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Good preparation and planning have a significant impact on the outcome of a deal, explains Sue Preston
WITHOUT ADEQUATELY defining your objectives, preparing your case and planning your strategy, your chances of achieving your ideal objectives in a negotiation are minimal. If one party has spent time before a meeting defining the desired outcome, planning how they will dictate the agenda, including how they will open their case and tackle some tricky questions, they will always outperform the person who has given no prior consideration to it.
The initial phase should incorporate objective setting, preparation and planning. Preparation is about researching your own precise requirements and latitude for movement, the market, the other party's strengths and weaknesses, and making some (educated) assumptions about their ideal and fall-back positions.
Research by NRI found too few people dedicate time to planning. Here are some key planning and preparation steps to consider.
1. Manage your time
A staggering two-thirds (62 per cent) of the people questioned spent one hour or less preparing for a negotiation. Sixty-eight per cent admitted that better preparation for their last deal would have produced a better outcome.
Negotiation is a performance; it is during the planning phase that the stage is set and expectations managed. Effective negotiators envisage a far wider range of potential variables, openings and outcomes than the average negotiator. They also spend more time considering areas of common interest between the parties.
Average negotiators discuss item A then B, followed by C and D. If the business is in any other order, they are thrown offbalance. Effective negotiators are able to discuss items in any order, enabling flexibility in their approach.
When preparing for a negotiation remember to:
* Consider the impact on the business.
* Consider how attractive this business is to the other party.
* Select the location for the negotiation.
* Plan the opening, testing and moving phases of the negotiation (see bit.ly/SMnegotiationphases)
* State assumptions.
* List questions to test the assumptions.
* Be creative - the longer and more creative the list of variables, the more flexible your strategy will be.
2. Prepare open questions
Of those surveyed, only 1 per cent would typically prepare 20 'open' questions for a negotiation, with 44...