Negotiating Power is the Sine-Qua-Non for Success in Life and Career – for Everyone

Abstract:

Some may be surprised by the claim that ‘negotiating power is the sine-qua-non for everyone for success in life and career’ because in popular parlance the scope of negotiating has been narrowed down as a necessary skill only for diplomatic and commercial functions. In reality, though, people of all ages and types negotiate all the time. This is obvious from the definition of negotiating in the  Longmans dictionary: "to talk with another person or group in order to come to an agreement". The following facts reveal that life and career are a series of negotiations and their consequences.

Though (i) all people negotiate all the time, and (ii)success in life and career depends on honing the skills, this vital subject is not included in the curricula of most educational institutions; a few offer it as an ‘elective’ subject.

Given it’s decisive impact on success,  it is high time to make negotiation skills a compulsory subject in schools and colleges. Here are some facts and views to support why it is so important.

 

 IT STARTS YOUNG AND IMPACTS EVERY SPHERE OF LIFE

Parents “start negotiating” with your kids. 

---Reader's Digest

“Negotiation skills have become critical for progress.” 

----The Economic Times

 

“Negotiating……..lies at the core of the manager's job.”

----Sebenius and Lax, Harvard Professors

Surprised that parents have to negotiate with kids?  A number of books on the topic, such as, “How to Negotiate with Kids” by Scot Brown are listed on Amazon.  Surprised by the Harvard Professors' assertion? There is a clear implication that negotiation is at the core of all jobs and not only those in sales and sourcing.

For anyone to function efficiently and achieve their goals in life and career it is imperative to have the skills to reach an agreement in all situations. But, the overall deficiency of negotiating skills leads to enormous losses in most fields. Here are some eye-openers based on published survey reports. 

The near failure of the WTO and Britain’s exit from the EU indicates the need to enhance the negotiating skills at higher levels. The measure of success of negotiations is the complete implementation of the agreement(s).

• 90% of Mergers and Acquisitions’ agreements pose hurdles during implementation and quite a few fail.

• Only 2% of high-value sales deals are sealed in the first meeting.

• Billions of dollars spent on training often fail to achieve the promised improvements in performance.

• According to Gallup, only about 13% employees are fully engaged in their jobs; employee engagement depends on motivation by managers.

• The attrition rate (a measure of managers’ internal negotiating skills) exceeds 20% in many companies.

• 67% of managers are unhappy with their bosses.

• The number of litigations of corporates, communities, and families are mindboggling.

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BOLLYWOOD’S SHORT AND SWEET GUIDE TO NEGOTIATIONS

Not only children but even those in romantic relationships negotiate. These are very fine and delicate negotiations, but negotiations all the same. Books and training materials on negotiating make the process appear too complex with formulas, tools and techniques.

As it’s said, “Jo na dekhe ravi, who dekhe kavi”, which means that poets see what the Sun cannot see. Here are two famous songs which simplify the negotiating process.

• The hero asks “pyar karne ki reet batao” which translates as - tell me the customs of love. The heroine’s laconic reply is “na batiya banao,pehele kisiko apna banao” .That means don’t beat around the bush  first make someone  a soulmate.

• In all negotiations the resistance to agreement is inversely proportional to closeness of relationships. So ‘close contacts win contracts’.

• How to establish close relationships? In another song, the heroine says ‘Aap hume acche lagane lage, sapane sacche hone lage‘ which means that “as I began to like you, my dreams appear to be coming true.”

•  In all negotiations parties bring their goals (dreams) to the table and an agreement is reached when everyone is satisfied with the outcome.

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 EVERY MANAGER IS A NEGOTIATOR IN THE NEW CORPORATE ENVIRONMENT

Because of the rise in individualism and new self-concepts, most companies have moved from an 'order-and-obey' mode to a consensus style marked by discussions and negotiations. It is reported that, in developed countries, managers spend 60% of their time in negotiations. 

Almost all managerial functions, except coordination, are being automated fast; coordination needs negotiation power.

Negotiating is highly critical for success in various functions like talent acquisition and management, outsourcing, franchising, joint ventures, collaborations, mergers and acquisitions.

Little wonder then, that NEGOTIATING has become a core competence for professionals. Business, social, political, national and international organizations highly value the ability to quickly evolve consensus and "come to an agreement" - in other words negotiating power. In fact, negotiating is common in workplaces and even in our personal and social lives. It is unwise to think it is a skill only for selling and sourcing.

The talent acquisition people (headhunters) place a very high weightage on the negotiating power of candidates. This fact is clear from an often-quoted axiom: "In life you get what you negotiate and not necessarily what you deserve".

That's the rule, call it Darwinian if you like, of the competitive market economy. Your resume may be packed with degrees, ranks, achievements and solid references. You may deserve better placement and accelerated promotions. But, if evidence of your negotiating power, the master key is missing or lacking, you may not get what you deserve. Bright candidates failing in interviews and great brands losing to small ones are not too uncommon.  Several studies have revealed that many toppers in academics fail to make it to the top in their careers. The reason often is lack of negotiating power. 

 All executives seeking to become wizards must sharpen their negotiating skills and demonstrate that they are adept negotiators.