Negotiation

Morning Session
Starting with a brief look at the kinds of conflicts that typically underlie negotiations, you will learn what goes into the mix of negotiations and the effect of each of these elements on the negotiation process and the outcomes that flow from negotiations.

The following questions will be addressed:

• What are the key ingredients of negotiation
• When, where and how do negotiations occur
• What are the implications of your individual negotiation style?
• How can the effectiveness of negotiations be improved?

Afternoon Session
The structure of negotiations will be examined from two principal perspectives:

• The terminology used in theory and practice to describe key aspects of the negotiation process and negotiation strategies.
• The seven essential steps in a negotiation, and the consequences of missing any of them.

With the models of negotiation in hand, the remainder of the session focuses on execution: how to use the seven essential steps to obtain superior results. Questions to be canvassed include:

• How is negotiation “success” defined?
• What distinguishes the best negotiators from average negotiators?
• How can you improve your success rate?

The first day will conclude with an important discussion from our Guest Faculty who will focus on Indigenous perspectives and considerations in the negotiation context.

Morning Session
This session will begin with a direct negotiation exercise, with stakeholders and contexts in mind, and in particular:

• Communication skills with those across the table
• Creativity skills, at the table and in caucus
• Assessment skills, which include when and how to react to an emerging agreement

Afternoon Session
The second half of the day will be a discussion on culture, and expand into its interaction with gender, personality and power. Discussions will explore three key questions for negotiators:

• Do culture and gender make a difference
• What role does personality play in how people negotiate?
• How do you manage power imbalances at the negotiation table?

Morning Session

The importance of thorough preparation for negotiation cannot be overstated. Building on the steps and skills covered in earlier sessions, this module focuses on critical components of preparation as between counsel and clients. These include:

• Interviewing the client
• Defining the role of the client in the negotiation
• Preparing your client for negotiation
• Obtaining instructions before and during the negotiation
• Addressing communication and other issues that arise

Participants will have an opportunity to practice their skills and observe others through a simulated representative negotiation exercise.

Guest faculty will discuss lessons learned from their most memorable and challenging representative negotiations.

Afternoon Session
The afternoon session will focus on an in-depth discussion and exercise of appropriate ethical and legal behavior while negotiating, including:

• Negotiation behaviour and communication required by Rules and Codes
• Ethical issues when communicating with parties, counsel, the mediator and the courts
• How to recognize and appropriately deal with conflicts of interest

Morning Session
The morning session will delve into the psychology and nuances behind negotiations, including:

• The neuroscience of negotiation
• Recognizing your own negotiation style and understanding how it affects the negotiation process
• Knowing the other side and adjusting strategies accordingly

More advanced negotiating skills will be examined, including:

• Redirecting the negotiation through reframing
• Using caucuses and breaks effectively
• Building and managing a negotiating team
• Reading and interpreting non-verbal clues

The session will tackle nuances and challenges in today’s increasingly technology-focused negotiation environments, and the strategies for overcoming them, including:

• What are the best practices in dealing with the impacts of technology?
• What are factors to keep in mind when negotiating online?
• Does negotiating through email communication affect the outcome?
• How to deal with ethical challenges of negotiating through email

Afternoon Session

Building upon the morning session, the afternoon will be spent in a negotiation exercise focused on negotiation nuances and online negotiation skills.
Our guest faculty will lead a discussion on the value of trust and apology in the negotiation table, including:

• How do you develop the trust of your client and the other side?
• Are there strategies to regain trust between parties when discussions break down?
• When is it appropriate to incorporate apologies into the negotiation discussions?

Morning Session
The final day of the program will be devoted to negotiating a complex, multi-party fact situation. Each negotiating group will have an assigned coach, who will provide constructive feedback at designated steps of the negotiation process. Participants will hone the numerous skills that are essential to effective negotiating.

Afternoon Session
The negotiation exercise will continue into the afternoon. Following the group negotiations, the full class will reconvene and share lessons learned from the negotiation exercise. The program will conclude with a review of the key learning points and a review of the checklists and other practical resources that will be provided to each participant.