Negotiation Skills Training

Negotiation Skills Training

About the Course

Negotiation skills are very important because an organisation has to trade successfully with its partners.

These skills are a specialised form of communication that endeavours to find a mutually beneficial long term solution.

Negotiation skills training will enable your team to agree the best results possible from any negotiation situation.

Negotiation is a combination of skills that include good preparation, excellent communication and emotional management.

A successful outcome depends on knowing and applying the principles of proper negotiation.

If the negotiation is NOT well prepared, then it will be “messy” and you will NOT get the best result possible.
If the negotiation is prepared, then it will be very successful and you will get the best result possible.

Course Overview

This course will show you exactly how to prepare for a successful negotiation interview process.

Negotiation Skills Training Course Content

Negotiation skills are a specialised form of thought and communication.

There are specific circumstances where you are likely to need negotiation skills:

1. With friends and colleagues
2. With buyers and sellers
3. In conflict situations

In any negotiation, there are three realms to consider.

1. The solutions that you would prefer.
2. The solutions that the other person would prefer.
3. The solutions that are logically possible.

The intersection of these three fields, (i.e. all the solutions that are mutually desirable and that are also logically possible), we will call The Optimum Zone.

Negotiation is a specialised form of thought and communication

It creates long term, mutually beneficial agreements.
Negotiation is a process by which all parties should achieve a benefit.

What is negotiation NOT?

Negotiation is not the act of appeasement and surrender: Negotiation is not the act of continuing to give multiple concessions to the other person until he-she is happy and has everything he-she wants.

Negotiation is about trading concessions, not giving them away

Negotiation is not the act of mental intransigence:
Negotiation is not the act of saying “Take it or leave it”.

The Ten Tools of Negotiation given in the order of their appearance on success formula

Here are the ten commandments of negotiation

If you want to improve your negotiation skills, memorise and apply this list of ten principles.

1. Be clear what you want

Write it down your desired outcome from this negotiation

Write down your “At least list”. The at least list is the minimum level that you can accept as a good result.

Know too, what you do not want. Recognise and identify what is not good enough for you.

Knowing what you want is the critical step. Be specific.

Know why you want it.

2. Think Win /Win

Therefore, if the final agreement is to be sustainable, then, there has to be genuine value for both parties.

Both parties must win something from the negotiation.

This has become known as a Win / Win solution.

3. Always prepare for each negotiation.

Prepare your entry and exit points.

Prepare a list of negotiable variables. A negotiable variable is a factor that you can add into the equation or one that you can remove in order make your proposition more attractive to the other person without damaging your own self-interest. The ideal is to have negotiable variables that are perceived as high value to the other person but they are of low cost to you, to provide.

4. Don’t automatically agree to their first proposal

I.e. develop a tendency to say “no” to their first proposal.
Saying “Yes” to their opening proposal may leave you open to You Lose/ They Win solution.

Negotiation Skills Training PM

5. Maintain your good business ethics and moral principles

Be professional. Be aware of your principles of good practice. You are at work to ADD value. The proper principles here are Productivity and Trade.

Give only “Something for something”. Not something for nothing.

Other principles of business:

• Honesty: honesty is not only a moral virtue, it is also good business! Never cheat anyone.
• Reliability. Promise only what you can deliver. Don’t fail to deliver on your promises. Deliver on all your promises.
• Profit. Don’t give things away. Your role is that of a profitable trader. And both parties can profit from the trade.

6. Watch for bargaining activity just before a deadline

Deadlines can produce extra leverage, which can be used to gain a concession. So be emotionally prepared to use this fact, or resist it.

7. Avoid trying to “drive a hard bargain” by unnecessary tough talk

Tough aggressive talking is not good practice; aggressive talking may be seen, by the other side, as a signs of stupidity, crassness, and intransigence.

“Tough talk” in the sense of needless aggressiveness is bad.

Take a tough position but keep your communication style professional and relaxed.

8. Learn the details of compromise

Always maintain respect for the other person’s identity as you question his proposition.

1. To compromise your values, standards or ethical principles is no good. You should not do it.
2. To compromise on issues of price and negotiable variables is good. You should do it.

9. Once agreed, stick to the agreement

If the other person wants to change the package, that is fine, but only if the terms change too.

Use the magic phrase, “Yes. I can do that for you…… but only if….. ”

Ensure you have a list of your negotiable variables.

10. Keep your own emotional state

Stay relaxed, focused and adaptable.

Don’t go into a negotiation in a bad mood.
Don’t go into a negotiation situation in a tired state.

Common tactics of negotiators

During a negotiation, you are likely to hear the other side use some of the following tactics, in order to gain a free concession from your side.

You may want to think about the following tactics, in order to decide:

• Whether you are able to utilise any of these tactics in your own proposition, to your own advantage.
• If you are on the receiving-end of any of these tactics, then what will be your response?

Here are the negotiation tactics you need to prepare for:

1. The claim that their first offer is also their final offer.
2. They suggest that you “split the difference”.
3. To appeal to Need.
4. To appeal to your “better nature”
5. Appeal to anger
6. Appeal to friendship
7. Appeal to a higher authority
8. Appeal for a “loss leader”

Compromise

When to compromise and when to not to

Compromise is the act of finding the middle- ground between two opposing points of view, in the hope of finding the “Happy medium” that is acceptable to both parties.

It can be a useful and valid method of handling conflict situations or solving dilemmas.
BUT..
It can also be a terrible mistake that will cost you all your credibility as a decision maker!

Example of a “no compromise” Identity situation and negotiation.

Develop excellent communication skills

The channels of communication:

• The words and phrases, vocabulary and verbal content.
• The voice tones: confident assertive, or not.
• Body language: appropriate and effective or not.

Price for open training course

• Full day of quality training
• Tea, coffee and cakes
• Lunch
• Full colour course notes
• Written action plan
• Certificate
• Additional training material by means of monthly updates
• Access to the Post Course Portal

Plus 3 months free telephone coaching

To answer any on-going questions, you will also receive email and telephone support from your trainer after you have attended the course. Whilst you are implementing what you have learned we will be there to help you if you need us for advice, guidance and coaching.

After the course, how can you to keep the training-momentum going?

We understand that it is important to keep the momentum of the training going, in the weeks after the course. The ideas and methods that you learnt during the course need to be implemented, not just for the two weeks after the course, but for all time!

In order to make that happen, we will give you continued, on-going support after the training course has finished. The support comes in the form of the Post Course Portal.

The Post Course Portal is a web page that contains a review of all the course material, plus the following:

• Newsletters containing training blogs and articles, which will provide you with ongoing training and good ideas, whenever you need them.
• Fun questionnaires that are designed to tease out your strengths and weaknesses and then give you ideas as to how you might improve your performance.
• Decision matrices that will allow you to make decisions and prioritise tasks into the correct order.
• Summary diagrams and mind maps from the course.
• Conflict scripts that give you examples of how the conflict method can be used, in real life situations.
• Free eBook the effective leader manager.

Price for in house training course

In House Course: from £1,850 +VAT per day (international training price varies) for up to 20 delegates

Please call us on +44 020 3856 3008 to discuss your requirements for the in house training course.

If you want to know more about any Management Training Course or their suitability for you or a colleague call us on +44 020 3856 3008.