How many times in the course of a day do you find yourself negotiating a situation? I would be willing to guess that you encounter both planned and unplanned opportunities for negotiation several times a day, yet more often than not, you may find the act of negotiation difficult. If you push too hard, the deal goes astray. If you're too soft, you become known as a pushover.

The key to sound negotiation is ensuring the appropriate approach to the kind of negotiation to hand. Within the IT environment, there are many kinds of negotiations that take place on an ongoing basis; we are continually involved in negotiations with users, partners, executive management, staff and, of course, suppliers. As a matter of fact, the environment within which we negotiate has become so specialised that a generic approach to all different kinds of negotiations no longer delivers optimal results.

There are similarities between the approach to best practices in negotiations and that of implementing best practices in the workplace supported by the deployment of IT solutions. To facilitate the achievement of corporate objectives through negotiations, IT departments should consider the creation of an organisational negotiation capability. As in the IT environment, strategy drives process which, in turn, drives implementation and support.

This means that a negotiation strategy should be defined, a supporting negotiation process designed and implemented, and a negotiation supporting infrastructure established to continuously drive the improvement of negotiated outcomes whilst minimising the losses associated with sub-optimal supplier and end user agreements.

What is Best Practice Negotiation?

To avoid the losses associated with sub-optimal agreements, it is necessary to pursue a Whole Brain approach to all negotiations. In addition to negotiating in a Whole Brain manner, IT negotiation practitioners dealing with suppliers should also empower themselves with a basic understanding of purchasing strategy, and the application of different negotiation styles to suit the negotiation to hand. Lets explore these two concepts in a little more detail.

Whole Brain Negotiations

It has been proven that all humans have preferences for certain categories of activities within the context of understanding, interpreting and engaging in communication and negotiations. The Herrmann Whole Brain Model provides a useful metaphor for understanding ourselves and our negotiation preferences.

Figure 1: The Herrmann Whole Brain Model

We all have preferences for activities contained within each of the 4 quadrants. Interestingly, less than 3% of us have an equal preference for all 4 quadrants. Since more than 1 million people have completed the HBDI (Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument) profile, we are in a position to monitor the trends that are of particular interest to negotiators in the IT environment. For instance, we know that professional buyers who represent organisations in their negotiations with IT suppliers typically have strong preferences for the A & B quadrants, but less of a focus on the C & D quadrants. This approach often leads to opportunities being missed to extract additional value. It also frequently results in too little focus being expended on understanding the relationship dynamics resulting from different types of negotiated agreements.

On the other hand, we know that sales resources representing IT suppliers typically have a stronger preference for the C & D quadrants. This leads to them often overlooking key risks, and hampers their identification of the real business impact offered by their solutions.

The best advice for any IT negotiator is to pursue a Whole Brain negotiation model where due attention and focus is given to activities in all four quadrants.

Quadrant A Value

IT negotiators must have an understanding of the facts that underpin any negotiation. Failure to gather and understand the relevant facts that support optimal deal making results in failed negotiations, or negotiations where value is left on the table.

Quadrant B Process

Any negotiation without a robustly defined negotiation process and management infrastructure runs the risk of a less-than-ideal outcome. A framework is required to provide an environment in which risks can be proactively managed. A robust negotiation process ensures positive momentum and provides a reference for avoiding unforeseen complications and risks.

Quadrant C Relationship

Agreements can only be concluded between organisations represented by people. The way we interact with other people is critical in negotiation success. The importance of relationships in negotiation is amplified in an environment where continued partnerships and long-standing relationships result from business interactions.

Quadrant D Vision

Parties to an agreement need a shared vision of the losses and benefits. It is only by having an understanding of all parties respective vision that driving motivators or interests can be determined. A key part of negotiation competency is the ability to generate options that will serve the needs and interests of all involved. Purchasing Strategy and Fit for Purpose Negotiation Models
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