On Negotiating

My professor once asked, "Who makes the best negotiators in the world?" The whole class was dumbfounded. "Someone that can influence you to agree on something without you losing trust and respect on the other person. Someone that takes your best interest at hand, but at the end of the day, she gets what she wants." No one in a class of twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings knew the answer.

"It's your mothers." said my professor with a smirk on his face. Then it all hit us like a brick on a wall. This man was correct.

Negotiating is an art. Let no one tell you otherwise. A lot of project managers fail at being project managers because they lack the ability to negotiate. What could have been a simple trade of needs ends up in a stalemate simply because project managers cannot get what they want out of the other party. This could be with the customer, stakeholder, staff, suppliers, etc. It is ironic to think though, that negotiating is one of the key activities we do each day as an individual. We negotiate when we do shopping... We negotiatie when we order food... We negotiate with our work mates... heck we even negotiate the roads when we travel.

While it would be fun to write all that I know about negotiation, the truth is that its such a broad topic and the only time I really appreciated it was when I actually started using everything that I learned about negotiation. (I give credit btw to Mr. Joey Estreta, my professor who gave us the opportunity to practice negotiation in his class).

Nonetheless, here are the top three things you should always remember about Negotiating.

1. Know your Interest.
Interest is the "why" of negotiating. Before sitting at the negotiating table, ask yourself..."why am i doing this?" Interest is the ulitimate goal behind the negotiation. It is the need that has to be met. Interest is different from Position. Position is the "what" of the negotiation. Position is that which you are requesting from the other party to satisfy your interests. Telling your dad, "I want a car" is a position. Chances are, you'ld get a resounding "No" in record speed. But what is the real reason why you are asking for a car? Is it because you are having trouble going home late? Is it because you want to impress the girls in school? Is it because your allowance ain't enough for the ride home? Anyone of these reasons could be your Interest. And if you look real hard, you'll notice that there are several ways to go about finding the win-win situation. Knowing your Interest opens up several possible positive avenues of resolution. A position is typically just one of those avenues. Your dad can probably lend you his car on date-nights, or he can just increase your allowance, or you can ask your professor for a change in schedule so that you don't need to go home late.

2. Know the other party's Interest
It is equally important to understand the other party's interest as much as yours. This gives you more ways to satisfy their needs without necessarily putting you on a disadvantage. A lot of people managers fail badly on this area. I know of a scenario (actually a lot of scenarios) wherein an employee left the company and the manager simply failed to realize the interest of the employee. He was a pretty good employee, his skill was rare within his organization, and he has served the company for a good number of years. The manager kept insisting that he cannot give him a pay raise for various reasons hence the employee decided to go. Yet, what the manager failed to realise what that a pay increase was only the position that the employee was taking. The real interest was the fact that he wanted to be recognized for his efforts in the company. He was highly utilized, yet his accomplishments did not seem to pay off anywhere. Money was only secondary. Having a pay increase was only a manifestation of his need for recognition.

3. Know your BATNA
No this is not Robin's man-friend. BATNA stands for Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement. To put it simply, if the negotiation does not push thru as planned, what is my other alternative? A big risk during negotiation is that we settle for something less than what we want or expect. This is not necessarily a bad thing because this could in fact be the best available settlement for both parties. But sometimes we settle less than what we could have elsewhere. Knowing your BATNA increases your ability to negotiate since it makes you aware of your alternatives. Remember: There is always a BATNA. At its very least, your BATNA is your ability to walk away from the negotiation. A good example of BATNA is if you are negotiating with a prospective employer on a job offer. Your BATNA is your other existing offers (if there are any) or just staying with your current employer. You need to constantly measure what is on the table with your BATNA. If the offer is less favorable than your BATNA, then why proceed? Sometimes too, it is good to inform the other party of your BATNA. It makes them aware of your Least Acceptable Result (LAR).

These are the three most important things to know during a negotiation. But knowing this is just the first step. Being able to master the various negotiating techniques and formulating a negotiating strategy is also crucial in achieving a win-win agreement.

This is a nice link on the various negotiation techniques out there (http://changingminds.org/disciplines/negotiation/tactics/tactics.htm). Remember, it takes practice before one becomes proficient in the art of negotitation.