Negotiation

Negotiation is part and parcel of our daily life. It may be considered as a compromise to settle an argument or a social negotiation to fix up a time and venue for a meeting/party. Communication is the key; it may be face-to-face, over telephone or in writing. It is not only between two people it can also be between groups of individuals.

Negotiation Process:

Prepare: Select a subject/topic for negotiation. This is the pre-negotiation step.

Open: Start discussing on the subject by putting forth your points one by one and also have an open mind to accept others views.

Argue: Discuss concretely, demandingly, and forcefully and try to overcome the discussion and views of others.

Explore: Try to make others understand your point of view by making all points crystal clear.

Signal:  Make it very open that you are prepared to agree to others if they can make you understand the points in discussion.

Package: Gather all the points discussed and make a consolidated remark.

Close: Come to an understanding and agree on a final decision.

Sustain: Ensure that all points agreed to are carried out in future.

Types of Negotiation:

• Managerial Negotiation: This is negotiations that take place in an organization between managers and employees. It may be done on a day-to-day basis. Examples include pay revision, bonus, productivity, job responsibility, working conditions etc.
• Commercial Negotiation: Commercial negotiation is interacting with people outside the organization. Examples are price revision of items which is done between the customer and the organization, initiating a sale and collecting payments.
• Legal Negotiation: This negotiation takes place in courts, as it pertains to negotiations between government/management/customer. An example would be if a customer does not comply with the rules and regulations of the company a legal negotiation takes place.

An advantage of negotiation is that it reduces the number of people in a dispute. If the views of others are too distant from the topic it may be difficult to come to a conclusion. This may be considered as a disadvantage of negotiation. Negotiations at times may become a cumbersome and lengthy process. The best rule is: Do not negotiate unless you really have to.

Review Questions:

• What is negotiation? Explain its process.
• What are the types of negotiation?