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March 10, 2005
Win-Win Negotiations
“When we use the word ‘negotiation,’ we tend to think about mediation of labor issues or resolution of a conflict. These are traditional uses of negotiation, but negotiations have broader purposes,” said Edward T. Reilly, AMA president and CEO. “Executives and managers can use negotiation skills to influence, convince, persuade and sell others to support their individual, team or corporate efforts,” Reilly said. He offers the following steps critical to successful negotiation:
Know your goals. Don’t focus initially on the absolute minimum—go for broke. Brainstorm what would be the very best that you could accomplish during the meeting…and what would be best for the other party. But also be prepared by considering the absolute minimum you would accept.
Plan your strategy and tactics. Preparation is key to being successful. Enter negotiations with a plan but be prepared to deviate from it as conditions change. Be flexible both in your style of negotiation and your goals—you may get more than you wanted. Anticipate the issues. Decide in advance which topics need to be discussed and agreed upon.
Enter the negotiations with a “win-win” orientation. Consistently and persistently communicate the attitude that you can both win from your agreement. Indeed, a truly successful negotiation is one in which both parties have their needs met. Winning at the expense of the other party will inevitably return to haunt you.
Find out what the other party wants. Try to understand the other party’s psychological needs and motivations. If you have some common interests, brainstorm solutions that will meet both of your objectives. Listening is critical. Ask questions to determine any hot buttons. Ask “what if…” questions to keep the conversation going until you have a clear idea about the other side’s position.
Assess your comparative leverage. How much do you need the opposition? How much do they need you? The more advantage you offer them, the more you can ask of them. Know how far you can bend without breaking.
Communicate your points logically and clearly. Know what you want to achieve and be clear in communicating it to the other party. Be aware that how you phrase your demands is as important as what you say.
Build personal trust and a positive climate. You will get more from someone who feels good about you. The best negotiators keep the atmosphere friendly and non-adversarial. The point they want to make is, “By giving me what I need, you will get what you want in turn. How about it?”
Keep your emotions in check. Don’t let the give-and-take of the discussion cause you to overreact. Maintain a positive attitude. Those you negotiate with will sense your self-confidence, and it will influence how they respond to you.
Don’t be too pushy. You don’t want to come across as a lightweight, but you shouldn’t appear as too tough either. The other side may break off negotiations if you give the impression that you are inflexible. Seeing your behavior, others will think you are more interested in getting your way than in negotiating the best outcome for everyone. They may acquiesce rather than make offers that are better for you in the long term.
Compromise is key. In negotiations, recognize that you and the other party may both have to give up something to get what each wants. If a stalemate is reached, bring in a third party. Sometimes, you just can't reach a compromise, let alone get what you want. When this occurs, both you and the other side should consider bringing in an objective third party.
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