Examining Effective Negotiation Skills For Projects
Negotiation is an approach used by individuals or organizations with mutual or opposite interests to come together to reach a final agreement. For example, staff assignments can be negotiated with functional managers, vendors or external organizations. This ensures that the appropriate staff is assigned within the time frame when there is a need for source or specified resources. Effective project negotiation skills require knowledge of the economic and strategic worth of the project to effectively bargain for scarce skills resources.
Effective Project Negotiation Skills is indispensable to project management and, when done effectively, will contribute to the success of a project. Some of the skills or behaviors that Project Managers can adopt to negotiate successfully are:
#1 Situational Analysis
The first step the Project Manager has to take is to analyze the situation. He needs to know what is actually happening to the negotiation. He has to know the quality expectation of the stakeholders as well as other factors that must be put into consideration so that the organization is not short-changed in the negotiation process.
#2 Needs and wants
There is a clear difference between needs and wants. needs are so important that you cannot do without. When it comes to wants, you can always postpone it to a future date. For the project manager negotiating a project, he needs to know all those requirements that are to be part of the project and others that we can forgo now till a future date.
#3 Focusing on issues
There is a need for the Project Manager to also focus on issues that will be of interest to the entire project stakeholders instead of purchasing selfish interests or concerns that will be of benefit to him alone. He needs to interview stakeholders and understand their points as far as the project deliverables are concerned. He must be able to harmonize the view of stakeholders and have this at the back of his mind.
#4 Being realistic
When negotiating for project, you have to be realistic in your negotiation. You must know what the company can realistically afford. It also has to do with setting the appropriate timelines based on the availability of resources. You must ensure that you put all constraints into consideration when you are negotiating project completions. This will ensure that you do not have to have to shift finishing dates several times before the end of the project.
#5 Impression matters
While you are negotiating Projects as the Project Manager, you have to make sure that you impress the other by letting him know the values that the project is expected to add to his own organization and yours. You should not always forget that projects are executed to deliver value to the organization. These values must drive your decisions always.
#6 Win-Win Situation
When you are negotiating projects for your organizations, you have to ensure that you put the interest of the other party into consideration. You must be holistic and objective in your negotiation so that there will not be a situation where the contractor feels cheated or decided to abandon the project.
#7 Communication
As part of your effective project negotiation skills for projects, you have to make sure that you communicate with stakeholders both within and outside the organization. You need to also create a platform that allows all stakeholders to know what the expectation is as far as the project is concerned. This will ensure that stakeholders are satisfied at the end of the project.
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