Judd N. Adams
Management Training, Consulting & Project Facilitation
Ideas -- Insight -- Transformation

  

GETTING TO YES:
Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In

Roger Fisher & William Ury, Harvard Negotiation Project, Penguin Books, 1981, 161 pages.

Negotiation is "back-and-forth communication designed to reach agreement when you and the other side have some interests that are shared and others that are opposed." In the typical negotiation process, each party begins by stating their position, a description of a solution which will make them satisfied. Positions typically contain a number of elements. After the first presentation of positions, the parties will counter with some slight change in the elements, attempting to find a combination which satisfies the other party without giving up any important elements. The parties don't describe the interests which lie behind the position. A position, however, is only one of many potential solutions to the underlying interests.

Getting to Yes presents principles for moving from "win-lose" to "win-win" problem solving. In win-lose each party attempts to gain as much for their self without regard to the benefits achieved by the other side. By contrast, in win-win both parties are conscious of the other side's interests (as well as their own, of course), and both parties attempt is to develop solutions which will give both sides as many benefits as possible.  For most people this involves a paradigm change.

Traditional negotiation strategies are classified as hard or soft. Soft negotiators try to avoid conflict and readily make concessions, often feeling exploited at the conclusion. Hard negotiators see situations as contests of wills "in which the side that takes the more extreme positions and holds out longer fares better."

A summary of the major problems with the position negotiation process.

  • Positions restrict flexibility. Egos become identified with defending the position, rather than generating alternative solutions.
  • Initial positions may not even be very good solutions to the underlying interests.
  • The process is inefficient.
  • Ongoing relationships may be damaged because of the intensity of emotions released.
  • Multiparty negotiations are very difficult.
  • Conflict occurs between hard and soft strategies.
  • Hard strategies drive out soft ones.

Getting to Yes (GTY) is a third strategy (compared to hard and soft position bargaining) where negotiation is based upon certain principles (thus the term “principled negotiation” a term used by Steve Covey in 7 Habits of Highly Effective People) which is both hard and soft. Hard on the issues, and soft on the people. The thrust is to search for mutual interests and mutual gains, and where differences remain they are settled based upon "some fair standards independent of the will of either side."

The negotiation process can be divided into two phases:

  1. process negotiation (agreeing on the rules and process to be followed), and
  2. substance negotiation (developing solutions of mutual benefit).

Process negotiation benefits substance negotiation in two ways. First, it puts everyone on the same page by creating a common vocabulary and expectations for communicating, and it provides practice using the GTY principles. These principles are listed below in outline form.

PRINCIPLES OF GETTING TO YES

1. Separate People from the Problem

  • Perceptions: understand the other side.
    • Put yourself in their shoes: see the conflict from their perspective.
    • Don't deduce their intentions from your fears.
    • Discuss and clarify perceptions.
    • Act counter to their stereotype of you.
    • Give them a stake in the outcome by involvement in the process.
    • Permit face saving: avoid creating the impression of a win/lose process.
  • Emotions: recognize and understand the significance of emotions.
    • Acknowledge/make explicit emotions and their legitimacy.
    • Let other side blow off steam.
    • Don't react to outbursts.
    • Use symbolic gestures of good will.
  • Communication.
    • Listen actively/paraphrase to check for understanding of perceptions, needs, constraints.
    • Speak to be understood not to win debate points.
    • Speak about yourself (I want... I feel... I am concerned...).
    • Speak with a purpose: what understanding you want to occur.

2. Focus on Interests, Not Positions

  • Identify interests.
    • Ask why? Find out the basis for their perspective.
    • Ask why not? Look at the situation from their perspective.
    • Look for multiple interests.
    • Make lists to aid your memory.
  • Talk about interests.
    • Be specific.
    • Acknowledge their interests.
    • Work from interests to conclusions.
    • Look to the future, not rehash the past.
    • Be hard on the problem, soft on people.

3. Developing Solutions: Create an Abundance of Options

  • Hurdles to overcome.
    • Premature judgment (jumping to conclusions).
    • Single answer (force yourself to create options).
    • Fixed pie (win/lose) thinking.
    • Solving-the-problem-is-their-problem attitude.
  • Separate brainstorming from deciding.
    • Create favorable atmosphere.
    • Choose facilitator who won't participate as an idea generator.
    • No criticism.
    • Record ideas in full view.
    • Piggy back ideas.

4. Selecting Solutions

  • Use objective criteria and agree upon before evaluating solutions.
    • What would be fair standards?
    • What would be fair procedures?
  • Negotiating process
    • Frame each issue as a joint search to meet objective criteria.
    • Yield to principle, not pressure.

@ Judd N. Adams, Quality Government
May 04, 2001