Conduct a negotiation on your own outside of class and apply the principles and strategies we have learned in this class.
Personal Negotiation Paper
In the spirit of this class being “learn by doing”, you will have to conduct a negotiation on your own outside of class and apply the principles and strategies we have learned in this class. This can be for anything – a good, service, conflict/decision, etc – a purchase is not necessary.
Given the open-ended options for you, there are a few ground rules you must follow in approaching the negotiation:
You cannot tell your negotiation partner(s) that this is for a class until after the negotiation is completed (if you wish to). Your negotiation partner cannot be a fellow classmate or the instructor.
You must actually have some interest in the negotiation in which you are participating – you must intend to potentially acquire or sell the good or service, or care about how the decision or conflict is resolved. Do not negotiate to negotiate on something that you have no intention of seeing through as this is a waste of another person’s time. It’s okay if you do not come to agreement and execute the sale or decision, but you need to be open to the possibility from the outset.
Do NOT put yourself into an unsafe COVID-19 situation to complete this requirement (i.e., no social distancing or unsafe outside contact). It is completely acceptable to negotiate with the people you live with or interact with already in your normal life activities. It is also acceptable to negotiate by email or phone/Zoom (e.g., think with a utility company or service provider you currently have, a company you may have or plan to shop online with, with a potential employer in a remote salary negotiation, etc). There is absolutely no need for you to go be face-to-face with someone in person to complete this assignment.
This paper should be 3-4 double-spaced pages in length. You should address the following questions in your paper:
What did you negotiate for? What was the context of the negotiation?
What were your goals/expectations and BATNA?
What did you think the interests, expectations, and BATNA of your negotiation partner were?
How did the negotiation proceed?
What things did you do well?
What mistakes did you make, or what could you improve upon next time?
How did your conflict management style and ethical frameworks influence your strategies and behaviors in the negotiation?
What were your overall takeaways from the experience? What did you learn about negotiations or conflict management from engaging in this negotiation?
The best papers will be those that have:
High quality writing (e.g., well organized, few typos or grammatical errors, logical flow)
Evidence of reflection and thought about self-evaluation performance in the negotiation
Evidence of preparation and consideration of the negotiation partner before the negotiation
Inclusion of negotiation/conflict management principles, theories, or concepts discussed in class (including conflict management inventory and ethical frameworks)
Focus more on analysis of what happened rather than description of what happened
Thoughtful discussion of lessons learned
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