Negotiation Techniques Essay Example

borders in different cultures.

An international import manager needs to utilize skills that draw standard of their best practices, outstanding cultural awareness and diplomacy, and sharp communication skills. They need to practice their experience gained from doing local business transactions. These are the skills got from managing teams, partners or suppliers. Multicultural business leadership skills play a vital role in working for an international concern. These skills include the following: Cultural sensitivity, being multilingual, and global management philosophy.

These are the skills that would enable the manager to do a recommendable job. When it comes to cultural sensitivity, the managers need to know how to adapt to different cultures that enhance business and personal growth. People feel better when their cultures are appreciated. To appreciate a culture, the manager would need to first understand how culture impacts business relationships (Zhou 2009, p.20). It might help in understanding how others interpret cues like tone of voice and body language. It as well helps one to appropriately use their negotiation skills, in moving deals successfully within the different cultures.

A Successful manager needs to be able to converse in more than one language. It is a plus for them since business people want to seal deals in the language they understand best. Although, when using the different languages, avoiding unfamiliar phrases and using shorter sentences could help individuals of different cultures to grasp the context of communication more easily. In Global management philosophy, the manager should exhibit the ability to formulate strategies and management systems to take advantage of international opportunities, as well as to respond to changes in a sometimes-volatile international marketplace (Zhou 2009, p.60) While no one approach

to international management is perfect, each of the followings has distinct advantages and disadvantages: As a manager, one should not try to show a conviction that their way of doing business is superior to others. The tendency to use the same management style as is practiced in the home country is not encouraged, not unless the manager has prior knowledge of the culture they are working in. The approach might be risky and could result in losing millions in sales or profits (Zhou 2009, p.11).

The practice could harm a well-established brand and worse still lead to a serious business failure. The manager should be willing to learn and adopt different communication, diplomatic and negotiation skills to fit in different cultures. Focusing on the import management career, one will get plenty of opportunities to learn these skills. As the business world becomes smaller, one requires exhibiting skills that make them unique from anyone else. The company from Taiwan that is required to send the toys for Christmas will do that if the import manager utilizes negotiation skills well. When it comes to negotiating on the price of the toy, the following skills come in handy.

Maximizing one’s influence, having high-quality agreements, planning, and fairness. Different cultures use different negotiation styles, and a party‘s style in negotiating directly impacts the terms of the final agreement. One should understand that negotiation styles and cultural issues influence the behavior of the participants during negotiation. In conducting business, Taiwan typically follows American and Japanese practices and retains some connections with Japan (Zhou 2009, p.13). One needs to understand that there are certain cultures that Taiwan has been known to exhibit for

some time now. Taiwan requires to understand the context of the negotiation by both parties before doing business.

In negotiations, they do thorough research about their partners. Mostly seek to be advised by experts and consultants before engaging into business. They have a habit of seemingly moving backward while moving forward to delay time. When negotiating, they take an adversarial, yet cooperative, stance against their opponent (Zhou 2009, p.22).

They also tend to adhere to a baseline figure that they do not easily budge from them, however, seek to create a friendly atmosphere when negotiating. Regularly, they seem to ask for a concession from both sides (Zhou 2009, p.9). Understanding these traits helps in identifying the techniques to use when negotiating with anyone from that country. Question Two Good communication is the foundation of successful relationships, both personally and professionally (Mayer 2007, p.34).

But as human beings, we tend to communicate with much more than words. In fact, research shows that most of our communication is through body language. Body language plays an essential role in communication and comprises of movements and gestures we during communication. It is, of course, true that actions speak louder than words we can pass say message without necessarily having to utter a word. Body language helps us detect different situations and occurrences. It enables us to discern when someone is lying to us and when they are telling the truth.

It is an expression of our feelings about whatever is being discussed. It is as well crucial in telling how someone feels about what they are telling. Body language has been used in many instances as the determining factor in job interviews or

in business deals. Conveyance of confidence places one at an upper hand during such situations. Studies show that 70% of our communication is done through body language and it’s more accurate than the words used in an attempt to convey the same information (Mayer 2007, p.23). Therefore, it is imperative that we learn to use and discern body language more effectively in order to make our communication more effective.

Using body language effectively reduces the chances, of being misunderstood. It is a good tool in maintaining healthy friendships. It is generally a tool that could be used immeasurably in our personal and professional life. Body language includes eye movements, facial expression and the movement of arms and shoulders.

They also convey feelings such as confidence, happiness, fear, sadness, disinterest or malice. It is important to move eyes over all the participants when making an address since it shows one is contented of what they are saying. By doing this, one will definitely add impact. One needs to as well maintain the intensity of voice to match the heat of the topic (Mayer 2007, p.30). Posture is another body language that says a lot about someone. The appropriate posture coordinates verbal language.

If one has the right posture, they control their voice with ease. Body posture goes hand in hand with the rate of breath and body movement that need to be synchronous with the voice. Body language could be used to tell different aspects of people. It helps in evaluating people’s interest, their emotions and makes communication interesting. Body language could be positive or negative.

Positive body gestures are a sign of confidence and security (Mayer 2007, p.40). They

leave a good impression and are a sign of active participation. They might include walking upright, shaking hands confidently, nodding head is a positive gesture, having a pleasant face and maintaining steady eye contact with the other party. Negative gestures, on the other hand, are a sign of restlessness and insecurity. They should be avoided in meetings and interviews since they show a lack of confidence. They might include biting nails, being up tied, concentrating on distractors rather than the speaker and wearing a faked smile.

Typically, body language that identifies a confident person includes Eye contact – solid with a smile on the face, Posture – standing tall with shoulders back, hands and arms gestures, slow and clear tone when making a speech and their ability to maintain a moderate to low Tone of voice. However, not everyone comes from the same culture. Different people might have their signs and signals being different from the ones one expects. This is often the case when people have different past experiences cultures and nationalities.

This makes it important to check the interpretation of someone else's body language so as not to misinterpret information. One can do this by asking further questions or seeking to know the person better. Engaging in people-watching might help in practicing and further developing the skill of picking up body language. The role that body language plays include Substitution by they being used in place of a verbal message, constructive Repetition by repeating the message the speaker makes verbally, contradiction by contradicting a said message, complementing where they might be used to add to a verbal message, accenting by seemingly underlining a verbal message,

for instance, pounding a table. Since body language is a rapidly flowing back-and-forth process. Understanding of the cues one is sending and emotional self-awareness makes one successfully use it.

Along with that, one ought to have the ability to accurately pick up on the cues others are sending and requires one’s full attention. You need to stay focused on the moment-to-moment experience in order to fully understand what’s going on (Mayer 2007, p.24). For one to show successful use of body language, one should take a time out if they are feeling overwhelmed by stress. This is because the condition compromises one’s ability to use them efficiently when communicating. When people are stressed out they are more likely to misread other people and therefore end up sending off confusing nonverbal signals (Mayer 2007, p.55). One is supposed to take a moment to calm down before they jump back into the conversation.

By so doing, they will be better equipped to deal with the situation in a positive way. Paying attention to inconsistencies is another requirement. If one gets the feeling that the other party is not being honest, they might be picking up on a mismatch between verbal and nonverbal cues (Mayer 2007, p.64). It is, therefore, important to always stay attentive to details. Research has shown that some expressions of emotions such as happiness, aggression, surprise, anger, contempt, disgust, and sadness and fear are universal and are used by a wide range of people across different cultures (Mayer 2007, p.49).

Recently, scholars have observed and shown that some other expressions like pride and shame are also universal. Question Three Conflict is inevitable in the society. No matter

how much we try to avoid it, it still happens. Conflict generates whenever people have different expectations. Conflict can be avoided through several a series of thoughtful ways such as getting involved in the discussion early enough to diffuse anger and facilitate communication.

Conflict management is therefore made critical to help avoid disputes, arguments, lasting conflict and litigation. Mediation is an important option to the cost litigation. It is applicable to all forms of business cases as well as personal issues. Being the right mediator in any situation requires skills to make all the difference. There are different approaches that a mediator can take such as facilitative approach. It involves exploring the parties' motivations, concerns, interests, and goals.

This is meant to help identify the common ground for both conflicting parties. From here, it is easy to come up with possible resolutions. To mediate in a professional way, it requires treating the aggrieved parties in a professional way as well. Both of them hold reasons for their doings. The company that was meant to deliver the computers might have reasons; good ones indeed, but that does not justify their late delivery of the computers.

The company receiving the computers have the legal rights to stop doing business with such a company but to prevent this, an agreement would work better. Traditionally, litigation has served the purpose of dealing with such companies that do not honor pledges. The method, however, only satisfies the natural inclination to settle disputes under compulsion but causes adequate harm to businesses. Consensual processes should be considered since they provide a win-win situation to individuals and businesses all the same. Mediation has been termed as

principally being the first recourse in the settlement of many disputes (Mayer 2007, p.90).

It is emerging on a global scale as the best approach towards the collaborative resolution of disputes. Correctly addressing issues in business cases helps to avoid common mistakes commercial litigators do. It could mean the difference between failure and success in resolving cases. Factors that favor mediation both clients include confidentiality since they might have explained their cases privately at an initial stage It is best to propose mediation with individual parties even before a meeting of both companies. It is important for the need to preserve a business relationship since it prevents arising of an adverse precedent. Another factor to consider is the provision of an immediate equitable relief.

This motivates the willingness of both parties to participate in a discussion. It gives a chance for the company delivering computers to make an explanation why they delayed and apologize. It also gives the company receiving the computers an opportunity to address the issue plus other issues that they might have observed over a period of time and maybe did not find a platform to table the issues. Clients at times perceive mediation as a sign of inferiority. It is, therefore, important to explain the essence of the process. It is important to let them know that it is cost and time savings.

They should also know that this is a method that ensures privacy benefits for both companies. Explaining to them that it is not a signal for weakness but a willingness to resolve the case without putting both parties through litigation is should be done (Mayer 2007, p.88) The mediator should keep

in mind that mediations might involve both monetary and nonmonetary resolutions. But even if the case apparently present monetary claims only, the mediator should be in a position to enhance nonmonetary resolutions too. For instance, the client might agree to continue doing business with the company that failed to deliver computers in time but on new, acceptable terms that are mutual. The parties might as well need to write a royalty agreement not to challenge the validity of decisions made in the future. During the mediation process, it is important to stay calm.

This gives one the advantage of remaining unruffled under all circumstances. One should also seek to fully understand both parties’ cases. This means giving them active verbal and nonverbal signs that one understands their cases. It also important to accentuate the Positives.

The y should be the commonalities between the two parties. If there seems to be none, it is the role of the mediator to create them. It is important to them know that mistakes happen regularly. This helps to normalize the situation at hand. After listening to both parties and making a decision, it is always wise to state one’s case in a tactful way. The essence is to help people understand your perspective without making them defensive (Zhou 2009, p.78).

The same serves as a proper way of attack the problem rather than a specific party. The mediator’s case will be heard more clearly since it is depersonalized. As a mediator, one should focus on the future and avoid reflecting too much on the past. They are supposed to show them that there will still be the need to purchase orders, strike

deals, and contracts, in future even if there were some slight disagreements. Instead of focusing on the thing that went wrong and the one who should have been responsible, the solution would be focusing on what can be done to resolve the problem (Zhou 2009, p.87).

In tense situations, being Creative is the only way out one should be creative and remind the parties that there is nothing that is not negotiable. One should think out of the box so that no idea is too far-fetched. This is one way that one could yield a true win-win solution. Question Four As a leader of a negotiating team for a company, one needs to be tactful.

The most embarrassing time is when one thinks he/she has done their research well, and that they have the facts right but after the opening niceties, one fails to make sense. That is the moment one understands they lost the upper hand. A negotiation situation that involves two interdependent parties needs to be treated with ultimate caution to reach a mutual agreement and save on time. What a team leader should avoid is being beaten in competition to dominate the other party. This might be as bad as compromising the company’s profits.

The leader must help the team reach maximally beneficial mutual agreements (Zhou 2009, p.77). Pre-negotiation planning with team members plays an important role for a key to successful negotiations. This will come in handy since before opening any kind of negotiations, both parties require to define the problem or deal they have at hand. They might as well need to define their expectations and then select a strategy for negotiating. Developing

a plan for implementing the set strategy might follow.

Specific planning is therefore needed to maximize the results. It includes defining prioritized interests of the company and developing supporting arguments. (Mayer 2007, p.93). It might also involve an analysis of what the other party prioritizes. After that setting limits and targets follows.

They then decide on what goals to adopt and the possibilities of attaining a beneficial outcome that is mutual. It is important for the team leader to understand that both parties a common goal: discovery of the trading zone (Fisher et al 1992, p.98). This is that moment in a negotiation when adversaries switch to become collaborative problem solvers where they cease to be after winning each other's expense (Zhou 2009, p.70). The parties at times shift from primary competition and show explicit cooperation to create much value for all as possible.

This is where both parties agree to help each other meet their interests making it easier. To make an informed decision, one needs to base decisions soundly by getting all the relevant information so we may be within the information frame. The leader will be of great assistance in allotting relatively equal time, to all the parties to present their visions and concerns (Fisher et al 1992, p.67). Since the process needs to have fluidity, it is best to make sure as a leader that you exhibit adorable skills. Aligning Your Own Team’s Interests is the number one priority that the team leader should consider. It is the goal of each party to get the lion’s share from any deal.

It is of importance to acknowledge that companies send teams to negotiate only when issues

are complex therefore all though the parties seem to be on the same side, they often have different priorities and imagine different ideal outcomes (Fisher et al 1992, p.8). These outcomes include business development and optimum profit. There might be differences when negotiating but the teams need to resolve their differences over concessions, trade-offs, negotiation targets, and tactics before parting ways. Failure to that might risk ending up with an agreement that only benefits one company. A diligent team leader should confront diverging interests to help clarify team goals and bring out personality conflicts. This will ultimately build unity of purpose.

Consider the team that has already defined what they want. To earn more profit and keep the company at a competitive edge. For instance, a company that deals with production might be concerned that a price increase might erode market share. In an attempt to preserve his account and the cost of the products, they might want to increase customer support so that his department gets more work. The manager will end up with the highest-margin proposal if he succeeds.

And to make things work, he/she has to negotiate. No one wants to let their party down, they will, therefore, dig in on the issues that in the best interest of the company. People who are good at forming relationships across constituencies are the ones employed to get everyone on board in laying negotiation strategies. Some managers who might not have time to look for an individual who can lead the others might engage in the constituencies. This is because they are at a higher possibility of knowing different personalities than anyone else in the company.

They could as well invite opinion leaders who are perceived as good decision makers in the company to attend team planning sessions.

The selected team leader might have to embark on different session bargaining with constituent departments to test their skills and understanding as well. It is clear that multiparty negotiations offer more challenges than one-on-one negotiations (Fisher et al 1992, p.102). But having carefully laid plans and preparations, it becomes easy to succeed. Before engaging in multiparty negotiations, the leader needs to ensure that the group members keep their goals and objectives at the forefront. They should be discouraged to adopt tunnel vision to be able to achieve partnerships for the benefit of all participants.

As observed, one needs to assign roles to capitalize on team members’ strengths and interests as a leader (Fisher et al 1992, p.98). Since we will have to acknowledge that different persons within a company have different and unique capabilities. The leader should, therefore, seek to involve different embers in accordance to their capabilities. This might serve to save them from a bad name among the members. This could as well help individual members feel comfortable with the team strategy (Fisher et al 1992, p.56). Question Five There are different terms that are used in the dynamics of negotiation.

Some of them are as described below. Bargaining mix This is a package of issues that are up for negotiation. Each individual item could be expressed as having its own starting, target and resistance point. It is always true that a large bargaining mix consumes much more time when negotiating.

The good thing about it is that it opens up many opportunities for collaborative

solutions. It is necessary for negotiators to understand what is important to them and figure out what to do to get it. It is crucial when preparing for negotiation processes. If the bargaining mix is large, then the chances of getting trade-off also escalates. ZOPA This means the zone of possible agreement (ZOPA) in full. It is described as the bargaining range.

ZOPA gives a description of the intellectual zone in business as well as negotiations between parties after making an agreement and coming to a consensus. It is factual that an agreement is possible within ZOPA. No amount of negotiation can result in an agreement outside ZOPA. Taking an example of a person who is willing to lend money to another at a certain rate and another willing to borrow money at the agreed rate, then this is a successful negotiation. ZOPA can, therefore, be established if the parties come to an agreement on the rate and period.

Having a good understanding of one’s ZOPA is crucial for a negotiation be successful. Both parties must explore each other’s values and interests to determine the presence of ZOPA. The process should be done earlier in the negotiation process. It should, however, be adjusted since most information is acquired. Once one discovers their ZOPA then there is a possibility of coming to a successful negotiation that ultimately lead to an agreement. A ZOPA however, only gets in a place where there is an overlap between each party.

Bottom line is when there is no overlap a negative bargaining zone is attained. With such a zine, both parties should just stop their negotiations. Reservation price Reservation price refers to a

limit on the price of a service or a good. In other terms, it is the highest price a buyer can pay.

This is from the demand perspective. On the side of supply, it is the lowest price at which the seller could be willing to render a good or service. They are common in negotiations in auctions though its dynamicity has enabled it to be incorporated in many other fields. The reservation prices vary from one buyer or seller to another since they have different disposable income.

They also have different desires to sell or buy a good or service. They have different knowledge concerning a good or service a well. The importance of the reservation price is that it could be used to calculate the producer or the consumer surplus with as determined by the equilibrium price. BATNA This in full means Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement.

It is the back-up plan in case negotiations fail. A good BATNA could make someone be more aggressive in negotiations since it provides alternatives. It is funny enough since in negotiating price, one’s BATNA should be the next-best offer. In a job interview, one’s BATNA should offer the best job.

In determining BATNA, money is the best measure in comparing alternatives. For instance, in selling your motor vehicle, all that really matter is the price each potential buyer is offering. The highest amount should be the BATNA. If a new customer emerges and offers a higher price than the previous one, then this definitely becomes one’s new BATNA The walkaway price should be the maximum one would get if selling a commodity for a buyer, it is the minimum

one will accept. In addition, BATNA enables one to negotiate harder with less fear of losing a deal since there is a second alternative. Concession According to Zhou (2009), a concession is anything that is done to reach an agreement or improve a situation.

It is usually done grudgingly. It is actually done grudgingly but the best thing is that trade-off is done later. It’s true that no business person will want to give anything away for free so in order to reach an agreement, one must be having profit at mind. Then after all this concession can be made.

Good negotiators show their expertise in concessions since they know its importance. They acknowledge that giving away something regularly is important to accomplish favorable settlements. They have mastered the art of strategic conceding. They know how to maneuver and towards a favorable outcome in the smallest concessions possible.

Trade-Off A Trade-Off is referred to as a process where two parties engage in yielding, conceding, or compromising issues under negotiation. They might do this unwillingly or willingly. It has different objectives that cannot be attained together in a design, decision, or project. It can as well be associated with opportunity costs and other benefits.

Tradeoffs play a crucial role in negotiations since it provides ground to quantify the positions of the other party. A trade-off involves losing a quality for another one in return it works on the principle of increasing some things to decrease others. Tradeoffs could be compared to a simple rule of physics where one can either fit in many small objects in a given space or fewer large objects. It implies a decision to be made

in light of both the negatives and positives of a particular choice, for instance making a choice between investing in the risky stock market or bonds which are safer. Question Six In the book by authors William and Roger.

There is a description of the principles of effective negotiations that are key either in getting a job, making deals or during employment interviews. As outlined the effective method of negotiation is based on five principles that guide the success of the negotiation. They are you first separate the people from the problem, focus on the interest and not the positions, come up with options for mutual gain, use the criterial of objectives provision and finally know the best alternative. The two authors have explained that to have a good agreement and an effective one is by being wise and efficient yourself. This improves the relationship between the two involved parties. This ensures that there are fair and lasting agreements between the involved parties.

In terms of position bargaining each of the party is required to open with their position in the issue under discussion. These parties are required to negotiate from separate opening positions. The authors went far to argue that bargaining over a position produces unwise agreements. The disadvantage of this principle is that the negotiators lock themselves in those positions which bring out their ego.

This goes ahead to encourage stubbornness and this tends to harm the relationship between the two parties. An example of such a situation is the talks President Kennedy had on a ban on nuclear testing. The talks were on the inspections that the United States and the soviet unions would be

allowed to carry out in a year. The talks broke down because there was focus on the positions (Fisher et al 1992, p.107) The authors have laid down the advantages of principled negotiation.

The greatest advantage is it allows and provides the better way of reaching good agreements this method can be used on any type of dispute since it allows focus on the interests and not positions, unlike the earlier method. However, during the interview, the principles should be observed at each stage. By this way, the analysis of the problem is the first thing to be looked at then existing options and plan of the ways of solving. Finally, the parties look more into the option or solution they can all agree on.

On the utilization of the principle of separating the issues and the people who become personally involved with the issues and their positions. They tend to take views and the response to the issues as personal fights. If there is separation from these two, then the negotiation can be effective without destroying the relationship between the two parties. The authors have identified the basic sorts of problems in the people involved. They are the perception among the parties due to the differing interpretations. Secondly emotions and the frustrations arising from the negotiations.

Thirdly communication is another source of the problems. For example, the listeners may not be listening to the addressers and instead planning on the answers they are going to respond. Solving the problems requires a good relationship to be maintained and be mindful of the other party. The other principle that is key in the negotiations is the focusing on the

interests.

As earlier stated on the positions being under focus and not on the interests. Interests are the reasons that caused one to decide and not on the things one decided on. The interests may differ among different members however, there are certain interests that are basic and common. For example, security and the financial well-being of the two parties are common between them. For the party giving their interests, they should put them out clearly but remain open to different proposals. The principle of generating options that are creative in the solving the problem.it is important to avoid premature decisions since this limits the open floor for different views or alternative options.

This may lead to narrowing of their way to finding the answer they are after. The authors have suggested the probable ways of solving these barriers. First, there should be the separation of the discovery and the invention stage from the evaluation stage. At first, the suggestions may sound wild and weird but after correct consideration, they may come out really helpful. Brainstorming sessions could be very important then followed by evaluation stage which should begin with the most promising suggestions.

The two parties should avoid having the mentality of the win-lose situation. When the two parties view differ the participants should focus more on the proposals that would make the views compatible. During the negotiations, the participants may decide to target the decision makers by addressing their questions to them. The other criteria that are crucial in the negotiations are the objective criteria. It applies mostly when the interests are directly opposed the party may decide to use this method to resolve their differences.

The

differences should not be allowed to destroy the relationships. This ensures efficiency in the talks and ensures that wise agreements are made. The parties should use the criteria that best suits them. However, the criteria should be practical and legal for example, one can use scientific findings or the standards that mostly key. In case one of the parties is quite or more powerful than the other it is quite a challenge to overcome the differences in the negotiation. The authors have suggested the ways to protect the weaker party.

One of the biggest that most of the weaker parties come up with is the bottom line that they establish that they take as the worst outcome. This reduces on their generation of options. They should focus more on the having the best alternative in the agreement. Negotiations basically give better results than those that would be achieved without the negotiations. Therefore, there should avoid negotiating blindly. (Fisher et al 1992, p.

58) Sometimes other sides refuse to move away from their positions and they maximize their gains by refusing to take part in principled negotiations. When the side of the party attacks the principled side should avoid at all costs to counterattack. They avoid the personal attacks and they attack the problem itself. Even if this powerful party uses dirty tricks the third party should avoid being carried away. For example, in cases where the party state some information they can ask for verification or better still use the psychological warfare.

By giving a more comfortable change. Question Seven Negotiation is the talk or better still the dialogue between two parties, people, and groups that motive is

to reach a beneficial outcome. This outcome can be for both the parties or for one of them in which the best outcome of one is the loss of the other to have the same. In this definitions, it means that one of the parties may attain what it is looking for by being successful in its agreement. For example, it would the request of a contract. This means that the company that gets the contract they have benefited from the company offering the contract.

It can be the success from the agreement from both the companies in the negotiations. This is because the offering company could also save some money and losses from getting the services from the best company and at a cheaper cost. The negotiation could also be aimed at solving the points of difference towards achieving individual, collective or mutual gain and an advantage to have certain interests taken care of. It is mostly conducted by having a certain position in mind in order to achieve a certain agreement. The major factor that determines if the agreement is successful is the quality of the negotiation by the parties not forgetting the relationship between them. Negotiation is not just any type of agreement.

It is referred as a fail if there is no understanding or settlement of the solution that was under consideration. When there is no progress in the negotiations then it is very advisable for both the parties to agree to find the solution in time (Zhou 2009, p.138) The negotiation takes place in different situations in life. They may occur in business, government, proceedings, companies, personal situations. In the government, it

could be with other countries in terms of conditions or treaties that are normally useful or having a mutual gain. In the personal issues, it could be events such as the dowry whereby the two families discuss in the requirements to have the marriage allowed or to allow the agreement negotiations take place. Another definition of the word negotiation is that it is a discussion between two disputants that are basically in the process trying to look for a solution to the problem that they have together or that has common consequences to them.

This process can occur in at an individual level or at a diplomatic level. The negotiations mostly are because the single party cannot find the solution alone. The first thing they do is to recognize that there is a problem of a dispute between them that is worth of their mutual gain or interest. By the negotiations they avoid fighting openly or destroying the relationship is between them.

It is normally common to find in the negotiation that parties usually give and take. They have to offer something to gain something that they cannot obtain independently. Sometimes they don’t even want the same thing and the approach can be win-win or a win-lose nature. The disputants either attempt to get the other side to fulfill their demands and to move their position towards the solution or to come to a decision that fulfills the goals of each of the sides.

However, the nature of the relationship that arises from the agreements gotten to have huge implications on the outcomes or the future relation. In this definition, there exists a way called mutual adjustment of

which causes the changes that happen during the process. Both parties try to weigh the outcomes that the other side can influence on them. It is for both parties to exchange an effort to propose changes to the other party’s position during the negotiations. If one party makes proposals and they are rejected by the other party not providing alternative proposals this make that party pull off from the negotiations all because they feel like they are not gaining in order to give. The two definitions differ in such a way because in one of the side of the party gains from the other side of the party.

In the second definition, the thing is that it is a give-take nature. Mostly this method is used in the solutions of problems that are to be solved. These differences because it depends on with the reason for the negotiation. Some of the different basic reasons that would cause the difference in the negotiations are to accommodate for example it would be a joining of hands to fight a common problem such as terrorism of which both the parties would be affected by the same. The other reason for the negotiation would be avoiding things like fights between two countries just as an example. It would also for compromising reasons.

By this, it means that the two parties are targeting to come up with a solution to an existing dispute. A conflict is a serious disagreement or argument that results from a dispute or quarrel. It may result within a group when the actions of one of the sides is unacceptable to the other group. This is normally referred

to as an intergroup conflict. It usually follows a certain course.

At this time, the group interaction is first disrupted due to the differences in the opinion or due to the scarcity of resources. Conflict can also be defined as an activity which takes place when individuals or groups carries out mutually inconsistent acts that concern their thoughts, requirements, and needs. This results from the escalation of a disagreement with each of the parties trying to destroy each other. However, conflict and negotiation re linked. This is because in the conflict resolution negotiation can be important.

After the conflict in finding the solution the two parties come together and hold discussions. For them to come up with an agreement they require to have negotiations whereby each of the parties is required to come up with the things that they require of the other party and so does the other party. After this, the conflict is resolved if there is a compromise in the cause of the conflict. Question Eight There are types of negotiations that cross the boarders and by this, they cross the cultures. The culture has great influence on the thinking of the people or the behavior they have.

It goes ahead to affect the kind of negotiations skills they do indicate. For example, the negotiation between a Japanese manager and a Canadian head could have some barriers. This becomes a challenge even to the most experienced negotiator. This article is going to focus on the models that were defined by Geert Hofstede and the effects they have on the negotiation process.

Hofstede laid out the dimensions that would have the impacts on the negotiations. They are

individualism/collectivism, power distance, Confucian dynamism, masculinity/femininity and uncertainty avoidance. Individualism looks into one-sided situations. In collectivism, it is the degree to which the involved individuals are into groups.

On the individualism loose ties between the societies, while I the collectivism side you find that people are into many of the societies that are present and are very into the well-established groups mostly the extended families. Therefore, in this situation the collectivism has no political relation but the group that is involved in it. Therefore, when there is individualism in the negotiation process you find that the party with individualism have poor negotiation skills mostly because they bare self-centered therefore making them just want to gain and not to offer. Masculinity which is an opposite word of the word femininity is the change of roles between the genders. This is a key area that would affect the kind of solutions that will be found some of the recent researches have indicated that women qualities do not change as much as the men in the societies. For example, the women who come from countries with feminist groups end up maintaining their qualities of care.

In the negotiation, there should be a gender balance to avoid the avoidance of some of the issues that could affect one gender. Therefore, having all genders well represented allows an effective negotiation process (Zhou 2009, p.173) Uncertainty deals with the tolerance of the society in relation to the ambiguity. It is connected to the ways through the kind of truths a man tries to find out. It indicates the reactions of them in unusual situations. Mostly you find that the people from uncertainty avoided

regions emotional and nervous thus making them quite poor negotiators. This mostly affects them while doing their presentations since they don’t do it effectively.

Negotiators having changing cultures may look at the negotiation process differently. For some, the first goal is to have the contract signed while some think first of the importance of the relationship between the parties even before having the contract signed. The difference in the approach to the situation will let you know the reason for the much time given for the negotiations. They basically look at the importance of the good relationship, therefore, establishing a strong foundation for other things in the future and not just the contract. The negotiation attitude is also crucial because of the arising differences in the cultures and the personalities. The negotiations have two sides with one side having win-win side while the other has the win-lose situation.

The win-win is mostly to solve problems that are with common interest while the win-lose is mostly to confront the other party. Personal style is another factor that is a culture situation that affects negotiations. This may include dressing, language and the way they talk. For example, the formal negotiators insist on having the correct addressing of the other parties with their titles right.

They avoid personal involvement in the discussions such as the family. For example, Japanese rely on the culture of indirect cultures and therefore interpretation in the reactions to your proposals may be read from looking at the gestures and from the comments produced. In these styles of communication can lead to challenges because they have a way of expressing their disagreement in a confusing way. Their

method of communication is also direct. Because with direct culture way of address, there is a direct response to the proposals. Another example of the Japanese culture that would have implications on the negotiations is like in Japanese calling someone by their first name is an act of disrespect while in America is friendship.

Sensitivity to time is also important in the negotiating styles that are also attached to the culture. From the researches, it has been concluded that the Japanese negotiate slowly. This just shows that some cultures value the time that is spent while some don’t like earlier expressed that for those parties who’s signing of the contract is not the most important in the negotiation take all the time that it takes to establish a solid foundation of the relationship. Negotiating behavior is also affected by the characteristic of the culture which is the acting emotionally. Mostly for the group of Japanese it is has been known of how they hide their feelings and emotions. The individual way of personal behavior comes in here.

It doesn’t matter the main goal of the negotiator, whether the relationship or the contract but the negotiation could be affected by the different forms of agreements. Some cultures require signing of very detailed contracts while others don’t. Japanese don’t concentrate wholly on the contract thing but still value general agreements. Team organization is also key in having a successful negotiation. Culture affects the organization of the executives. Some of the cultures concentrate on the individual while others look more into the group.

For example, the Japanese culture stress on the team negotiation and the decision-making capabilities. Despite the Japanese fame

on the unity arrangements almost half of them preferred a team that is united in the organization. Risk taking is the other very important aspect in the negotiation. However, it is affected by cultures. Some cultures are willing to take risks and others not.

For example, in the Japanese culture, they ask a lot of questions to attain the information that they require and this makes them lesser of risk takers, unlike the Americans. For the negotiation to be successful there should be no rush and there should be a lot of attention and effort in building the relationship between the parties. Question Nine Conflict dynamics is the resulting discussion or interaction between the conflict causes and parties. Understanding these dynamics will enable opportunity realization. Scenarios are built and this helps to access what may happen in certain timeframes.

If history is important in getting the conflict dynamics it may be crucial to use the time thus understand the phases involved. The Cuban missile crisis that occurred in October 1962 was a cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union. There was a nuclear conflict between the two parties. This was due to the calculations and the miscalculations, secret and direct communications between the two sides. The U.S had failed in overthrowing the Castro regime in Cuba. The Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev reached an agreement with the Cuban premier Castro to place the soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba.

U.S intelligence learnt of the construction of the sites by the Soviet Union to store missiles. On September 1962 President Kennedy issued a warning on the introduction of the weapons in Cuba. Kennedy had a meeting with his

advisors and chief staff in white house to discuss on the way to resolve the crisis. The chief staff and the advisors argued towards an air strike on Cuba while others opted for warnings to Cuba and the Soviet Union. President Kennedy reached on a decision to have Cuba under military quarantine therefore not allowing any weapons to be kept in Cuba. There was an escalation of the conflict when the president went on television to inform the public of the plans undergoing in Cuba.

The president went ahead to say that in case there was any launch of the missiles from Cuba, the United States would take it as an attack on united states from the Soviet Union. The chief staff from the white house declared of the preparedness of the military and the quarantine plans changed to be a military strike on Cuba. On 24th, October Khrushchev referred to this act as aggression. There was a dramatic turn when the news read that the Soviet Union was ready to remove the missiles if the U.S promised not to attack Cuba. That very night Khrushchev sent Kennedy a message that proposed a solution as earlier in the news. The following day Khrushchev sent the second message that required U.S to remove their Jupiter missiles from Turkey.

U.S military jet was shot down over Cuba as a result of the crisis. This made President Kennedy and his members of staff started preparing for an attack on Cuba before they could get to the realization of a diplomatic agreement. There was a secret meeting held between two officials and not the presidents U.S said of their plans to

remove the missiles from Turkey. The officials were the U.S Attorney general and the Soviet Ambassador to the U.S.

The ambassador told the soviets that the united states were planning of remove the missiles in Turkey. This, however, was not allowed to be part of the public resolutions in the finding of the solutions to the existing crisis. The following morning Khrushchev addressed the public notifying them that the missiles would be removed from Cuba. This led to an end of the crisis although naval quarantine went on until the Soviet Union agreed to get away the IL-28 bombers from Cuba. This was followed by the U.S ending their military quarantine. Around April of 1963 U.S agreed to remove their Jupiter missiles from Turkey.

This shows off the kind of negotiation tactics between the two members. For example, the Soviet didn’t just want the United States to not attack Cuba. They focused more on the interests and not their position since they could have chosen to counterattack. It was a very crucial tactic of the Soviet since they did not just begin with demands but first offered to remove the missiles from Cuba (Mayer 2007, p.205) The Cuban missile crisis was the event during the cold war that strengthened the image of President Kennedy.

This also gave a lesson to the world of the involved parties involved in any crisis of understanding each of the other’s intention very early before rushing into decisions. To avoid future problems there was a solution a creating a direct link to the telephone system to the white house and the Kremlin which was later called the hotline to avoid the problems that

would have been brought by the swirl of direct or indirect communications. The other effect from the crisis was that the two parties took the first steps in having a ban on the nuclear tests. There are much to learn from this crisis.

Largely is the good negotiation qualities from the two parties that were involved in a very crucial matter that involved lives, nuclear dominance in the world war and the relationship between the two largest unions. That shows how important for the heads of states to have good negotiation skills. With this, they are able to make and negotiate for the best representation of their nation in their different points of interest. Another lesson from this crisis is how it is important to look at the relationship to be created between any two parties in negotiations and not just the mere contract. For example, if the Soviet Union was just after the U.S quit on the attack they could have done it, but they looked at the future relationship that would have been developed between them. They asked for the other party to withdraw the missiles although they were not involved in the crisis.

Since the U.S was interested in the removal of the bombers to be done they had to comply. Question Ten As learned in this topic negotiation is very key in everyday life. These are experiences that are very key in most of the life events that happen in our lives. They run all the way from the job interviews or the internship internships whereby one is required to attain the best conditions while at the workplace. It goes all the way

to events such as negotiations on buying requirements in life. Some of the most important parts of the course learned are on focusing more on the point of interest.

Even from the above-given examples in the work covered it was clearly seen that focusing on the position leads to a fail in the negotiation. This is very key to know before getting to any negotiation. This enables one to be open minded in terms of taking alternatives. This requires them to mostly focus on the reason they are in the negotiation and not the position they want to acquire. Another key point learned from engaging in a compromising negotiation is that in case there is a challenge during the negotiation having an attack from one of the parties one should not dare to do a counterattack. One is supposed to think of ways to redirect the attack to be questioned to the party member.

Also in the case of one party with more power than the other one should be very careful to remain polite for example you may object by saying yes but….and so on. One should not let their culture to dictate their way of carrying out the negotiation. In case the other party is from a different culture it is important to understand their requirements. Culture effects such as the time and the dressing should be a well-taken consideration into. One should not be late while attending the negotiation since it shows the lack of commitment to the other party. Another challenge that occurs in the process of negotiations is shying away from asking questions concerning the same. Mostly it happens when it is

a job interview and there is a negotiation on the salary. Some of the interviewees don’t know how to start the conversation of which has been better understood now from the course work. It has also been learned that the negotiation starts when someone says no. by this, it means that one of the parties differs in views and the participatory party must do the task of involving the party in changing their view to one that benefits them. From the contexts, it has also been learned that it also very important to give a chance of giving options. The bargaining partner is thrilled if they are given with different options from which they can choose one that interests them. This method is mostly important in problem-solving whereby the party that is seeking the solution requires getting different methods of tackling the problem so that from it, they would recommend the best solution. Another element that has been learned from the coursework is that it is most important to focus on the establishment of a solid and tight foundation of the relationship between the two negotiators. This is way better than just negotiating for a single contract this is because with a good relationship created it opens the doors to the future agreements and ease in the future discussions. Time is crucial in the process but that does not mean that they should rush the negotiations in order to save on the time consumed. This is a common mistake that has been learned that it should be avoided to have the rush. This is because during the process the party may get best from the

negotiations while the others may just get least acquirements. Because in the rush one of the parties may trick the other into rushing into the decision making especially if the agreement helps to have more benefits from it. it has been learned that in the future negotiations as much time that it takes to have successful negotiations is worth it. However, it has also been learned that they are elements that affect negotiation. One should be really careful of the communication like from the facial expressions and vocal intonation. Another is personality and style and they should fit requirements. One should also be time consistent. One should not wait for long, in fact one should get there first. Lastly, one should a very good listener to avoid having the important points escape them. Another important thing to note is the ability to resolve conflicts. Either starting from as earlier as now or the coming future it is important to understand that conflict resolution is a process that requires weighing on both sides for the disagreements present. During this process none the party should not focus more on its power and position but rather on the solution finding process. Those affects many of the parties at a better shot in achieving the solution and they tend to dictate the solution. This should be highly avoided since leads to lack of the interest of the other party. Some benefits were also learned from the context. It was seen that the conflict resolution has benefits such as increasing the understanding. This is through the awareness it creates to the people. It also allows better group cohesion whereby when

the conflict is well-handled members can develop stronger mutual respect. Making sure good relationships should always be a priority in an of any conflict resolution process. It has also been learned that one should listen carefully to different views and the interests of the other party. This helps the party to have openness in the finding the solutions. One should also observe the facts that might affect the decision and finally explore the option together (Mayer 2007, p.59) Negotiations involve interactions that have the main objective of reaching t a solution or agreement. There should be a point where the two parties reach a settlement or a settlement either of the problem solving or different view. Through the right channels as outlined in this article no dispute that would not reach a solution. These outlined ways are very key in the negotiations as earlier outlined.

Reference

1. Fisher, R., Ury, W., ; Patton, B. (1992).
2. Getting to yes: negotiating agreement without giving in. Boston, Houghton Mifflin. Mayer, B. S. (2007).
3. The dynamics of conflict resolution a practitioner's guide. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass Publishers. http://www.123library.org/book_details/?id=24937 Zhou, H., (2009).
4. Body language in business negotiation. International Journal of Business and Management, 3(2), p.90.