The topic of this number “Country of advice” is preparation and conduct of negotiations.

Our respondents have asked the following questions:

1.    How do you prepare for business negotiations? According to what principles do you form a command of participants for them?

2.    What prescriptions are developed in your company for negotiation policy? How does your company set itself up on negotiating- as ambitious, hard or vice versa changeable for long-term partnership relations?

3.    What does it mean for you to think through bargaining tactics with different partners?

4.    What is the function of top- management of the company and specialized negotiators- for example, commercial managers and sales managers in negotiation process?

5.    Does special trainings which devoted a negotiation technique are impotent for managers practicing negotiations, from your point of view?

6.    What are the typical disadvantages in negotiation policy of the company?


Natalia Chinenova, general manager of SELA Company in Russian Federation:

1.    We follow flexible policy in SELA Corporation, which oriented to long term partnering. We have domestic rules, according to them we carry on negotiations in mode of maximal openness, honesty and amiability. The main task of negotiations is to achieve the aim which would be profitable for all the participants of negotiations with taking an account interests and budget of The Corporation.

2.    Practically, before negotiations their participants on the part of The Corporation develop behavior strategy. This is a very impotent aspect of preparation. As a rule, we choose several people for difficult negotiations, they should have not only necessary competences but negotiating skills and besides, they should complement each other. For example, if one of them is the master of hard decisions, in this case we, certainly, choose for him the master of compromise negotiations. Otherwise, we take risk not to achieve agreement.

3.    If we are talking about negotiations with the partners of franchising, in this case the role of commercial management is unvalued. They prepare negotiations because they know the partner best of all; they know his problems and his achievement. In such negotiations the very same commercial manager takes role of the master of compromises and now he take  top manager’s side now the partner’s side.

4.    Yes, of course. A person, who can’t negotiate, can’t carry on business.

5.    Poor knowledge of the subject of negotiation (frequently, when people come to work, practically, to negotiations with the employer, they know nothing or just nothing about the company in which they want to work). Poor preparation to negotiation (undeveloped questions, incomprehensible presentations and so on). Delaying of negotiation.

6.    Deficiency of agreement between employees of the other party (for example, the first of the members of negotiation says that in their company it must be so but the second interrupts him and says that it is differently). An impenetrable position (deficiency of compromise settlement).

Nevertheless I should say that now quality of negotiations become better that several years ago.