Are your negotiations in danger of being derailed?

Building Coalitions
Written By Stacia Aylward

The Challenge

Think about something that you need to negotiate with someone else. Are there any third parties who have a stake in the outcome of this negotiation? Consider how much power, official or unofficial, these third parties have. Could they lend support or possibly block the negotiated outcome with the primary party? Are you taking this into account? Should/can you engage other stakeholders in any way to ensure their support?

Why do this?

Hone your negotiation skills. Sometimes negotiations fail because one or more powerful stakeholders are excluded from the process and, as a result, withhold or even intentionally sabotage the outcome. Wise leaders are thinking not only about who is in the room, but also who is not.

This act is part of your long-term effort to lead effectively by strengthening your negotiation abilities and helping to ensure that outcomes of a negotiation can be implemented.

What’s next?

Get in the habit of identifying stakeholders who will NOT be in the room and seek out their input on desired outcomes before entering into a negotiation.

Stacia Aylward

Zelos CEO Stacia C. Aylward is an executive leader and lifelong learner with broad professional experience in envisioning and leading programs, projects and teams; facilitating and teaching adults; conducting research; and developing client relationships using proven methodologies in many government and technical fields, including economics, education, healthcare, housing, non-profit governance, IT and law. Stacia holds a master’s degree in Communication and Information, a bachelor’s degree in English, a Six Sigma black belt certification, and a Coach Approach to Leadership credential.

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