Question 10 abce

Question 10: Which one of the following is the most common mistake made by negotiators in making Proposals?

• A Being vague
• B Making unrealistic proposals
• C Getting their offers in front of their conditions
• D Not making them
• E Muddling them up with explanations part way through

Sorry but you got this one wrong, D - Not making proposals is the correct answer! The most common mistake most people make is inviting the other side to make the first proposal, the good old “You show me yours first....” Why is this a mistake? Well whose end of the bargaining arena are the other side most likely to come in at, theirs or yours? Theirs obviously and if they are unrealistic then you have an even bigger problem on your hands ie. getting them to come down to something more reasonable and acceptable to you. People are often afraid to pitch the first proposal in negotiations. Reasons for this inevitably include: lack of confidence in their own case, line of argument or sources of power, laziness ie they’ve not bothered to do their homework or research to know where to pitch.

There are only two sets of circumstances where we would normally ask the other side to make the first proposal. Firstly where we’ve stuffed up and caused them to have a grievance. In which case we would apologize and ask them what they would like us to do to put things right. The second set of circumstances is where we genuinely haven’t got a clue where to pitch, in which case we’d ask them. Egs? Most of us wouldn’t know the going price per tonne for palladium or how many bananas a mango costs in the Amazonian jungle.

It is good, realistic, conditional proposals that drive negotiations forward. Don’t be afraid to make them. It gives you real power in controlling the negotiating process.

What about the other answers?

A Being vague – Vague proposals inevitably lead to confusion and more argument. Sometimes however, it may suit you to be a little vague about your offers to the other side. You may wish to see how they react or you could be probing to see if they’ve got any further flexibility. Please ensure though that your conditions are always very specific.

B Making unrealistic proposals – In the vast majority of circumstances unrealistic proposals do not drive the process forward. Typically they are rejected and all that happens is that we’re propelled back into the argument step. Vast amounts of time, energy and money are wasted every day with negotiators doing this. If you want to delay the process you may wish to try this technique but be aware it can risk compromising relationships and you need to find a way to “back down” or “move” without loss of face. There are better ways to slow the process down if you need or want to. Ask more questions, summarise a lot, say you need to do further research, consult with colleagues etc etc

C Getting their offers in front of their conditions – A very common mistake and one that puts us at risk of “Elk steaking” If the other party are “Wolfish” they may interrupt our proposal, grabbing what we’ve offered and denying us the opportunity to ask for anything in return. Far better to make your proposals conditional and get your conditions in front of your offers IF YOU, THEN I or “Cabbage before Icecream”

E Muddling them up with explanations part way through – This is likely to confuse both you and the other side and much more likely to invite interruption and argument that structuring your proposals correctly. Remember the old adage “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, tell them what you’ve told them” In other words; make your proposal, then give any explanations that are necessary and deal with any questions they may raise, then summarise your proposal again and of course, always, always – Invite a response!

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