Introduction
Negotiations are business interactions between two or more people, the purpose of which is to find mutually beneficial solutions to particular problems and tasks. People have to negotiate almost all their lives – in all cases when it is necessary to come to an agreement to exchange promises and commitments. The ability to listen to the interlocutor, insist on their position, and move towards the overall outcome is the ultimate goal of any negotiations. To achieve this goal, there are different negotiation strategies. This essay aims to examine the win-win and compromise scenario and identify the difference between them.
The Win-win Concept
The Win-Win concept was first proposed in 1981 by Harvard University professors Roger Fisher and William Urey. It is aimed at ensuring that all participants remain in the black as a result of the negotiations. Win-win negotiators are characterized by a desire to learn information about their partner’s goals, to realize benefits for both sides, and to strengthen long-term relationships (Thomas et al., 2017). The win-win approach is the most energy-intensive since it involves protracted negotiations, clarification of common interests, and agreement in the areas of common interests, which requires time and effort. At the same time, in the long term, the win-win approach is the most optimal. To use the win-win strategy, it is necessary to clarify the possible gain of the interaction partner.
The win-win strategy is applicable when the parties have time to find a solution and when the parties involved in the negotiations have equal power or ignore the difference in position. Nalis et al. (2018) state that when searching for win-win solutions, the parties will benefit more than in the other case. People in negotiations need to put some ideas on the table and work hard to develop a solution.
Compromise Strategy
Another negotiation strategy is compromise, which aims to ensure that both sides make mutual concessions and eventually come to a standard solution. When using this strategy, the parties both gain some advantages and concede to each other. It is possible when the interlocutors are equal in position – neither of them has any weighty arguments that allow them to speak from a place of strength. Compromise is the achievement of agreements and an attempt to work out an optimal solution in these conditions jointly.
Such a strategy will be effective in complex, multi-stage negotiations when the differences are too significant to be resolved in one discussion, but the parties want to agree. Often a compromise is a temporary measure. However, if the negotiations have not progressed further, this result will still be positive-unlike in previous situations, when the loss of at least one of the parties is inevitable.
The Differences between Win-win Concept and Compromise
The difference is that when a compromise aims to find a standard solution that forces the parties to make reciprocal concessions, these parties will experience minimal inconvenience. As for the win-win strategy, in this case, the solution will be so convenient for the parties that they will both benefit. Another difference is that the search for a compromise is carried out in a shorter time than with a win-win strategy aimed at a long-term search for a solution.
The Original Trucking Game
The essence of the game is that two cargo companies come into conflict since their trucks can not pass on the same path, and choosing a longer detour path will lead them to increase cash costs, which the company does not allow. This game is designed to create a conflict and find a compromise and not to find a win-win solution. The win-win strategy for this game can be applied if the game conditions are changed. Therefore, the game will help practice the skills of finding a compromise.
Conclusion
In conclusion, people everywhere are faced with the opportunity to negotiate, at work, at home, in life. To avoid a situation in which the parties to these negotiations will both be in an unfavorable position, it is necessary to master negotiation techniques. To find the best solution or a solution that satisfies both sides, you can master the win-win methods and the ability to find a compromise.
References
Nalis, D., SchĂĽtz A., Pastukhov A. (2018). The Bamberg trucking game: A paradigm for assessing the detection of win-win solutions in a potential conflict scenario.Frontiers in Psychology, 9(138), 1-13. Web.
Thomas, S.P., Eastman J.K., Shepherd C.D., Denton L.T. (2017). A comparative assessment of win-win and win-lose negotiation strategy use on supply chain relational outcomes.The International Journal of Logistics Management, 29(1), 191-215. Web.