Change and Negotiation

What do change and negotiation have in common? They are both:

Asking people to change
Easier planned than executed
Subject to opposition

In today's edition of the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation Sunday Minute, James Sebenius provides seven tips on how to handle a big negotiated deal that is falling apart or facing opposition. He states the Amazon decision to back out of an agreement to build a major business center in New York as an example. It seemed like a done-deal, (a meaningful change) and then it fell apart.

Change management efforts also frequently fall apart. That's frustrating and career-impacting for anyone involved in the change. Like a deal gone sour, a failed change project is agonizing.

Here are seven tips from the article. I think that they are excellence advice for managing a major negation AND managing a change project:

Never take success for granted in a complex, multiparty setting.
Stay informed about local opinions regarding the issues involved.
Identify and nurture potential supporters before you need them.
Identify potential deal blockers at the start of the negotiation.
Be aware that opponents with diverse concerns may team up to form a blocking coalition.
Listen to potential opponents’ concerns and address them, to the degree that you can.
Continue to negotiate for the agreement’s success during the implementation stage.

Whatever change management process you follow, those seven tips are worth considering to help your project overcome resistance and build positive relationships of collaboration rather than conflict.

-- doug smith

Comments

Build and Connect

The world is full of "buts" in search of more "ands." In improv. In leadership. In life. Let go of the fear and build on what's here. -- doug smith

Better Traditions

It's easy to tear down the past and wreck the present. It does not take much thought to condemn what seems to be ill-suited for our present needs. We might even take glee in crushing part of our past. But before we do, we should ask a question or two. What if we improved our traditions instead of destroying them? What if that's a better solution? -- doug smith

Speedy, Pause

Speed is great. It overcomes indifference, it outruns hesitation, it gets things started. It can also lead to mistakes. Sometimes a mistake comes from moving too fast. Pause. Practice patiently to filter out the flaws. -- doug smith

Wrong Is Wrong

There may be more than one right way to do something but that does not make the wrong way right. -- doug smith

Found

Everyone wants to do meaningful work. Work of value. Work that matters. Work that uses your skills, your gifts, your best intentions. Is that hard to find? Does it require a massive search? Embrace the search for meaningful work but remember that it is right in front of you. -- doug smith

In Search of the right steps...

Three step processes. Four step processes. Seven step processes. Even more. A problem is a dynamic in search of a dance. Follow the science, of course, but also find the dance. -- doug smith

Practice

If practice was easy we wouldn't need it. -- doug smith

Pause First

Falling behind might not mean catching up. It could also reveal change and opportunity. Would you rather chase, or lead? Has one moment or movement gone leaving room for something new? Don't let a treadmill turn into a dread mill. Haul that rock up the hill if it is part of your future, not just because it was part of your past. -- doug smith

Be Careful of Your Measures

Peter Drucker once said "what gets measured gets done" and there is much truth to that. Point people in the direction you want and they will do their best to get there. Just make sure, very sure, that you are measure what you really want and doing it without creating paths to cheating your way there. Given an incentive, people will find a way to achieve it. Most will work fairly but some will be tempted to game the. system, to stack the deck, to churn the number on their own behalf. That's not what you want. Ask yourself this question: how can we measure quantity and quality without gaming the system? Until you've answered that question, you'll never know how accurate, or useful, the measure is. -- doug smith

What's Your Creative Prompt?

The best place to wait for inspiration is in a place where it is certain to show up. Where is that for you? Onstage? Backstage? Greenroom? Workplace? Library? Laboratory? It could be your office, the factory floor, your work vehicle, anyplace where creativity is welcome. Your creative prompt can be solo and it can be in groups of people, too. Your best creative prompt is within you. How about this -- wherever you are, bring your inspiration with you. -- doug smith

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