Role in Negotiations
My role as a negotiator in this job offer negotiation is to understand and satisfy the interests of the recruit – Leslie, and the company at which I am working. Accordingly, in order for the interests to be satisfied, they should be brought to the table and acknowledged by both parties. My interests in this negotiation were in making a contribution to the annual bonus for hiring perspective recruits, who will at the same time maximize the benefits for the corporation, due academic achievements. Leslie’s interests can be seen through working in the R& D department of the company and potential enrolment in PP supported PhD scholarship program.
Goals/Strategies/Tactics
The goal of the negotiation is to find a way to bring Leslie on board, while being consistent with Purezza Pharmaceuticals (PP) precedent and policy. The main strategies that will be used in an integrative strategy will be to emphasize win-win situations. In that regard, the strategies that might be used might be seen through taking the perspective of the applicant, identifying interests and priorities, expressing interests and priorities, identifying several issues to discuss, rather than focusing only on a single issue, offering package deals, and logrolling. Other tactics can be seen through cutting the costs, expanding the pie, bridging solution, and non-specific compensation.
The issues that can be identified in the process include the following:
- The starting salary.
- The starting title.
- Scholarship support.
- The signing bonus.
- The start date.
Two important tactics that can be used in negotiation are package offers and logrolling. For the package offer, the main emphasize will be in providing.
For logrolling, I will try to concede on low priority issues in exchange for issues that are of high priority for the company. The issues that can be conceded might include scholarship, as a low priority issue, versus, for example giving up the European trip. The interview should indicate the high priority and low priority for Leslie, while at the same the flow of the interview shall indicate the distribution of the priority for the company. One of the advantages of logrolling is that opening offers with it is stated to be leading to more integrative agreements (MORAN and RITOV, 2002). Such advantage can be seen in that “logrolling initial offers result in higher combined profits for the two parties, and higher effectiveness (higher valued counter-offer from the initiator’s perspective) than distributive offers” (MORAN and RITOV, 2002). Despite such advantages, there are no social message conveyed in the logrolling and thus, open flow of the conversation and the types of question might be used to build trust with Leslie.
For package offers, such strategy implies making multiple offers simultaneously. In that regard, such strategy will complement logrolling, where the high priority and low priority issues reached can be offered at different packages. With the increase of number of issue negotiated simultaneously, better agreements can be reached by negotiators (Lewicki et al., 2010). Both strategies can be implemented at the same time, along with other strategies such as emphasizing commonalities, and expressing interests and priorities to Leslie.
BATNA
BATNA in this negotiation can be seen through other candidates, in case Leslie does not elect to join PP. Such alternative is acceptable, with its own strengths and weaknesses. The strengths can be seen through the fact that the company might settle to more modest conditions for other candidates. At the same time, the company will not have to change its recruitment policies, make exceptions, or set precedents in terms of starting salaries, bonuses, and/or starting time. The main weakness, however, can be seen through Leslie’s credentials, which make him the preferred candidate for the position. Relying on other alternatives will mean that the company will lose Leslie, as a candidate with very high potential in the scientific side.
Alternatives
In addition to the alternatives of logrolling and integrated packages, other alternatives might be considered as well. One alternative is cutting the cost for compliance for Leslie. The costs that can be cut for Leslie might include promising Leslie a transfer to the R7D department in the future. Another option can be seen through expanding the pie, which is adding more resources and more uses for those resources, e.g. additional $5000 as a starting salary and/or guaranteed 10% percent first year’s bonus.
Unfolding the Interview
- Building trust – discuss the relationship with Leslie in the past
- Express concerns with Leslie’s welfare
- Show interest in recruiting
- Emphasize common interests
- Diagnostic questions –Ask about expectations
- Career progression
- Priorities in career
- Mutual issues
- Differing issues
- Providing information –the nature of the job
- The benefits
- The advantages offered in the long-term
- The offer – Multiple offers at the same time
- Offers in packages
- Trading issues (e.g. bonus for shifting start date)
References
Lewicki, R. J., Barry, B. & Saunders, D. M. 2010. Negotiation, Boston, McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Moran, S. & Ritov, I. 2002. Initial Perceptions in Negotiations: Evaluation and Response to ‘Logrolling’ Offers. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 15, 101-124.
Peter Barron Stark & Associates. 2000. Negotiating Win/Win Deals .
Valle, T. 2006. Using Integrated Employment Negotiations to Achieve Long-Term Employment Relationships. Web.