How to survive the negotiation danger zone - Viewpoint Viewpoint careers advice blog

How to survive the negotiation danger zone - Viewpoint Congratulations! After weeks, or even months, of lengthy negotiations, you’ve reached an agreement with your counterpart. The contract has been cleaned up from all of the redlines and it’s on its way through to be approved at corporate. Time to shake hands, toast to your success, and move on to the next deal, right? Not so fast. Once you’ve reached the final stage of negotiations, you may have an agreement in principle, but the deal is far from being closed. This part only happens once reviews are complete and signatures â€" from both parties â€" are in place. This period between agreement and final signatures, are what I refer to as the negotiation danger zone. This is the point where a single change of heart or adjustment in strategy from either side, can trigger the unravelling of a deal you’ve worked so hard to craft. Here are three proven techniques to help you navigate the negotiation danger zone and come out the other side with your deal secure. 1.  Keep stakeholders in the loop During the negotiation be sure to keep stakeholders in the loop with your progress so that you can course correct as needed. If the contract approvers feel anything less than completely informed and stumble across unexpected elements of the contract during the final review, tension and mistrust can grow, ultimately slowing down the process. So, sharing updates and obtaining approvals at key stages during your negotiations minimises that risk. As you approach the end of your negotiations, begin to prepare a streamlined summary of the deal for distribution along with the contract to stakeholders. It’s highly unlikely that the person approving the deal will have time to read each and every word in a hefty document, so pulling together the highlights along with a quick blurb on the impact these points will have on the organisation will help them review quickly. Keeping this to a single page is ideal. 2.  Don’t be afraid to handhold While you’re in the negotiation danger zone don’t underestimate the power of handholding the document through an approval cycle. Instead of simply leaving a folder for review on someone’s desk, book a meeting to review the contract and secure a signature. Working remotely? A conference call may do the trick; or, if the review has been dragging on, this may be the perfect time for a business trip to secure signatures face-to-face. Just as it’s important for your organisation to move a deal through approval cycles efficiently, it’s also vital that your counterpart does the same within their firm. At each stage, you can work together to implement these techniques. 3.  Set some milestones During the negotiation, set joint milestones and check-in points with your respective stakeholders. As the end of discussion approaches, you may want to collaborate on the creation of a summary document. Once youre in the approval phase, be sure to stay in contact instead of cutting off communication because the deal is ‘done’. The key is to complete all necessary due diligence as efficiently as possible, and get signatures in place quickly in order to minimise the risk of changes or additions to the deal. Remember, until both parties are signing the contract, you’re still in the negotiation danger zone â€" together. Worried your career is going in the wrong direction? Our career management tips will help you get back on track 5 ways to ensure the success of your IT contract How to handle aggression during negotiations 4 ways to successfully negotiate across language barriers