I entered this course with a very minimal knowledge on negotiations. I was unaware of what strategies and tactics one could use to have an effective negotiation. Till now, I have always considered most negotiations to be a win-lose kind of situation, where both are competing over who gets to have the bigger share of the pie. Depending …show more content…
With every other back and forth discussion, I reiterated my interest in working for the company to reassure the employer that salary was not my motivating factor. The employer also expressed her interest in hiring, however she admitted of being constrained with the budget. In a negotiation like this one where I recognized my partner had similar interests as me, it was important for us to share some information to allow each party to find ways to satisfy each other’s interests. When I shared my other offer, the employer was able to offer higher offers to better align my interests. I was also cautious about not giving absolute numbers but instead a range to help with the counter offers.
We both then considered other means of concession and started assessing choices like start dates, bonuses, stock options and moving expense reimbursement. In terms of sharing information, while I kept some of the key elements about another job offer undisclosed e.g. the fact that the offer was in San Francisco, my partner shared her dislike towards the candidate she was considering. That in turn gave me additional power to further negotiate more favorable terms. Although, the transparent sharing of information made the negotiation process much smoother, it is essential to be wary of the power-shifting …show more content…
There was a point in the discussion where the negotiation was not getting anywhere and I was finding it difficult to control my anxiousness. Perhaps not in the same context, but if this situation happens in any of my future negotiations, I would request for a break, and make a fresh approach when it resumes again. It is also important to have a control over one’s physiological response and expressive response in this type of negotiation.
Another crucial part of an integrative negotiation is to come up with creative ideas to increase the size of the pie; an individual should consider their priorities and look for alternative means to achieve them. Having good preparation assists greatly in realizing those alternatives. In the case of a salary negotiation, there are perhaps several other factors that might be important to a candidate, not just the salary. Therefore, the goal is to consider those factors and try to incorporate into the discussion.
The strategies and tactics I have learned through this exercise and the others have certainly made me a better negotiator. Going forward, I could take the teachings from this exercise and apply it to different negotiation scenarios I may face in the future to achieve more effective and beneficial