FROM THE EDITOR: CONNECTION IS THE ESSENCE OF MEANING, AND RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE FOUNDATION OF ORGANIZATIONS Matej Černe University of Ljubljana Dynamic Rela ti onships Management Journal, Vol. 14, No. 2, November 2025 1 When we speak of management, of business, and of academia, the conversa ti on o ft en turns to numbers, systems, tasks, and work and professional outcomes. Yet beneath every structure and every result lies a deeper fabric—community. Connec ti on is the essence of meaning, which is not necessarily a direct quote, but reflects the core of humanis ti c and existen ti al thought, where meaning emerges through bonds with others. It is through connec ti on that individuals and organiza ti ons thrive, and it is through rela ti onships that knowledge, trust, and re ‐ silience are built. Social integra ti on, long studied in psychology and sociology, reminds us that belonging and shared purpose are fundamental human needs. Theories of social capital, organiza ti onal climate, and even lead ‐ ership research point in the same direc ti on: people achieve more, grow more, and sustain more when they are embedded in networks of meaningful ti es. In business, these ti es translate into engagement, innova ti on, and commitment. In academia, they fos ‐ ter collabora ti on, knowledge crea ti on, and the nur ‐ turing of future genera ti ons of scholars. Without community, even the most sophis ti cated systems collapse into emp ti ness. This is far from being a new insight for our jour ‐ nal. In fact, it is woven into its very founda ti on. The very first ar ti cle ever published here—by Professor Rudi Rozman (2012), following Lipovec’s (1987) sem ‐ inal elabora ti on—set forth the theory that gave the journal its name: Dynamic Rela ti onships Manage ‐ ment. This perspec ti ve argued that management is not a sta ti c exercise of control, but a dynamic inter ‐ play of human rela ti onships, constantly shaped, renego ti ated, and lived. It is precisely this recogni ‐ ti on—that management is about rela ti onships, about the vitality of connec ti on—that dis ti nguishes our journal and its community of scholars. At the heart of the Developed theory of organi ‐ za ti on is a simple yet profound redefini ti on: an orga ‐ niza ti on is not primarily a collec ti on of people or tasks, but a system of rela ti onships. According to Lipovec’s (1987) defini ti on, people become mem ‐ bers of a social unit through rela ti onships, and it is these dynamic ti es that assure both the existence of the unit and the ra ti onal achievement of its goals (Rozman, 2012). Rela ti onships are not sta ti c; they change, adapt, and evolve through processes such as governance ‐management, coordina ti on, decision ‐ making, and even conflict. The smallest element of an organiza ti on, therefore, is not the individual or the role, but the rela ti onship itself. This shi ft moves the study of organiza ti ons from structures and tasks toward connec ti ons and interdependencies. Rozman (2012) further emphasized that these rela ti onships are both structural and dynamic. Structurally, they manifest through du ti es, respon ‐ sibili ti es, authority, and communica ti on. Dynami ‐ cally, they are shaped and reshaped through ongoing interac ti on, adapta ti on, and coordina ti on. In this sense, the organiza ti on is always in mo ti on, con ti nuously renewed through the quality and bal ‐ ance of its rela ti onships. When rela ti onships are aligned and ra ti onal, the social unit flourishes; when they deteriorate, the very existence of the unit is threatened. The call today is to return to, and further ad ‐ vance, this founding insight. Too o ft en, research dri ft s into abstract constructs that risk losing touch with the living reality of rela ti onships. Yet if connec ‐ ti on is indeed the essence of meaning, then dy ‐ namic rela ti onships management theory o ffers us a compass. It provides a framework to understand how integra ti on, belonging, and coopera ti on shape outcomes not only in organiza ti ons, but also in wider society. DRMJ vol14 no02 2025 (print).qxp_Prelom 12. 11. 25 19:15 Page 1 2 Dynamic Rela ti onships Management Journal, Vol. 14, No. 2, November 2025 Matej Černe: From the Editor: Connec ti on is the Essence of Meaning, and Rela ti onships are the Founda ti on of Organiza ti ons We invite scholars to engage more deeply with this founda ti on, to test, refine, and apply it across contexts. In business se tti ngs, how do dynamic re ‐ la ti onships help organiza ti ons navigate complexity, uncertainty, and change? In academic life, how do they sustain healthy, vibrant communi ti es of in ‐ quiry? And in both worlds, how can we design sys ‐ tems that honor connec ti on, not erode it? As we con ti nue to develop the journal, let us remain faithful to this original vision: that manage ‐ ment is, at its heart, about people in rela ti onship. By embracing and extending this pioneering “Slove ‐ nian” Developed theory of organiza ti on, we a ffirm that connec ti on is not only the essence of mean ‐ ing—it is the very ground upon which our shared fu ‐ ture must be built. REFERENCES: Lipovec, F. (1987). Razvita teorija organizacije (The De ‐ veloped Theory of Organiza ti on). Maribor, Založba Obzorja. Rozman, R. (2012). Slovenian organisa ti on theory and its ti es with associated theories and sciences. Dynamic Rela ti onships Management Journal, 1(1), 2–23. DRMJ vol14 no02 2025 (print).qxp_Prelom 12. 11. 25 19:15 Page 2