need a system that will make the information reach all the stakeholders so that it can be implemented. Employee relation management Successful firms such as Apple, Motorola, and many others owe their success partly to their employees. According to Polelle (2008), no firm can achieve success without a team of dedicated employees. This scholar says that employees are the wheels upon which an organization runs towards achieving its success. When the management has formulated strategic policies, it is the employees who will be expected to put the policies into practice.However, it is important to note that employees can only be productive if they feel that the management cares for them. Employee relation management is, therefore, an important aspect of leadership that is very beneficial to the manager. It enables the manager to maintain a pool of loyal employees. It also helps the manager to develop a close bond and trust with the employees in an organization. This creates an environment where the employees are always willing to follow the guidelines given by the leader. They will always be willing to make an extra effort in order to please the leader. Team building strategies According to Northouse (2010), teamwork is very important in the current society where information is a powerful weapon in winning the market wars. Many organizations have realized that when employees are allowed to work as a team, they easily learn from their workmates and this promotes their skills. In these teams, spreading of new knowledge in a practical way is possible, reducing the need to conduct regular on-job trainings. Team building strategies are very important to a leader in various ways. When there are effective strategies to make employees work as a team, the cost of their supervision will be reduced because they will be monitoring themselves as they struggle to complete the tasks assigned to them. Teamwork also promotes motivation and creativity among the employees, the fact that promotes their productivity. How the Elements Interact It is important to understand how these three elements interact in the management approach. Team building strategies and employee relation depend on the communication system that an organization uses to reach out to its employees. An effective communication management strategy is very beneficial in managing the employees. All these three elements are meant to ensure that there is a close relationship among all the stakeholders in the organization. Importance of the Integration of Individuals and Systems The management should always find a way of integrating individuals and the systems within an organization in order to achieve good results. Individuals within an organization need to use the systems in order to address various tasks. Integrating the systems and the individuals maximizes the overall output of the organization. It eliminates some of the conflicts that are sometimes witnessed between systems and individuals. Ethical and Social Responsibilities The leadership of any organization has ethical and social responsibilities to various stakeholders. It is an ethical responsibility of the management to ensure that employees are not mistreated in any way within the organization. The management also needs to ensure that the interests of other stakeholders such as the government, shareholders, customers, and the public are upheld. Summary It is clear from the discussion above that leadership plays an important role in enhancing success of a business unit. A leader should be able to bring together all the stakeholders and motivate them in order to ensure that they work effectively towards the success of the organization. References Collins, J. C. (2001). Level 5 leadership: The triumph of humility and fierce resolve. Boston: Harvard Business Review. Northouse, P. G. (2010). Leadership: Theory and practice. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Polelle, M. (2008). Leadership: Fifty great leaders and the worlds they made. Westport: Greenwood Press.