Negotiation is a technique that humans have used throughout almost all of our history, and it does not only involve the professional field. There are various types of negotiation. Understanding different types of negotiation styles and how you can use them in your life may be beneficial and help you achieve more valuable agreements. Let's highlight the most important negotiation styles.
10 Different Types of Negotiation Styles: Explained
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| Negotiation illustration. Two people sitting at the table and discussing. |
What is Negotiation? Introduction
Negotiation is a method used by individuals to resolve differences and reach solutions that satisfy all parties to the dialogue. A negotiation is a strategic discussion that seeks to avoid disagreements and conflicts between individuals, and aims to reach the best possible results and solutions.
Negotiation occurs as a dialogue between participants, each of whom has an interest in what the other person has to offer, but on different terms.
Negotiation is primarily a process involving two or more people with common interests. These people are dedicated to mediating in order to try to reach an agreement on those specific points on which they do not agree. Thus, the aim is to find a solution to each point and resolve the differences, reaching an agreement between the parties involved.
Negotiation is closely related to the business world. However, it is not only used in this sector, but is essential for other aspects of life. There are many areas in which an agreement needs to be reached that benefits everyone.
Stages of Negotiation
Negotiations involve give and take, as one or both parties will usually need to make some concessions. The negotiation process continues until the two parties agree on a solution, or stop negotiations without reaching a solution. Let’s understand the 5 basic negotiation stages:
Preparation: You must prepare for the negotiation process by determining the time and place in which the negotiation process will take place.
Discussion: It is time to define the basic rules and procedures for negotiation. Follow some strategies such as asking questions, listening, and clarifying ideas. During this stage, each party expresses its opinion on the topic or problem at hand.
Clarifying objectives: Each party to the negotiation must clarify its objective for the negotiation. This stage helps to avoid misunderstandings between the parties, in addition to the parties agreeing on some matters.
Starting the negotiation: In this stage, priority is given to all points of view, and this stage helps to give the parties a feeling of satisfaction and that their views are important.
Reaching a solution: The solution must be for the benefit of all parties, and the parties must have open minds and accept the opinions of others. Once both parties are satisfied, negotiations will end.
There are different types of negotiation styles that can be used when you want to reach an agreement. Each type can be adapted to the characteristics of the person. In addition, it is necessary to distinguish between them in order to recognize and anticipate the actions of the other negotiating party.
What are the Different Types of Negotiation?
There are different types of negotiation; it is important to know them in order to detect which one the other party is applying and to anticipate events. The following are the most important types of negotiation:
Distributive negotiation:
Distributive negotiation is the most traditional negotiation strategy. It is when two parties compete over the distribution of a fixed pool of value. Distributive negotiation skills are the ability of two parties to obtain a greater amount of fixed and limited resources when entering into an agreement with another party. In this type, the point of view of one party wins, and the other party loses. Therefore, both parties try to obtain the greatest possible benefit by using techniques and strategies.
Integrative negotiation:
Integrative negotiation is a principled, collaborative negotiation strategy in which the parties involved strive to achieve a common goal. In this type, the involved parties work together to find a solution that satisfies the needs and concerns of each other. This type contains more than one issue to be negotiated, as the negotiation here aims to satisfy all negotiating parties. This type of negotiation usually occurs in non-quantifiable aspects, such as interpersonal relationships and the work environment.
Collaborative negotiation:
In collaborative negotiation style, both parties win. It focuses on striking a balanced deal between two parties. The aim is to reach an agreement that is beneficial to both parties, so it is important to build a relationship with the other party. An example of this is a business partnership where two companies collaborate on a joint venture, pooling resources and expertise to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.
Compromising negotiation:
In this type of negotiation, it is essential that there is trust between both parties. They try to reach a superficial agreement, even if it is not possible to fully comply with it. The objective is to achieve a benefit that is not too different from what was expected to be achieved, taking into account that there may be some loss. It is generally used in circumstances where time is of the essence.
Competitive negotiation:
The competitive negotiation style focuses on maximizing your own gains at the expense of the other party. Here, the negotiation is assertive, aggressive and defensive and there is no intention to take care of the relationship with the other party, but rather the priority is to obtain the greatest possible benefit. Competitive negotiation could be used when you are only going to negotiate once or when obtaining the benefit is the only thing that matters.
Accommodative negotiation:
In this type of negotiation, the important thing is not to obtain the maximum benefit, but to establish a relationship that can generate these benefits in the medium or long term. It is based on the concept of giving in now to gain benefit later. To be successful negotiator, it is necessary to adopt a conciliatory tone, generate trust, listen carefully to the other party's proposals and accept all or most of them.
Multiparty negotiation:
Multiparty negotiation is a type of negotiation where more than two parties; three or more participate to discuss and negotiate specific issues. It is a complex and time-consuming negotiation strategy when compared to traditional two-party discussions.
Multiparty negotiation style brings more perspectives, expertise and resources to discussions and encourages participants to adopt a more comprehensive and creative approach to problem solving, helping parties reach mutually beneficial solutions.
Team negotiation:
This type of negotiation occurs when two or more teams with similar or conflicting interests come together to reach an agreement. Team negotiators tend to be better than solo negotiators at exchanging information with counterparts, making accurate judgments, and arriving at better outcomes.
Power-based negotiation:
Power-based negotiation involves using power or influence to obtain concessions from the other party. It is an adversarial process in which each party attempts to influence the other party in order to reach a solution that meets his preferred outcomes or self-interests. Power-based negotiation style can be useful in situations where one party has a significant position of power, but it can also lead to strained relations or an imbalance in the agreement.
Avoidance negotiation:
The avoidance negotiation style is about avoiding conflict at all costs and trying to postpone, prevent or stop a negotiation. It is used in cases where one of the parties is aware that they will lose out in the negotiation and, therefore, decides to end it. That is, they avoid it so as not to have to face this defeat or they postpone it to have time to improve their position and increase their chances of obtaining a benefit. Sometimes the negotiation is left for later and sometimes it never takes place. These types of negotiations can be decided unilaterally by one of the parties or by consensus.
Now that you know the different types of negotiation that can occur. We want to give you some tips so that you learn how to negotiate.
Tips for Successful Negotiation
The negotiation processes require a lot of knowledge, although it is not the only thing that must be kept in mind.
Having certain qualities is essential for good negotiations. These characteristics can be innate or acquired through sufficient training and experience.
A negotiator who succeeds in achieving his interests is someone who knows his strengths and weaknesses and has clear goals to know exactly what he needs to achieve in each negotiation; with patience and the ability to analyze the other party and prepare a negotiation accordingly and successfully.
If you want to increase your experience and have successful negotiations, take note of these tips:
- Take your time to assess the situation and evaluate the other side.
- Test the other negotiator to see if he or she is willing to compromise.
- Establish a cordial relationship with the other party. You can arrange a prior meeting or a phone call to have a first contact.
- Try to understand the other person's perspective more rationally and discover their objective.
- Take care of the image you are projecting. Transmit empathy and confidence in yourself.
- Set a goal that is further away than the one you are aiming for, but still attainable.
- Pay attention to body language to see what their state and weaknesses are during the negotiation.
- Minimize threats so that if any are detected during the dialogue, ways will have to be found to block or prevent them from appearing again.
- Prioritize creativity to offer solutions that respond to different needs.
- Keep in mind that both parties must come out winners, so dishonesty has no place in negotiations.
Conclusion:
Negotiation is part of our daily lives; personal and professional. We negotiate not only with clients, employees or suppliers, but also with our children, our partner, telecommunications companies and others.
Negotiating is not always a win-win situation. Instead, it refers to the process in which one or more parties agree on a set of guidelines and seek to reach an agreement that satisfies all of their interests. Hence learning the different types of negotiation is very important to see which ones are most effective for us.
A good negotiation requires mastery of other life skills, such as empathy, assertiveness or communication. So, continuous training is a key tool to acquire this knowledge and skills.
Read Also: How to Improve Communication Skills