Q & A Table of Contents
Moving From Confrontation To Collaboration
From: Che, Quezon City, Philippines
Question: When and how do you transform negotiations from right-based and power-based bargaining into interest-based approaches?
Response: The first part of your question, 'When', could be answered quickly
with the phrase, 'as soon as possible'. Dealing with the 'how' issue can
yield more specific guidelines one may use in determining the timing of the
transformation of the process from confrontation to collaboration.
A negotiator should be prepared for the process ahead of time. This
preparation should include analyses of both the subject matter to be discussed
and the personalities of the parties. Issues that can be handled in a
civilized, collaborative manner by some people are treated as highly emotional
by others.
Rights-based negotiation, which is discussed in TNSC's newsletter of November
2003 (Because It's Mine, That's Why) can be based almost entirely on emotional
issues. It is crucial to examine where there may be distinctions between the
rights-based elements of the matter(s) under discussion and other elements
that can be the subject of collaborative bargaining. Focusing on those latter
elements can ameliorate some of the emotional obstacles that make rights-based
negotiation troublesome. Looking for the tangible interests that underlie the
rights claimed by one or more parties can bring them closer to a cooperative
process.
What you describe as power-based negotiation needs to be looked at from a
number of angles:
- If power-based negotiation is another way of describing the
negotiator whose attitude is 'my way or the highway', one needs to examine
one's BATNA (Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement) by asking, 'Do I
really have to deal with this particular person -- or do I have better
alternatives?'
- On the other hand, one must also recognize that BATNA is used by
many to measure the relative balance of power among negotiating parties -- so
here the power issue is based less on a negotiator's personality and more on
the party's apparent control or influence over resources that can be used to
resolve the issue under discussion.
- Remember that BATNA is not carved in stone. Parties' power
changes as they exchange information during the negotiation process. One
needs to monitor how each bit of information changes the relative power of the
negotiators
As a practical matter, the ideas of rights-based and power-based negotiations
can be viewed as an oxymoron. A successful negotiation is a process that
yields an agreement each party will willingly fulfill. Treating negotiation
as a competitive sport where there are winners and losers virtually guarantees
that the 'losers' will not be committed to fulfilling the agreement.
Thus the first step in figuring out how to move from the often emotional
realms of power- or rights-based negotiation is to utilize what we call The
Negotiator's Interest Map. Viewing the interests of three classes of
stakeholders: the negotiators, their constituents, and OIPs (Other Interested
Parties) gives a negotiator a chance to develop a more global view of the
issue(s) under consideration. This is spelled out in more detail in
Negotiating Skills for Managers (McGraw-Hill, 2002).
Preparing for negotiation by considering the broad range of stakeholders and
their interests will aid a negotiator figure out what information needs to be
learned in order to move the process from confrontation to collaboration.
Good luck,
Steve
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