Negotiating with suppliers can be tricky. You want to create win-win outcomes because making the other side feel like a “loser” is Old School. It’s outdated and it destroys, not builds, value long-term. But how do you create win-win outcomes when you are at the negotiating table? In this blog post I share some negotiation […]
Negotiation: How Effective Is the Good Cop vs Bad Cop Routine?
We have all heard about the old “Good cop vs Bad cop” routine when it comes to negotiating. In fact, you will likely have been at the receiving end of it or perhaps you’ve dished it out in the past. Does it work, though? Yes, sometimes it works, but it’s not nice. The reason why […]
How to Use Financial Reports to Prepare for Supplier Negotiations
When Warren Buffet looks for shares to invest in, he looks for companies with “durable competitive advantages”. As Procurement professionals, we are also concerned with performance and stability of suppliers. So, are there lessons to be learned from Warren’s approach? Most definitely, yes. Knowledge isn’t power, applied knowledge is power Eric Thomas That is true […]
How to use “thank you” to increase your success in negotiations
During negotiations, both parties need to be flexible for an agreement to be reached. That usually means each party makes a series of concessions. So, do you say, “thank you” when your counterparty gives you something? What if the concession is inadequate? According to one definition of the Cambridge English dictionary thank you is “said […]
How to Unlock a Deadlocked Negotiation
Negotiation is a topic close to my heart and as a procurement professional it’s an activity I have engaged in for more than 20 years. It’s a very useful skill we all use in many contexts. In a past article, I have shared the negotiation process I follow to achieve great results. And in this […]
