What a negotiation consultant and Yoda have in common: Benefits of negotiation consulting
There are countless management consultancies worldwide. Negotiation consulting occupies a special niche, which has been in increasing demand in recent years. Today, we look at the benefits of such service and I’ll tell you which role Yoda from Star Wars plays in all of that.
When I told people around me about my planned self-employment, I often heard questions like “What exactly do you do now?”, “I’m a negotiation consultant and conflict coach,” “Oh, so you negotiate the contracts for your clients?”, “Not quite, you can imagine me rather as Yoda from Star Wars during negotiations. When I make these statements, I often look at curious faces.
What negotiation consulting offers
In negotiations there are 5 important dimensions that are crucial for a successful outcome: the negotiation process, the negotiation team and their negotiation tactics, the deal design and the structure of the negotiation. Sustainable negotiation consulting should tackle all these points. In contrast, negotiation trainings often look at single facets like negotiation tactics. This knowledge is usually kept very general and does not address the individual needs of the client. It is not unusual for the learnings to be forgotten before employees actually find themselves in negotiating situations.
What negotiation consultants and Yoda have in common
Consultancies often have the reputation of costing a lot of money and either you are stuck with the consultants for years to keep the organisation running or they disappear and with them the knowledge gained. Thus, you need to start all over again. Sustainable change looks different. And here we come back to Star Wars.
Negotiation consulting is not about conducting negotiations for the client. Good negotiation consulting is an effective mix of training and active support for your lead negotiators. As a negotiation coach, similar to Yoda in Star Wars, the role of the guide is taken on – either directly at the negotiating table or in the background. This approach allows your employees to continue to sit at the steering wheel while offering stability in difficult situations. It allows the negotiation coach to keep an eye on all 5 dimensions of the negotiation process, to recognize pitfalls early on, to counteract them and to intervene in the event of escalation.
Of course, success always depends on the extent to which employees are willing to accept advice and assistance. We see ourselves as a coach who supports you in empowering your employees for good negotiation skills.
The goal should always be that you emerge from the project stronger, establish new negotiating standards in your organization and are thus prepared for the next negotiating situation. Therefore, good negotiation consulting should not only teach you methods, but also provide you with concrete tools such as checklists for preparing negotiations or company-specific guidelines.
Would you like to have a sparring partner at your side in your next negotiation and establish new negotiation standards in your organisation? Then we should get to know each other. If the chemistry is right, I will quickly be at your side.