Prenegotiation Essentials

You can’t negotiate effectively unless you understand your own interests and your own no-deal options. Another important issue is to understand the problem from the other side’s perspective. To negotiate successfully you need to prepare and pre-plan.

1. defining the issues

ü an analysis of a conflict situation

ü our experience in similar conflict

ü gathering information through research

ü consulting with experts

2. prioritising the issues

ü determine which issues are most important

3. defining your interests

4. assessing your alternatives or what Fisher calls Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement (BATNA).

Your BATNA is your best course for satisfying your interests without the other’s agreement.

BATNA is the key to negotiating power. Your power depends less on whether you are bigger, stronger, richer than the other person than how good your BATNA is.

A BATNA may involve walking away, approaching another potential buyer, making something in-house rather than procuring it externally, going to court rather than settling, forming a different alliance. BATNA sets the threshold.

To identify your BATNA, you should consider three kinds of alternatives.

1) What can you do all by yourself to pursue your interests?

2) What can you do directly to the other side to make them respect your interests?

3) How can you bring a third party into the situation to further your interests?

After generating a set of possible alternatives, select the one that is most likely to satisfy your interests.

5. Analyzing the other party

ü The party’s current resources, interests, needs

ü The other party’s objectives

ü The other party’s reputation and negotiation style

ü The other party’s BATNA

ü The other party’s authority to make an agreement

ü The other party’s likely strategy and tactics