Negotiation for Procurement: Negotiate like a Pro! (2026)

There are many definitions but what we will understand by negotiations is a process of interaction between two or more people in order to identify to which extent each party is ready to cooperate and what it is ready to do for such cooperation. Negotiations mean people trying to find out how one party can be useful to another one and what it will need to do in return.

So when negotiation occurs? We need to agree that negotiation occurs when some factors are met...

Positions and interests - these are two key terms.

A position is my point of view on the situation that I am sharing with my interlocutor here and now.

The second crucial term in negotiations is" interest". How is it different from the position? Interest is my motivation; it is what brings me into the meeting...

To understand what you may face in your future negotiations and which strategy to choose, let's learn about five negotiating strategies according to the Thomas-Kilmann classification. In fact, to determine which negotiating strategy you should choose and which strategy your opponent is likely to choose, you need to analyze two things

First of all it is willingness to be assertive and stand for your planned goals and ambitions.

Second - our ability to cooperate with the counterparty....

This model was described by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton in the book "Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In". The book is a must-read in our training.

It's main idea is to apply the win-win strategy when we negotiate. In other words, while in the hard bargaining model we want benefits only for ourselves, in the Harvard model we try to achieve benefits both, for ourselves and for our negotiating partner. We talk about it explicitly, we focus on it, we perceive our interlocutor as a long-term partner.

We said that negotiations are a process of interaction between two or more parties. So when preparing for negotiations, is fundamentally important that we understand this process, its logic. So what the negotiations are based on?

Tough negotiations always mean violence, aggression, hiding the information. It is a lot of negativity as in tough negotiations we are fighting. In collaborative negotiations, the Harvard model, we help the other person make a right decision. This is where we use the positive argumentation technique. So what does it mean?..

Any serious negotiations require high-quality preparation. They are like chess play - you think through each step and only then actually take it because a wrong step can cost you the whole game.

Negotiators fall into two broad categories: the well prepared and... the losers. This is why we suggest that you use a proven six-step preparation process for every important negotiation!

In this lesson we will talk about the 2 very important abbreviations for every Negotiator – BATNA And ZOPA.

BATNA is an acronym that stands for Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement. It is defined as the most advantageous alternative that a negotiating party can take if negotiations fail and an agreement. ... In other words, a party's BATNA is what a party's alternative is if negotiations are unsuccessful.

ZOPA = zone of possible agreement (ZOPA).

ZOPA is a bargaining range in an area where two or more negotiating parties may find common ground.

•Speak less. Listen more.

•Stop selling. The customer is already interested, so your additional arguments will not influence.

•Follow the non-verbal language.

•Monitor your opponent's information signals.

The topic of this lesson is bargaining and the rules of conduct in the negotiation process. Also we will talk about the common mistakes and good practice in bargaining process.

Normally participants tend to start with opening positions that are fairly far apart as we said before. And as the negotiation moves forward, initial concessions are replaced with smaller ones and the participants work towards finding a mutually acceptable point between each of their opening positions.

In this short bonus video I want to share with you a few helpful tips.

And also to spice up your everyday life with bargaining!

We will be dividing all negotiations into three large groups.

First group is tough negotiations, or what many people call an American model.

The second model - collaborative negotiations, or a European model.

The third negotiations model is so called Zen negotiations.