Preparation for negotiations
Featured in the Negotiation Skills training manual
By Dave Clarke & David Simmonds& Ian Steers
Category: Communication Skills
Credit price: 3 download credits (Single user)
Systematic preparation for a negotiation is a vital task for effective negotiators – the more thorough their preparation, the greater the chance of success. Without preparation, negotiators can, in the heat of negotiations, arrive at agreements they regret, make decisions criticised by their peers and bosses, and even lose the respect of other negotiators. Thorough preparation also enables negotiators to keep track of their progress in the negotiations and to measure their success in achieving objectives. This training activity helps the participants to appreciate the importance of preparation and provides them with a checklist they can use in future negotiation processes.
The participants work in buzz groups to identify reasons why effective negotiators need to prepare systematically. They then carry out a negotiations exercise and use the experience to identify some key elements of preparations. They also use the experience to examine the importance of setting a range of objectives. Next, the participants consider the additional preparation requirements for negotiating as part of a team. They then look at some common team roles and allocate typical role responsibilities. Finally, they each create their own preparation checklist to use during the preparation phase of future negotiations.
Who is it for: This training resource is intended for use by trainers to demonstrate to participants the importance of preparation in the negotiation process and to help them devise their own checklist to use when preparing for individual and team negotiations.
| Resource Type: | Activity |
| Min Group Size: | 4 |
| Max Group Size: | 20 |
| Typical Duration: | 01:00:00 |
| No of Pages: | 13 |
Resources: View standard resources for Fenman training activities
Purpose: This training resource is intended for use by trainers to ensure that participants can prepare effectively as individuals and as part of a negotiating team. It can also be useful immediately before a negotiating role play so that the learning points are applied in preparing for the role plays.
Download the training activity, Preparation for negotiations as featured in the Fenman training manual; Negotiation Skills