Brief Guide to Requests

• Unequivocal– Increase sales by 25%– Speak on behalf of and

vote for my new pricing policy at the sales meeting

– By 3 pm this afternoon– By the 15th of next

month

• Equivocal– Increase sales– Give me support at the sales

meeting

– ASAP

– Next month

• Requests are speech acts that call another person into action: “I request that you __(intended result)__ by __(deadline__.”

• Requests should be unequivocal.

Collecting No’s• Formulate and make requests intended to produce

“No” as response• “No” is a success

– Assertive , learn to ask for things directly, discover real limits to a reasonable or unreasonable request.

• People generally say “yes” to requests – (6 to 1)– More and more unreasonable, short deadline– Decline requests: “maybe”, etc. Why?– What excuses are used? Accepted?

• How persistent must you be to get a yes?• What would you have to do to get a “yes”?

Strategy and Tactics of Distributive Bargaining

andLeverage

Integrative vs. Distributive Negotiation(Creating vs. Claiming Value)

Flow of information Understanding the other Attention to commonalities and differences Focus on solutions

Integrative Create a free and open flow; share information openly Attempt to understand what the other side really wants and needs Emphasized common goals, objectives, interests Search for solutions that meet the needs of both (all) sides

Distributive Conceal info, or use it selectively and strategically Make no effort to understand other side, or use information to gain strategic advantage Emphasize differences in goals, objectives, interests Search for solutions that meet won needs or even block the others from meeting their needs.

Distributive Bargaining• The goals of one party are in fundamental and direct

conflict with goals of the other.• Resources are fixed and limited.• Each party wants to maximize his/her share of resources.• Guard own information, get other’s information• Use in a situation that is distributive in nature• Use it when want to maximize value obtained in a single

deal and when the relationship with the other is not important

• Many people use this style, so must know how to use/counter it.

Phases of Distributive Negotiation• The information phase

– Each tries to learn as much about the other as possible, giving as little as possible

– Opening offer, Opening stance

• The competitive phase– Try to obtain beneficial terms– Articulate own demands, try to get

the most possible– Concessions: role, initial, pattern.– Use “distributive tactics,” counter

others’ tactics

• The cooperative phase– If multiple-item transaction, parties can

enhance joint interests– Final offer

Fundamental Strategies

• Influence seller’s view of settlements possible by making extreme offers and small concessions.

• Push for settlement close to seller’s resistance point. • Get seller to change (reduce) his/her resistance point

by influencing sellers’ beliefs about value. • If ZOA does not exist, get seller to reduce resistance

point, or change own resistance point• Get other to think this is the best settlement possible.

Protect ego satisfaction.

General Tactics• Negotiate tough

– Stick to guns, let other side know you mean business, be unafraid to ask for extra concessions.

• Scrutinize the details– Details of final agreement point

by point, try to gain an advantage. Assume nothing, ask for everything, consider no item insignificant; wear them down.

• Focus on the rewards– Maintain myopic view of what

you want, learn to counter opponents strategies.

• Avoid ultimatums– Choices instead. Walk away

• Anything goes– Stall, cloud issues, use facial,

make a mess, low chair

• Find your opponents’ pressure points– Take advantage of

vulnerabilities, stall if deadline.

• Control the negotiation– Get others to follow your game

plan, agenda. Working document

Typical Distributive Tactics

• Silence and bracketing.

• Limited authority

• Bottom line

• No (so you can overcome it)

• Expectation and control (this is negotiable, that is not)

• Auction

• Concession

• Rationale

• Message-Sending (visual or verbal cues)

• Good guy/Bad guy

• Highball/Lowball

• Bogey

• Chicken

• Intimidation

• Aggressive behavior, anger

• Snow Job

• Nibble

• ---

• Delay

• Deadlines (vs test)

Distributive Tactics Cont’d

• Best-offer-first, Take-it-or-leave-it, Boulwareism

• Access to agreement/ process/ agenda

• Conditioning/speech making

• Divided front• Anger and emotion/clear

thinking

• Choice of negotiator• Demeaning/haranguing• Negotiate with one

representative• Negotiation location-

competitive advantage• Preconditions for

negotiation

Dealing with Hardball Tactics

• Ignore them

• Discuss them

• Respond in kind

• Co-opt the other party

Power in Negotiation“The ability to bring about outcomes they desire”

“The ability to get things done the way they want them to be done”

• Sources of power--Power Bases• Uses of power

– How: Influence/persuasion strategies– Why:

• Power equalization: level the playing field, move toward integrative

• Power difference: take advantage, block others’ power moves, move toward distributive

Power in Negotiations• Power Bases:

– Information and expertise (Expert)

• Accumulate and present data to change person’s view or position

– Control over resources (Reward and Coercive)

• Money, supplies, manpower, time, equipment, critical services, interpersonal support

– Location in the structure: (Legitimate)

• Legitimate power: authority, reputation, performance

• Key position: centrality, criticality and relevance, flexibility, visibility

– Personal (Referent) power:

• attractiveness and friendliness, integrity, patience and tenacity, emotion.

Influence Strategies

• Persuasion• Exchange• Legitimacy• Ingratiation• Praise

• Assertiveness• Inspirational appeal• Consultation• Pressure• Coalitions

• Ingratiation: compliments, attractiveness, helping the other party, perceived similarity, emotion

Persuasive Style

• Encourage active participation

• Use metaphors

• Incite fears

• Create distractions

• Use more intense language

• Violate the receiver’s expectations

Persuasion: Sender• Message Content

– Make the offer attractive to the other party: their interests

– Frame the message so the other party will say yes, yes, YES

– Make the message normative: their values

– Suggest an agreement in principle

• Message Structure– Message order: beginning or end

– One- and two-sided messages: two sided

– Message components: break it up

– Repetition: a few times

– Conclusions: stated or unstated, stated better

Receivers of Persuasion

• Attend to the other– Make eye contact, adjust body position,

nonverbally encourage or discourage

• Exploring or ignoring the other’s position– Selectively paraphrase, reinforce points you like

• Resisting the others influence– BATNA, public commitment, inoculate yourself

against the other party’s arguments

Abandoning a Committed Position

• Plan a private way out, reword to indicate conditions have changed– “Given what I’ve learned from you during this, I see I am

going to have to rethink my earlier position”

• Let the matter die silently– New proposal without mentioning other one

• Restate the commitment in more general terms– “10% discount” to “significant discount”

• If it is abandoned, minimize damage to self-esteem or constituent relationships– Public attribution to noble or higher cause