Planning and Preparation for Effective Negotiation

Planning and Preparation for Effective Negotiation

1. Negotiation Analysis: Know the Situation, Yourself, and Your Opponent

   • An essential component of effective preparation is to conduct a well-rounded analysis of the bargaining situation, to understand not only one’s own positions, interests, priorities, and alternatives, but also those of the counterparts.

2. Analyze the negotiation context: Opportunities and constraints

   • A sufficient understanding of the bargaining situation allows the negotiators to identify the rules of the game, resources to draw upon, norms to abide by, as well as constraints to deal with
     • aspects to consider
       • Assess the historical, political, legal, and cultural context in which negotiations take place.
       • Assess the purpose of the negotiation: Deal-making or dispute resolution?
       • Assess the nature of the conflict: Are ideologies involved?
       • Assess the temporality of the negotiation: One-shot or longterm?
       • Assess external constraints: Is time an issue?
       • Assess external constraints: Place. .
       • Assess external constraints: Communication channels.

3. Assessing the negotiation situation, analyzing the negotiation structure, planning for strategies that facilitate goal attainment, and re-orienting to manage contingencies that may arise during the dynamic, interactive negotiation process.

4. Analyze the negotiation structure and components

   • It should be complemented by a careful analysis of the structure of the negotiation, including who the parties are, what issues should be negotiated, what are the positions, interests and preferences of each party for these matters, and what are their best alternatives to an agreement. negotiated (BATNA)
     • Identify the negotiation parties
     • Define the issues.
     • Understand the underlying interests.
     • Consider alternatives.
     • Create a scoring system and sort out preferences.
     • Determine the target/aspiration and reservation/resistance points.
     • Assess your negotiation style.
     • Practice perspective taking
     • Assess the relationship with the other party.