Posts in Negotiation
Brexit Negotiations: Mission Impossible?

So, the UK has voted for Brexit. What's next? Negotiating the exit. What does this involve? Part of this is Article 50, where the UK has to give notice it's leaving. There's good news and bad news about Article 50. The good news is it's only 300 words and the bad news is it's only 300 words. Why both good news and bad news?

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Tough Conflicts? Negotiate Better Solutions

One of the toughest negotiations is when one side wins and the other side loses. For example, a mining company wants to mine in a forest area and a local government wants to stop the mine because they want to preserve the forest. If one side wins, the other loses.

This is so difficult because each side brings a position and then spends all their energy defending their position or attacking the other side's position.

In the toughest negotiations, we need to look beyond positions and explore interests.

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Negotiation, Technology and Success!

Clearly in most negotiations involving technology it is becoming harder for negotiators on the supply side to show the strategic value of the technology to organisations on the buying side.

Clarity is required not around the features and benefits, but around the value piece.

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Do you Frame Your Communication for Negotiation Success?

All of us have been in a negotiation that has ended with a much better outcome and greater satisfaction than predicted with the result based on how well we communicated with the other person. I have the great privilege of working on 'live deals' all over the world and get observe many great negotiators.

My research observations in these live scenarios would suggest quite strongly that the way a negotiator 'frames' their communication has a direct and substantial impact on the outcome of the deal.

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Negotiation, Sugar and Focus!

Recently, I worked with a team on a live negotiation with a private hospital. The deal was for medical supplies and drugs worth about $25 million a year for a three-year contract.

During the preparation I noticed two behaviours in the team. First, team members could not focus on preparation. The culprit being constantly handling their smart phones. Second, how quickly the team’s energy levels dropped during the day.

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Greece: Are the multi-party negotiations on debt finished?

July 13th, 2015: Greece has a deal, or has it?

When you read the fine print, there are many conditions and many qualifications which the seven-page statement from the summit says are: “our minimum requirements to start negotiations with the Greek authorities”. So, the multi-party negotiations are not over and will continue probably for months.

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Prepared Negotiators are problem solvers. Do you look for solutions!

We went from Australia to New York, Krakow, Warsaw, Paris, London, Dubai and then back to Sydney. The preparation for 5 people to travel that distance in a month was extraordinary.

However, it also meant that as problems arose, as they did, we were able to change our mind quickly, because of the preparation. Often working on live negotiations the more we prepare, the more we play with ‘what if’ possible solutions. The more we role play, the more we test possible ways of dealing with problems. This means that we can start negotiations not focused on stated positions, but examining the common ground that exists between all parties. We become a problem solver and solutions happen quicker.

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The Agile Negotiator!

Farm life has many lessons for the agile negotiator. As some of you know, my wife, 3 daughters and I own a farm 2 hours of north of Sydney in the beautiful Hunter Valley.  It is a lifestyle farm of nearly 13 acres, river frontage and a handmade timber and mud-brick house. A great place to recharge and reflect on life. It also helps to have one of the most popular vineyards in the Hunter Valley, Camyr Allyn, http://www.camyrallynwines.com.au/ just up the road. 

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Negotiators need to be agile and adaptive in 2015

I have been approached a couple of times in the last couple of weeks for information on where clients can attend public programs on Negotiation. We are pleased to announce we are now presenting these programs through UTS.

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The Zen of high stakes negotiation

How does one transform a sometimes hostile, high stakes negotiation into an empathic process of cooperation? That question has puzzled and frustrated negotiators for decades. A while ago, I sat down for a chat about preparing for high stakes negotiations with Stephen Kozicki, best-selling author, business educator and Australia’s leading specialist in breakthrough business strategies. How he handles high-stakes negotiations will most likely change the way you think about role-play simulation.

By Soren Malmborg

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