Forget BATNA: Negotiate to Win
Matthias Schranner spent 14 years as a hostage negotiator for the German police before transitioning to becoming a consultant. As a hostage negotiator, you have to play to win because someone’s life depends on it. They have to reach an agreement, or the hostage dies. If there is no alternative, then you have to be well-prepared, focused, and concentrated. If you go into a negotiation knowing you have an alternative, it will... Read more
How to Become a Change Agent
Many salespeople sell something that might already exist in an organization. You have to get someone to change their mind to move toward your solution. That can be incredibly hard to achieve. There are often barriers you have to overcome. In most instances, there’s a present bias that accounts for someone’s reluctance to change. Douglas Cole points out that one of those natural barriers is the status quo. Why would... Read more
Story is the Engine of EQ
Christine Miles points out that we know from neuroscience that we make the majority of our decisions based on emotion, then justify those emotional decisions with facts. But the more we understand our emotions, the less our emotions drive us and the more logical we can be—including during conflict. Secondly, our brain is always telling us a story. And our experiences shape our story. When we understand our own story,... Read more
Is Creating an Awareness of Problems the Key to B2B Sales?
Greg Nutter was shocked by the number of people he’s come across who have been in sales for decades and were still making rookie mistakes. So he wrote a book to cover the fundamentals: P3 Selling: The Essentials of B2B Sales Success. One of the three “Ps” that Greg covers in the book is problems. The problem might just be the most crucial part of the sales process. So where... Read more
Advanced Negotiation Skills: How to Counter Procurement’s Perfect Storm
Successful negotiations are more crucial than ever in today's dynamic business landscape. This is especially true as the procurement process continues to evolve. Today, procurement is becoming more intricate and sophisticated, making negotiations increasingly challenging for sellers. To thrive in this competitive environment, mastering advanced negotiation skills is paramount; this can be accomplished through study, analysis, procurement negotiation training courses, etc. In this article, we will explore the key elements... Read more
The Implications of Technological Advancement in Procurement
Dr. Charlotte de Brabandt has been in procurement for almost 14 years and worked in five different industries, everything from automotive to tech. After nine years in automotive in the marketing procurement department for Porsche, she spent five years at Johnson & Johnson, specializing in MRO and energy procurement. She now works at Amazon in digital procurement for Amazon. She also recently completed a Ph.D. in Innovation Technology. As a... Read more
3 Essential Workplace Practices You Will Learn in a Conflict Resolution Course
Conflict in the workplace is inescapable; we all have to deal with it to some degree or another. For this reason, conflict resolution training is essential to the streamlined performance of everyone within a business, company, or organization. In fact, more than 95% of people who undergo workplace training as part of their professional development report that the training was beneficial in numerous ways. Consequently, these programs are invaluable in... Read more
How to Avoid the “Death Pause” in Sales & Negotiation
Jason Cutter is a mindset and scalability expert who helps sales teams be more effective. And one of the biggest mistakes that Jason sees is the death pause. What is it? How can you avoid it? What is the death pause? When you come upon an objection like “It’s too expensive,” most salespeople try to answer the objection, ramble on, and stop abruptly. Then, there’s the death pause. The salesperson is... Read more
Navigating the Mediation Process
Amy Mariani practiced law for 20 years on behalf of individuals and corporations in employment, personal injury, and business-related contexts. In 2016, she became a full-time neutral party and transitioned into mediation. Now she helps businesses and individuals move out of conflict and into the future. Navigating the mediation process—with willing participants—can be tricky. What should you expect? Where do you start? Amy shares where she starts and what the... Read more
How to Avoid Offending Germans, Swiss, and Austrians in Negotiations
Germans, Swiss, and Austrians are all people who speak German. Yet international negotiation expert Mihai Isman points out that despite the shared language, each culture negotiates quite differently. For example, the Swiss prefer to avoid conflict in negotiations and are oriented toward harmony. The Swiss excel at extracting the best deals from their opponents without appearing demanding or aggressive. They are confident in their products and services—but they are expensive.... Read more