Successful Negotiations and Your Business Plan

Negotiation is something we all have in common. Sometimes we negotiate with others, sometimes with ourselves; it all depends on where we are and what the subject matter is. In business, negotiation is vital to current and future opportunities. Employees who prove to be poor negotiators can cripple a business plan, in a single meeting. When it comes to negotiation, there’s an undeniable truth: what you say and how you say it matters.

Keep the following in mind as you look to improve your negotiation skills:

• Act Quickly: In negotiations, time is always of the essence. Choosing the right course of action and striking while the iron is hot often become a careful balancing act. Sometimes waiting until cooler heads prevail allows conflict to spread to more people than originally intended. The key is diagnosing problems quickly and acting confidently to reach quick, effective solutions.
• Remain Neutral: No one wants to feel like their perspective isn’t as valued as the opposing view. Conflict negotiators need to be balanced and fair (even if they have a bias towards a particular point of view). Negotiations should always be respectful towards both sides and create an air of transparency and unrestricted communication.

Even though negotiations sometimes span complex, nebulous topics, they’re usually restricted to a few possible outcomes:

• Win-Lose: Based on a highly competitive mindset, this scenario is focused on a reward that’s in limited supply. The loser is the one who compromises.
• Lose-Lose: All parties involved are very competitive and they need to win at all costs. Ultimately, neither get what they are looking for because they’re unwilling to come to a consensus.
• Win-Win: Both parties win. In theory, this solution creates the most value for all involved parties. It might sound counterintuitive, but win-win scenarios can be very bad for business.

Consider this example:

Suppose you and a friend are preparing a separate dish for a dinner party. Your recipe requires one orange. However, your friend’s recipe also requires one orange. For argument’s sake, there is only one orange in the entire house and purchasing more isn’t an option.

A win-win would involve cutting the orange in half, that way you get half of the orange and your friend gets the other half. However, as it turns out, you were baking a cake and needed the orange’s zest. Your friend was making a smoothie that required the orange’s juice. Neither of you got what you really needed because you settled for a “win-win” scenario. Sometimes compromise isn’t the best option.

Before commencing negotiations of any sort, always make sure the other party has the authority to make commitments their company can stick to. You don’t want to discover you’ve made successful negotiations with someone who still needs approval from his or her supervisor.

Actsoft and Employee Negotiations

Actsoft can give you a powerful bargaining chip when negotiating salaries with your employees. Comet Tracker allows system administrators to track workers’ locations in near real-time, with GPS positioning. As an administrator, you can document employees’ moves and work habits, providing valuable information that can be used to negotiate promotions or pay increases when the time comes. You can see which employees work quickly and efficiently in the field, while properly utilizing company assets. That information can help differentiate the exceptional employees from the average workers.

Whether for a performance bonus, raise negotiation, or even the occasional disciplinary action; full transparency into your employees’ work habits can help you effectively negotiate each instance with the proper documentation to support your claims.

Actsoft provides the software needed to remove some of the potential guesswork from employee negotiations. However, negotiation is a skill requiring constant practice. As you encounter people from different backgrounds and viewpoints, your conversations with them will change. Use the tips discussed to help you stay at the top of your game as a negotiator.

Have any questions on how Actsoft can help you?

Call (888) 732-6638 or Receive a Live Webinar