1. Preparation and Planning
Before the start of negotiation, you must be aware the history of conflict leading to the negotiation, the people involves and their perception of conflict and the expectation of negotiations. You also want to prepare an assessment of what you think the other party’s goal. Once you have gathered your info, use it to develop a strategy.
2. Definition of Ground Rules
Once the planning and strategy is developed, you are ready to begin defining the ground rules and procedures with the other party over the negotiation. During this phrase, the parties will also exchange their initial proposal and demand.
3. Clarification and Justification
When initial positions have been exchanged, both you and the other party will explain, clarify and justify your original demands. This needn’t be confrontational. Rather, it is an opportunity to educating and informing each other on the issues. This is the point at which you might want to provide the other party with any documentation that helps support your position.
4. Bargaining and Problem Solving
The essence of the negotiation process is the actual give-and-take in trying to hash out an agreement. This is where both parties will undoubtedly need to make concessions.
5. Closure and Implementation
The final step in the negotiation process is formalizing the agreement that has been worked out and developing any procedures that are necessary for implementation and monitoring. This requires hammering out the specifics in a formal contract. For most cases, however, closure of the negotiation process is nothing more formal than a handshake.