STUDY PLAN

The course is designed for the improvement and updating of professionals in the different methods and techniques of individual or collective negotiation in the public or private sector within a crisis and high-pressure context.

When it comes to negotiation under pressure, we must understand that these are situations where there is little room for concession from either party, which makes the negotiation framework between a lower limit (floor) and an upper limit (ceiling) narrow, leaving little space to reach an agreement. Of course, it is not always possible to reach an agreement, but the key here is to operate within tight margins and, in most cases, with limited time, which adds extraordinary stress to the process and increases the possibility of making mistakes or accepting less-than-ideal outcomes.

The goal is to train professionals who are capable of developing interpersonal, inter-business, inter-governmental, and inter-organizational negotiations in a turbulent, high-demand context, in critical circumstances, and under time constraints, seeking to enhance the skills required for efficient negotiation.

Work Plan | Focus of Each Class

Through five classes, the program delves into the fundamental tools necessary to begin transforming the way we usually negotiate in high-pressure situations.

In addition to the negotiation techniques we have already mastered, it is crucial to deepen a set of personal skills that we need to explore within ourselves and, by extension, study in the other party negotiating with us. We must also learn to recognize when we are faced with a critical context and when we are being presented with such a context.

For this, we must reinforce:

1. Self-awareness of the negotiator: This involves becoming aware of our own internal states, resources, and intuitions. Identifying our strengths and weaknesses. This leads us to the possibility of self-control, particularly in tense situations. This process should guide us to track our emotional reactions and deepen our emotional management.
2. Adaptability: Flexible negotiators adapt quickly to changes. In today’s world, we find that flexibility, the ability to adjust to change, is sometimes more important than experience. In other words, a negotiator cannot be self-conditioned by the strategy they prepared; they must enhance their adaptability, which is what defines their ability to adjust to each specific situation. This requires an open mindset, with the willingness to react to new events and a strong capacity for processing new information.
3. Achievement motivation: Negotiators who are more result-oriented have a strong motivation. They approach difficult negotiations with confidence and take calculated risks.
4. Initiative to find solutions during negotiations: Negotiators with initiative are always ready to seize opportunities, and they do not hesitate to bypass procedures when necessary. Initiative is the readiness to act when the opportunity arises. In general, it is important that this is accompanied by optimism, which allows persistence in achieving goals despite obstacles and setbacks.
5. Understanding others: The ability to grasp the feelings and viewpoints of others and actively show interest in what concerns them. This refers to reinforcing empathy, the ability to be conscious of, recognize, understand, and appreciate the needs, feelings, and problems of others, putting ourselves in their shoes and responding appropriately to their emotional reactions.

From the perspective of the new model being proposed, we begin with understanding the need to know the tools and instruments we are going to use in depth. Only by acquiring this knowledge can we embark on a methodology that will change our thinking, perspective, and the adaptive approach we must start practicing to achieve different results than what we have obtained so far. Because precisely, that is the goal: to achieve different, more efficient, and effective results through paths other than those we have tried until now.

CLASS PLAN

1. Introduction: Crisis Negotiation.
   • General definition of the negotiation process.
   • Negotiation in regular and crisis situations. Their differences.
   • Conceptual clarifications of crisis and pressure.
2. Crisis situation: definitions and contextual framework.
   • Typology of crises: Acute. Chronic. Others.
   • Evaluation of pressure or threat: Internal or external.
   • Object of the threat. Estimation of intensity and magnitude of damage.
3. Objective and subjective dimensions in a crisis.
   • Differentiation between threat and urgency.
   • Practical exercise.
4. Crisis Management and Evaluation:
   • Existence of a serious threat.
   • The need for a response to the threat.
   • Evaluation of own capacity to respond.
   • Generation of decisions.
   • Decision-making under the pressure of urgency.
   • Involvement of organizational levels..
5. The decision to negotiate.
   • Individual Negotiation:
   • The need for the formation of a negotiation team.
6. Influence and Processes in Negotiation:
   • Interests, positions, and negotiating context.
   • Tools for preparation: Interests. Options. Alternatives. Legitimacy. Communication. Support.
7. Structure and Problem Analysis:
   • Degree of complexity.
   • Framing the problem.
   • Objectives and rewards to be obtained.
   • Motivations and security.
   • Instruments: Active listening and cultural sensitivity.
   • Use of incentives. Presentation of perspectives. Exchange of information.
   • Impasse and Turning Points.
   • The decision to end the negotiation and move to the next level.
   • Cooperation and the individual interests of participants.
   • Cooperative and non-cooperative strategies.
   • Methods for decision adoption.
   • Groupings and coalitions of interests among participants.
8. Practical Exercise.

Who is it aimed at?

This program is aimed at anyone wishing to continue their professional development in negotiation, as well as anyone involved in management and negotiation functions within their work, professional environment, and with external stakeholders.

Entrepreneurs, executives, professionals, technicians, and all personnel involved in management and negotiation functions with an international scope in business or organizations. Employer and union negotiators. Professionals whose area of activity requires training to develop in turbulent contexts of a political, economic, union, or social nature.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that participants have previously completed courses on Conflict Analysis, Management and Administration, and Positional and Strategic Negotiation Techniques.

Additional Tools:

Each course is made up of concrete tools that participants will find applicable to their reality from the very beginning.

We provide a series of in-depth resources (TED Talks, articles, worksheets, and videos) so that participants can expand their resource base on each topic addressed in the classes.