Negotiation Strategies and Skills

Participation Prerequisites

None.

Please note that the module ‘Negotiations for Managers and Entrepreneurs’ is closely related to this module. Therefore, students are not allowed to take both courses.

Course Content

Negotiation is the art and science of securing agreements between two or more interdependent parties who seek to maximize their outcomes. It is a key leadership skill. While leaders need analytical skills to develop optimal solutions, they also need negotiation skills to win acceptance and implementation of these solutions.

We negotiate often, but many of us know very little about the strategy and psychology of effective negotiations. In this module, students will have the opportunity to evaluate their existing approach to negotiations, learn new strategies, and learn how to apply these strategies to the wide variety of negotiations they will encounter across their career. The module is designed for students in all managerial and entrepreneurial careers.

The module has six major parts, adding more complexity as we proceed in the module:

(1)   Single-Issue, Two-Party Negotiations

(2)   Multiple Issues, Two-Party Negotiations

(3)   Multi-Party Negotiations

(4)  Agency and Ethics in Negotiations

(5)   Conflict Resolution

(6)  Cross-Cultural Negotiations

Intended Learning Outcomes and Competencies

(1)    Gain a broad intellectual understanding of central concepts in negotiations to understand the structure and dynamics of negotiations in different contexts

(2)   Learn to develop strategic plans and improve ability to lead the negotiation process to formulate and execute win-win agreements

(3)   Handle complexities, such as dealing with multiple issues, parties, principal-agent relationships, and ethical dilemmas in negotiations

(4)   Build confidence in negotiation skills by understanding one’s own and the other parties’ strengths, weaknesses, and biases

(5)   Learn how to resolve conflicts effectively and create value out of them

(6)   Negotiate effectively across cultural boundaries

Instruction Type

In-person

Form of Examination

Grades in this module will be based on the following three components:

a)    Class Contribution (18%)

b)    Team Presentation (40%)

c)     Self-Assessment and Reflection Paper (42%)

Literature

·       R. Lewicki, D. M. Saunders, B. Barry. Essentials of Negotiation (6th or later Editions).

·       R. Fisher & W. Ury, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, New York, NY: Penguin Books.

·       J.K. Sebanaus, The Hidden Challenge of Cross-Border Negotiations, Harvard Business Review, 80(3), 76-85.