Negotiation happens all the time at work. Using principles from such negotiating masters as William Ury (Getting Past No and Getting to Yes), we can be more effective at work.
My client S. is a hospital Director of Marketing who is responsible for projects that depend on other people to do things. One example is a Physician Directory for the hospital. S is not getting cooperation from some key physicians. We talked about how she can enroll them in the project by using negotiation.
Key elements of successful negotiation are:
- Establishing her desire for the two of them to work together to a successful conclusion
- Asking the physician to help her – the word help being the important one, because people like to help others
- Establishing what’s in it for the physician (WIIFM), by asking what the physician’s needs and concerns are about the project
- Creating a direct relationship between the WIIFM and the project and checking to make sure it makes sense to the physician
- Stating specifically what the physician can do to help S and thereby achieve their own goals – checking to make sure this is doable within your target time frames
Once you have that enrollment and agreement, I suggest sending a confirming email, thanking the person for their help, reiterating the agreements, saying you look forward to the finished product, and reminding them of the ultimate benefit of the project.
