NEGOTIATION: ACHIEVING RESULTS WITHOUT THIRD PARTY INVOLVEMENT

CHAPTER 5 NEGOTIATION: ACHIEVING RESULTS WITHOUT THIRD PARTY INVOLVEMENT

Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate

JOHN F. KENNEDY

Negotiation is one of the two most commonly cited and documented conflict management strategies being used and marketed around the world. Yes, marketed. As we quickly discovered, conflict management is big business. Of course, when something gains credibility in the market place through use and results, the need is also verified. There's a lot of conflict in the world. In the case of negotiation as a response mechanism, it may be more appropriate to talk about resolving differences. Negotiating is a much more common skill than mediation, for example, and doesn't always suggest the presence of conflict unless the negotiation gets nasty or the conditions that precede the negotiation process are contentious. For example, labor and management groups often engage in civil discussions over wages and their various points of view about equity in the sharing of resources. And, there are times when negotiations can be confrontational. On rare occasions, the discussions even break down forcing the parties to seek other means of resolution. But, we are getting ahead of ourselves in this discussion.

Before describing some of the negotiation skills required and the processes that characterize this approach to decision making, here are some definitions. While definitions may seem a bit academic, they actually reveal a lot about the authors as they introduce the concepts and strategies they are about to reveal.

Negotiation. Direct talk among the parties to a conflict, conducted with the goal of achieving a solution. The distinguishing characteristic is that the talk involves the parties themselves without the direct assistance of a third party. Negotiation may occur through representatives, such as attorneys. (Slaikeu and Hasson:1998, p. 202.)

What is negotiation? It is the use of power and information to affect behavior within a “web of tension”. If you think about this broad definition, you'll realize that you do, in fact, negotiate all the time both on the job and in your personal life. (Herb Cohen: You Can Negotiate Anything, 1980, p.16.)

Negotiation. The process through which an elegant win/win solution is reached which meets the differing needs of the two or more parties involved. (Now, that's an optimistic and value laden definition!)(Vanessa Helps: Negotiating: Everybody Wins, 1992, p.1.)

Negotiation. The process by which we pursue the terms for getting what we want from people who want something from us. (Gavin Kennedy: The Perfect Negotiation, 1992, p.1)

Negotiation. A basic means of getting what you want from others. It is back-and-forth communication designed to reach an agreement when you and the other side have some interests that are shared and others that are opposed. (Roger Fisher and William Ury: Getting to Yes, 1981, p. xi.)

While some view negotiation as a life skill used in just about everything we do, others see it as a more formal process engaged in by competing interests at critical times in their relationship. In reality, we are talking about a set of principles, a process that involves a series of steps or stages, and skills that help us be effective as negotiators, decision makers and problem solvers.