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Best Negotiating Practices, a set of skills, behaviors and strategies that move you from fundamental understanding, to proficiency, to mastery in negotiations
Five step collaborative negotiating framework that ensures predictable, repeatable results as you build strong relationships
Prepare
Identify potential value
- Begin to understand interests
- Define scope
- Identify and research stakeholders
- Develop fact base
- Analyze information & situation
- Define Most Desired Outcomes, Goals & Least Acceptables
- Identify alternate solutions
Exchange
Discover and create value
- Assess interests
- Exchange information
- Build rapport & trust
- Probe for understanding
- Assess competency
- Validate assumptions
- Explore options
- Align goals
- Agree on agenda
Bargain
Create and distribute value
- Address interests
- Communicate
- Make opening proposals
- Handle objections
- Probe for clarification
- Make and manage concessions
- Give and take
- Explore options
- Summarize often
Conclude
Capture value
- Confirm interests have been met
- Final summarization
- Gain commitment
- Finalize agreement
- Thank them
Execute
Expand value
- Address changing interests
- Implement solution
- Ensure compliance
- Strengthen relationship
- Maintain trust
Negotiation Skills Training
Excellence in Negotiating
Philosophy
Excellence in Negotiating, a Level 3 course, provides the opportunity for confident and experienced negotiators to explore negotiating strategies on a deeper level and in more complex situations, reinforcing behavioral changes that enhance performance.
Who should attend?
Ideal participants have taken at least two days of intensive negotiation coursework and have five or more years of on-the-job negotiating experience.
Learning Objectives
- Understand the five primary approaches to negotiating and what situations call for which approaches
- Recognize negotiators’ styles and learn to stretch your style to maximize success with your team and your counterparts
- Prepare for negotiations with strategies that address complex issues, diverse stakeholders, multiple parties, and shifting power
- Identify power sources and how to leverage power to your advantage
- Manage hard bargainers with prevention, defensive and transformational strategies
- Acquire new skills to manage emotions, cultural differences, difficult conversations, the use of technology and other nuances of negotiating
Pre-workshop Activities
We recommend a pre-workshop activity if workable in your business environment:
- Refresh. Participants read material prior to the workshop to become re-familiarized with accepted negotiation methods. This pre-work ensures participants can begin the workshop in congruence with their colleagues.
- Reflection and Re-engagement. Participants complete one or more exercises prior to the workshop, such as self-assessment, a negotiation debrief, or reflective journaling of positive and negative negotiation experiences.
Workshop Content
Based on number of desired modules and group’s size, workshops span one to three days. Core content, activities, and post workshop support follow.
Core Content
- Refresher on Negotiations: Framework and Fundamentals
- Negotiation Styles
- Gaining and Leveraging Power
- The Negotiator as Persuader
- Difficult Negotiations with Hard Bargainers, Intimidators and Irrational Negotiators
- Strategic Preparation
- Optional modules to address your specific negotiation challenges
Workshop Activities
- Large-group refresher quiz that highlights concepts and skills in a conversational style
- Role Plays provide practice of core skills and new strategies
- Short scenario assessment enables review of real business situations where participants assess options, predict results and learn lessons from their colleagues
- Movie clips provide powerful demonstrations of skills and strategies
- Individual Action Plans commit participants to continued growth
Note: Videotaping and multiple facilitators are available at an additional fee.
Post-Workshop Support
Participants receive Watershed’s condensed Field Guide, comprehensive Reference Guide, and other job aids. Participants also receive telephone coaching targeted to the planning or debrief of a specific live negotiation within six months of the workshop.