Case Study on "Board Member Is "Given the Clear Pure"

Case Study 27 pages (9669 words) Sources: 20

[EXCERPT] . . . .

board member is "given the clear PURE priorities in this case what negotiation strategy do you propose (before or during the negotiation) to ensure that such priorities are very well addressed and secured? (This is a strategy question around how to maximise your influence in this multiparty negotiation, please do not provide a 7-party 7- element analysis)

One of the tricks to successful negotiation is knowing that negotiations begin long before the parties sit down to discuss solutions. How a person sees the issue can impact how a person views concessions and whether or not they are able to reach their desired deal. I understand that my own personal reference for the negotiation is going to frame it and shape how I function during the negotiation. Therefore, rather than choosing to view this negotiation as a dispute with the towns and the national government, I am entering the negotiation with the mindset that I am completing a deal with the other parties (Raiffa, 2002). This point-of-view is enhanced by the fact that the President of SAN called the meeting, and he has become the spokesperson for community concerns about the project. By constantly reminding myself that I am trying to find a solution that meets the needs of all of the involved parties, I am more likely to find a solution that meets PURE's needs. If I can frame the negotiation in a way that emphasizes referents that "lead the opposition to a positive frame and couch the negotiation in terms of what the other side has to gain," I am more likely to gain concessions from the other parties (Neale and Bazerman, 1992). I intend to do this by emphasizing the positives that PURE has already brought to the towns, and, while I will listen and acknowledge the changes that the towns have felt because of PURE, taking every opportunity to show how perceived negatives can be positives. I want to make sure that, at every point in the negotiation, the parties are aware of what they could lose if PURE walked away from the table, without ever once seeming to threaten them with walking away from the negotiation.

Interestingly enough, because of the large number of parties involved in the negotiation, I feel as if going into the negotiation with a negotiation strategy set-in-stone would actually be counterproductive to a successful negotiation. I will not have the same level of control that I would in a two-party negotiation, and, if I tried to assert that type of control, I would be seen as dominating the negotiation, so that any negotiated deal would be viewed with hostility and suspicion. Moreover, "once three or more conflicting parties are involved, coalitions of disputants may form and act in concert against the others" (Raiffa, 2002). If the parties form coalitions against PURE, then I lose the bargaining advantage that I have by being the person able to offer a positive benefit to the other parties. Therefore, I intend to approach the negotiation as a joint decision-making process. Moreover, because it is clear that there are some major points of contention between the towns, I am going to make my best efforts to act as a mediator in their disputes. If I can make PURE appear to be an entity that has not only enhanced the quality of life in each town, but has also helped soothe some animosity that exists between the towns, then I am going to be in a good position to get concessions from each of the involved parties.

In addition to seeking concessions, one critical part of my negotiation strategy is going to be to make concessions. In this negotiation, PURE is going to be viewed as having more power than any other single party, except the national government, which will probably be taking a hands-off approach during the negotiations if possible. In fact, PURE could probably go into the negotiations without making any concessions. The result would almost certainly be a 1.5% tax, but PURE could refuse to make any voluntary payments, and the towns could be left to deal with any issues about how to distribute the taxes. However, taking that type of approach would be very damaging to the future relationship between the towns and PURE. Therefore, I want to make sure that PURE appears to make concessions to the towns, and that the towns are very aware of the concessions that I will make on behalf of PURE. For example, during the negotiations I may offer the towns the right to free field trips for their school-children, a fringe benefit I have been authorized to offer, and which would actually probably result in an increase in PURE's profit because of the associated costs of concessions and souvenirs. However, I would label this offer as a concession, rather than assuming that the offer would be considered a concession (Malhotra, 2006). Moreover, I would emphasize the benefits the town would receive from that concession by putting a dollar value on the cost of the concession. Furthermore, after giving a concession, I would demand and define reciprocity (Malhotra, 2006). For example, if PURE can provide a real value of a certain dollar amount to each town, it would be reasonable for me to request that they reflect that increase in value by decreasing their tax requests.

Furthermore, I do have some concerns that at least one of the parties is going to try to engage in some form of hard-bargaining tactics, including threats or ultimatums. I need this negotiation to end successfully, or at least for the majority of the parties to come to an amicable solution, therefore, I need to make sure that I retain control of the turns in the negotiation. For example, if one of the parties offers me an ultimatum, rather than respond to the ultimatum, I am going to let it sit there for a few moments without a response, and then suggest alternatives to what they could have meant by the ultimatum. I am the only party that will be seen as a bully if I ruin negotiations, and the only party that not feasibly return to the bargaining table if I left the negotiations as the result of an ultimatum. Therefore, I will not allow another party to push me out of the bargaining process.

2. Another board member has asked how you will reconcile personal and company interests in this difficult high stakes negotiation. The tension between principal and agent is a common body of theory within negotiation literature. Please provide a short analysis of how you will work through this tension in the forthcoming negotiation.

The first thing that I have done to work through the inherent conflict in the principle/agent relationship between me and PURE was to sit down and consider any sources of tension in my relationship with PURE. If I am unaware of potential conflicts in our relationship, it is impossible for me to deal with those conflicts. Instead, I might assume that I am acting to further PURE's interests, when I am really acting to further my own interests. I examined what PURE's objectives are in this negotiation, as well as its overall corporate strategy, and asked myself whether I could work towards furthering those objectives. I knew that I could work to further objectives that did not always perfectly align with my own, but that I needed to ensure that working to accomplish PURE's goals would not be morally questionable or objectionable to me. However, I am aware that this type of questioning analysis is an ongoing process. If I discover something during the negotiation that means I cannot honestly and in good faith negotiate in PURE's best interests, then I have to be able to contact the board and inform you of a potential issue. If that issue cannot be resolved in a way where I can continue to act in PURE's best interests, then I must be willing to walk away from the negotiation, knowing that will mean walking away from my job and any future opportunities with PURE. To do otherwise or to do so in an irresponsible manner, would mean that I had failed in my duties as PURE's agent. I had to determine whether or not I would be willing to walk away from my job in that situation, even though I do not anticipate that situation occurring, before determining that I could be an effective agent for PURE.

Fortunately for me, my interests and PURE's interests in this negotiation are very closely aligned. I sincerely believe that PURE's presence in this region of France is bringing opportunity to the towns and that it is in the towns' best interests, as well as PURE's best interests to come to an amicable agreement that will remove any obstacles to the park's construction. I have personal motivation for wanting to reach a successful agreement; doing so will allow me to prove myself capable of international negotiations, and pave… READ MORE

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