Jul
09
2015
Successful negotiators – how do they do it?
Negotiation can help you to solve problems and achieve your aims. But what steps should you take to improve your negotiation skills? Recent studies* show that the most effective negotiators tend to use the following four behaviours:
Asking the right questions
Open-ended questions are particularly useful at the beginning of a negotiation. They yield a great deal of information about what is foremost on the other party’s mind as well as suggesting an interest in the other party’s need, a willingness to listen and an openness.
Open-ended questions later in a negotiation can shift the focus back onto the other party if discussions become delicate or emotional, or if you reach an impasse.
Testing understanding and summarising
It pays to make sure that you and your negotiation partners are clear about what is being said or agreed by testing out you understanding through feedback and regular summaries.
These techniques enable you make discussion points clearer and more specific. In difficult negotiations, it can be tempting to avoid this approach and allow issues and expectations to remain vague. This almost always leads to problems further down the line.
Giving internal information
If another party presents an argument or makes a proposal, you may have mixed feelings about it. You may not trust the information, or you may be able to see the advantages and disadvantages of the proposal. It sometimes pays to be straightforward and honest, and to express your feelings factually and unemotionally.
Yes, you are giving them information internal to you that they would not otherwise know, but you are also giving them a clear idea of where you stand: this ensures that time is not wasted by playing unnecessary games.
Explaining before disagreeing
Skilled negotiators are more likely to begin with a review of events or circumstances and an explanation of their reasoning, then leading up to a statement of disagreement. In this way it is possible for the other party to hear your arguments, follow your logic and perhaps arrive at the same conclusion as you.
By first stating your conclusion (or your disagreement) you risk setting off an emotional reaction from the other party which may make them less open to hearing the reasoning behind your disagreement.
Influencing skills for leaders
This article is taken from our Moving from manager to leader course book. This course, aimed at senior managers, helps you develop a variety of influencing and communication skills for leaders. On this training course you will also cover:
- leadership in today's climate: what we can do
- from operational to strategic management: moving up a gear
- your organisation, its culture and its impact on your leadership approach
- leading and managing through change
- using your influence at work
- team-building for success
- your team leadership style
Read our full course outline or book your place today.
*Rackham.N 1999
