Office Managers perform a number of tasks that involve negotiation, particularly in their dealings with employees, employment agencies, travel agencies, suppliers, shipping companies, leasing companies, and service companies, to name a few.

In order to perform their duties well, it is important for them to understand negotiating strategies and styles.  It is also important for them to understand that their choice of negotiation strategy and style for a given situation depends on the strength of their bargaining position, their relationship with the other parties, and the company objectives.

Diane Domeyer, Executive Director of OfficeTeam (www.officeteam.com) says your goal in negotiations shouldn’t be to win.

Rather, you AND the person you’re negotiating with should walk away from the deal feeling like you’ve both gained something. Otherwise, the person might not want to work with you in the future.

“It’s important to find out what other people want,” says Domeyer. “Empathy is key.”

Some people go into negotiations with no desire to be flexible. Others go into negotiations with no confidence. Both situations can hurt the ultimate goal: getting the best possible deal and service for your company. Keep in mind that while your organization has goals and a budget to meet, so do the clients, vendors and sales persons you are dealing with. Everything won’t go smoothly. That’s why it’s important to never take negotiations personal, says Domeyer.

“Separate the people from the problem,” says Domeyer. “People get emotional, so don’t lose your focus on the substantive problem you need to resolve. Stop the negotiation if you feel like things are becoming too heated or personal.”

Planning ahead and having a concrete plan before negotiations is key. Know what to expect – and expect the unexpected – going into the negotiating process. In addition, keep these tips in mind, says Domeyer:

• Focus on interests, not positions. Interests are what motivates someone - offer several options to satisfy a person’s interest instead of getting stuck on one position.
• Time it right - time negotiations strategically.  When your company is in the red, for example, it’s not appropriate to ask for money to get better equipment or go with the vendor you have a better relationship with who may charge more. 
• Insist on using objective criteria - look for criteria both of you can agree on.  This can lead to a quick compromise. For example, if you’re negotiating with a couple of different clients, consider service, outside issues (such as distance from company or how long it would take to get service, more materials, equipment, etc., do you have to use a courier service?). Also, what is their reputation in the marketplace?
• Keep your options open - if you don’t get what you want, stay composed and keep the door open for further discussions. Ask to revisit the issue; people may come around once they’ve had the opportunity to mull it over, particularly if it’s a new vendor you haven’t worked with before.
• Listen twice as often as you talk. Consider when you or a co-worker negotiates  a raise, for example. You may be so focused on the case you’re going to make that you don’t hear your manager’s reaction. You also many not understand his or her potential concerns and be able to address them effectively. This may be the same when dealing with a vendor, keep that in mind.
• Ask specific questions and take notes during negotiations. This will force you to slow down and concentrate on what the other person is saying. It also sets a positive tone for the negotiations.

A part of negotiating that can help you make better decisions is understanding negotiation terminology (see checklist below). It’s also important to let your vendors know that you are working with a number of similar companies to get the best deal possible. Most vendors know this – competition is the name of the game – but it does help to put the pressure on them.

“Getting a number of competitive bids can help put the leverage on your side,” says Michael Gallahue, who works with a number of different vendors for a large national telecommunications organizations. “It helps give concrete data to back up your points, and let’s them know you’ve done your homework and are prepared to go with not just any company, but the company that can provide the best service and product for your bottom line and budget.”

Eric Adams wrote in an article titled The Art of Business: Negotiating with Vendors For Fun and Profit on www.creativepro.com that even though you may not be a sales person by trade, this is the time to become one. The vendor may be selling a product to you, but you can help by selling yourself to them.

“Introduce yourself to your vendors using the same sales charisma used with your clients,” says Adams in the article. “Tout your company and its potential. Let vendors know who you are and why they should consider you important. What's your specialty? What volume of work can you realistically predict for the vendor's product or service? What product and services will you be using most? The more vendors know about you, the more likely they'll be to tighten their beloved margins.”

What does it take to boost your firm's bottom line?

Steve Isaacs, a management consultant with Seattle-based The Coxe Group (www.coxegroup.com), believes it hinges on win-win negotiating: understanding a prospective client's needs and finding a way to meet those needs - while meeting your firm's needs at the same time.

What's behind people's fear of negotiation? Conflict, said Isaacs. "Conflict is a difference of interests. I have an interest in one thing; you have an interest in something else. If we have competing interests, the reconciliation of competing interests is conflict resolution.”

He cited three ways to deal with conflict: fight, avoid the problem, or negotiate. After dismissing the first two, Isaacs concluded, "The only way to really solve a conflict is through negotiation. The goal of a negotiation is to satisfy my [firm's] interests. And the way to do that is to focus on [the client's] interests."

Win-win negotiation. Isaacs reviewed three possible strategies:

1. "Achieve my interests by defeating their interests. I call this the Attila-the-Hun approach to negotiation."
2. "Achieve my interests by focusing only on my interests. I call this "thank you for sharing, but I don't care what you're saying. I'm only interested in what I'm saying.""
3. "Achieve the interests of both sides by focusing on the interests of both sides. I believe that the goal of a successful negotiation is [this]."

Isaacs noted that most people negotiate using the second strategy above. However, "achieving my interest and focusing on their interest is a true win-win negotiation. Not only do you achieve your interest, but you're helping them achieve theirs. But never lose sight of your interest."

Isaacs recounted that the first time he engaged in a mutually beneficial negotiation was for a $40 million project with the Veterans Administration, while he was practicing as a civil engineer. "The contracting officer knew what his interests were, but he spent time trying to understand my interests and I was doing the exact same thing," he related. "In the course of nine or ten different negotiations we came up with some of the most creative concepts to resolve issues I've ever seen."

The importance of preparation. Isaacs noted that there are three steps in every negotiation: preparation, the actual discussion, and closing the deal. The most critical step, he stressed, is preparation.

Preparation starts with marketing. "You're setting the stage for success or lack of success from the moment a proposal goes out the door," said Isaacs. Bidding on a job is actually a negotiation, he stressed - only you're negotiating with yourself. "The first thing is to figure out what your interests really are, and take into account all aspects of the project. Do you want to work for this client? Is this a project you want? How much money are you going to make on it? Are you going to make enough to add to your backlog? What are the risks?"

"You have to make the same assessment doing the proposal that you would if you were doing a negotiation," Isaacs pointed out. One way to do that is to use a concept from Getting to Yes called “the best alternative to a negotiated agreement” (BANTA). "You need to understand what your true BANTA is," he advised. "At what point are you better off not having this project than having it?"

To do that you need to consider all aspects of the project. "Are you better off taking the job knowing that you have no chance of making money or that you're signing a contract where you're running a risk?" asked Isaacs. "I don't know how to answer that for you unless you've assessed what's on the other side. If you don't take the work, will you have to lay off people? Is it better to lay off people than take work that's going to lose money every hour?"

What's most important in determining your BANTA, advised Isaacs, is to think through all the alternatives when making a proposal. Especially important is "an awareness of the alternatives if a settlement cannot be achieved."

Understanding the client's interests. One of the best ways to determine a client's interests is to review the contract. "They're telling you about the relationship they want to have with you," said Isaacs. Talking to a firm that has worked with the prospective client can also be illuminating, especially if they're candid about having had a bad experience. That information can be extremely helpful if you decide to go ahead with the proposal and calculate a fee for that client, Isaacs noted.

"A big question is what are the industry standards for a project versus this client's expectations?" asked Isaacs. "You have to analyze what you think your client's interests are and discover the implications of those interests. How do various scenarios impact you? What if the client offers half of what you think the project should cost? Should you walk away from it or should you just take half?"

Reducing the scope is a good way to solve that problem, advised Isaacs. "I draw a triangle labeled scope, quality, and dollars for a client and I say: "Let's make a deal: You get two, I get one."" When the client claims to only have so much money for that scope, Isaacs says, "Let me tell you the quality you're going to get from me with those two things. If a client objects and says he [or she] expects higher quality, you can turn around and say, "Then here's the fee you should expect to pay." If a client says, "It's too much money," then you say, "You have to modify something. I'm giving you two for one.""

Making negotiations profitable. Noting that negotiating profitable fees is hard work, Isaacs stressed that every A/E firm needs to think about these issues and do its homework before making a proposal or bidding on a project. "When we don't do that, we're losing money. I'm convinced of that," he added.

"If you make a conscious decision to make an investment in a job because this is a new client or this is a new market or this is an exciting job you want to do, fine," Isaacs continued. "But if you took a job and you knew it was going to be a loser, but you thought you could make it up with volume, you need to do the math. That doesn't work.... It's all about preparation. We do it for our engineering work, so why wouldn't you do it for your business?"

Signing agreements that ensure a firm's profitability and that build successful long-term relationships with clients are high on Isaacs' list. The goal of every negotiation should be to make sure your firm is working together with the client to achieve a common objective.