Negotiations are very common, especially in the workplace. Employees and employers will always negotiate for various issues for the benefit of either of the parties. I am likely to be in a negotiation scenario where I will be negotiating for a salary increase with my employer in my future position as an employee.
The success of a negotiation highly depends on how well prepared the negotiating team will be. It is also important for the team to have negotiating skills. The parties should have in mind the goals they wish to accomplish before starting a negotiation (McIntyre, 2006). The parties should then create a relationship with the party they are to negotiate with. This paper discusses how a negotiating team should be assembled, as well as assembling information about the other side to conduct a successful negotiation.
Assembling a negotiating team
The first step towards conducting a successful negotiation is to put in place a team that has the right skills and ability to negotiate. Assembling a good team will reduce the number of errors that may be associated with the negotiation process. It is imperative to note that team negotiations are likely to be more successful and productive compared to individual negotiations since different members of the team will bring different ideas and strengths.
Therefore, the first thing the leaders should do is to assemble a negotiating team. The team should be diverse to ensure that different strengths are brought to the table. When planning to assemble a negotiating team, one should consider the kind of contract to be negotiated and then consider the different roles that need to be accomplished in the negotiation.
This way, it will be possible to embrace diversity in the team. Different team members with different fields of knowledge should be made aware of the roles they are to play in the negotiations. This is followed by the actual assembling of the team and letting each member be aware of the role they are supposed to play in the negotiation (Segel, 2009).
Gathering information about the other side
Once the negotiating team has been formed, they should start strategizing on how to negotiate (McIntyre, 2006). Gathering information about the other side should be the first step. This will increase the chances of succeeding in negotiation since one will have a better understanding of the other party, know what to expect and how to prepare for the negotiation.
It might be termed as a disaster going into a negotiation with no information about what the other side is likely to propose. For a government contract, most of the government information is available from various sources such as the internet, journals, gazettes, and individuals. In gathering such information, one has first to accept that they do not know and then take a step to ask questions to people who might know, but not the negotiation opponent.
Effective negotiating strategy
A strategy is very important since it guides the actions that will be taken. First, it is important to understand how issues are to be addressed in a negotiation and then identify any likely concessions (Segel, 2009). Then the negotiating tactics should be planned depending on the personality and the kind of contract to be negotiated.
In preparing the negotiating plan, first draft the plan; review it as a leader of the negotiating team before discussing it with the team. Communication among team members is very important. Each member should be aware of the role they are to play. This way, the team will be assured of winning a government contract negotiation.
References
McIntyre, L. G. (2006). Essentials for government contract negotiators. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.
Segel, K. R. (2009). The government subcontractor’s guide to terms and conditions. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.