abcd
The 2nd Younger Members Convention
All in the mind: essential negotiation skills
1-2 December 2003
The Glasgow Moat House
Introduction
 Section 1 – an overview
 What do we mean by negotiation?
 When do we negotiate?
 Who negotiates?
 Section 2 – the negotiation process
 Positional bargaining
 Alternatives to positional bargaining
 Section 3 – that’s all well and good in theory…
 What if they are stronger?
 What if they use dirty tricks?
 What if we are the powerful ones?
Section 1 – an overview
Definitions
 ‘If you want a guinea pig, start by asking for a pony’ – Annabel,
aged 6 (3)
 ‘To confer with others in order to reach a compromise or
agreement’ – Oxford English Dictionary
 ‘A transaction in which both parties have a veto over the final
outcome. It is the act or process of bargaining to reach a mutually
acceptable agreement or objective’ – David Oliver (2)
 ‘Negotiation is a process of agreement for mutual gain’
Section 2 – the negotiation process
 Positional bargaining
 Has advantages
 But can be dangerous – more likely to result in deadlock
 Problems with positions
 Can produce a sub-optimal agreement
 Can be inefficient
 Can endanger an ongoing relationship
Section 2 – the negotiation process
Alternatives to positional bargaining
 People
 Interests
 Options
 Criteria
‘Getting to Yes’ – Roger Fisher and William Ury (1)
Section 2 – the negotiation process
People: separate the people from the problem
 Source of conflicts
 Perception
 Emotion
 Communication
 Responses
 ‘Have I separated the people from the problem?’
 ‘Is my response to the situation based on my response to the
problem or my response to the people?’
 ‘Am I paying enough attention to the people issue?’
Section 2 – the negotiation process
Interests: focus on interests, not positions
 Interests and positions – the human iceberg
 Interests are powerful motivators of behaviour – often
expressions of basic human needs
 Responses
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Know your enemy
Be clear and explicit
Acknowledge their interests
Focus on the problem
Look forward not back
Section 2 – the negotiation process
Options: generate a variety of options before deciding what to do
 Skill at inventing options is essential
 Not inventing is the natural state
 Responses
 Brainstorm with the other side
 Separate the act of invention from the act of judgement
 Identify shared interests
 Trade
 Consider your BATNA – best alternative to a negotiated agreement
Section 2 – the negotiation process
Criteria: measure any proposal against objective standards
 Different people have different perceptions of what is ‘fair’
 Positional bargaining results in a contest of pressure
 Responses
 Bring standards of fairness, efficiency and objectivity to bear
 Any agreement consistent with precedent is less vulnerable to
attack
 If no fair standards or benchmarks exist, then work with the other
side to agree fair procedures to produce them
Section 3 – that’s all well and good in theory…
What if they are just plain stronger than us?
 Negotiation Jujitsu (1)
 When they assert their position – don’t reject
 When they attack your ideas – don’t spring to their defence
 When they attack you – don’t counter attack
 Third party mediation
Section 3 – that’s all well and good in theory…
What if they use dirty tricks on us?
 Dirty tricks include:
 Deliberate deception
 Psychological warfare
 Positional pressure
 Response
 Recognise the ploy and acknowledge that you have recognised it
 Same rules as before – People / Interests / Options / Criteria
Section 3 – that’s all well and good in theory…
What if we are the powerful ones?
 If we are in the dominant position, shouldn’t we:
 Use our strength to maximum advantage?
 Use negotiating tactics and dirty tricks?
 Just impose our will?
Conclusions
 All in the mind: essential negotiating skills
 Positional bargaining has a place, but can be
dangerous
 Remember Fisher & Ury
 People
 Interests
 Options
 Criteria
 Use your strength wisely
One final quote…
‘When a man tells me he is going to put all of his cards
on the table, I always look up his sleeve’
Lord Hore-Belisha (3)
Acknowledgments and recommended reading
 Getting to Yes: Negotiating an agreement without
giving in – Roger Fisher & William Ury (1)
 How to Negotiate Effectively – David Oliver (2)
 Successful Negotiating – Patrick Forsyth (3)