Category: Negotiation

Introduction

The Miami school district plans to redraw school boundaries. This will have a variety of effects on students since many of them will be forced to transfer to other schools. The parents are opposed to the move towards redrawing the school boundaries due to a number of reasons. Some of the reasons raised by the parents include compromised quality of education, increased travel time, crossing economic and cultural boundaries, property value and social effects on children among others.

This paper seeks to discuss the negotiation between the parents and the board to resolve the dispute. The paper will include negotiation process, technique and skills that the two parties could employ as well as the views that the parties could have over the effects of the students relocating to new schools.

Negotiation

Negotiation is a process by which parties to a conflict engage in discussions with an aim of arriving at a position that both the parties will agree to. Christopher (2010) defines negotiation as a technique to decision making and dispute resolution. When issues arise that tend to change a status quo that involves more than one party, one or more of the involved parties may be offended by the changes.

Negotiation can then be used to seek an agreeable opinion that all the involved parties can consent to. The negotiation process will call for compromise on some or all the parties to the conflict so that a consensus can be reached (Christopher, 2010).

The parents are opposing the move by the school board because of issues that pertains to quality of education, increased travel time, crossing economic and social boundaries, property values and social effects on children. Pecora and Maluccio (2009) argue though not with respect to school but rather to placement in welfare facilities, that mobility has negative effects on the children. The effects in the facilities are however comparative to the effects in schools as both welfare facilities and schools both deals with developing and impacting the children and students.

According to Pecora and Maluccio (2009) the transfer of students from one environment to another has a negative effect on the students’ performance. It is noted that the transfer has the same effect on the performance of the affected schools. The performances of mobile students are however more affected as compared to the performance of immobile students who study in schools that are affected by student mobility.

With respect to these negative effects on student’s performance due to transfers, the parents could be justified to oppose the move by the board on grounds of its negative effect to quality of education. The transfer from one school to another also has social effect on the students.

The move will break the links, friendships and relationships that the student might have formed with other students and teachers at the original institution. The movement will in this respect cause confusion to the students who might take too long to establish new relationships in the new school.

The moment of confusion before the student establishes new relationships is significant as social interactions are very important elements in the development of the child. Isolation caused by the movement can have a negative psychological effect if the child takes too long to establish new relationships. The mobility can also cause behavioral disorders due to isolation in the new school especially if the student does not adjust to the environment (Pecora and Maluccio, 2009).

Financial limitations have also been identified and cultural boundaries as barriers of school mobility. Financial limitations can limit accessibility to education if students are to be transferred at the discretion of the board of the Miami school.

The board can relocate a student to a school that could be far from the student’s home and this will translate to increased transport expenses. It could get worse if the student is from a poor background and hence cannot afford the costs to the new school. Cultural barriers also affect students when they transfer to schools in locations with new cultures.

The transfer will subject the student to a new culture which will require the student to make adjustments. If the student is unable to adjust to the new culture then his or her relationship in the new school as well as the student’s performance might be affected. The mobility to a school located further from home will also mean increased time taken by the student to travel to school as the distance to be covered will be more (Junor and Usher, 2008).

Essentials of Negotiation

Since the school has made the decision to redraw its boundary and the parents are offended by the decision, there will be need to form a mechanism by which these two parties, the school board and the parents, will find a solution to their difference.

The two parties will therefore be required to meet and share their views on the positions they are taking in order to reach an agreement on the best step to be taken. For effective negotiation to take place, the two parties will need a skilled and procedural approach during their meeting. According to Auaf (n.d), effective negotiation can be achieved when skills are applied in the process of discussion.

Auaf (n.d.) argue that a negotiation should: produce informed consensus if possible, be efficient and positively develop the relationship that the parties experienced before. It is further argued that negotiation should be approached with a “soft stand as positional negotiations” (Auaf, n.d., p. 1) where parties are not willing to compromise often leads to unwise decisions or at times no agreement at all.

This could worsen the conflict. Both parties should during discussion focus on: the interest of both the current students and those expected to join, available options apart from transferring students upon redrawing school boundaries, the possible agreements that could be arrived at, the legality of redrawing the school boundary among others. The negotiation process should be chaired by a person perceived to be impartial in the crisis.

The person could employ the aspects of negotiation which include: “separating the people from the problem, focusing on the interests rather than the parties, generating a number of possible solutions and insisting that the desired results driven by objectives” (Auaf, 1).

Zartman (2008) argues that negotiations uses a formula that is acceptable to all the parties in a conflict and illustrate a consensus upon which a solution is to be implemented. He further adds that the negotiation process should focus on establishing justice. The legality of the cause of the conflict should be established and the solution be driven towards restoring the violated law.

The person chairing the discussions in this particular case should therefore be informed on the issues related to education policies and even the rights of children (Zartman, 2008). It is however important to note that as the parents and the school would agree to meet and negotiate on their differences over the redrawing of boundaries, there are some conditions that if taken consideration can lead to the success of the negotiation.

Christopher (n.d.) argues that for a negotiation to be more successful, the parties who in this case are the parents and the school board should both be willing to discuss the problem in order to reach a consensus. It is also important that the parties involved be dependent on each other as this is the tool that will facilitate compromise. If the parties are independent, then the dominating side will not be willing to compromise as it derives no benefits from the other party.

Other necessary conditions for a more successful negotiation include: willingness by the parties to compromise their positions, unpredictability of the result of the negotiation, existence of pressure on both parties to resolve the conflict and that the possible solution be one that is reasonable and can be easily applied (Christopher, n.d).

Conclusion

The school board made a decision to redraw school boundary. The parents are offended by this move which according to them will affect their children’s welfare at school. The parents’ reasons for objecting the move by the school are reasonable as they reflect the possible negative effects that school mobility can cause to their children.

An interactive discussion is however necessary between the school board and the parents as they are the major stakeholders in the education sector. An independent and well informed person would however be needed to reconcile the parties as they are both right in their views. The negotiation process will therefore be expected to find a solution that will be in line with education policies as well as ensuring that students are given favorable learning conditions.

References

Auaf. (n.d.). Negotiation Skills. AUAF. Web.

Christopher, W. (n.d.). Negotiation. AUAF. Web.

Junor, S. & Usher, A. (2008). Student mobility & credit transfer. Education Policy. Web.

Pecora, J., Whittaker, J. & Maluccio, A. (2009). The Child Welfare Challenge: Policy, Practice, and Research. New Jersey, NJ: Aldine Transaction.

Zartman, W. (2008). Negotiation and conflict management. New York, NY : Routledge.

Introduction

In all aspects of society life, conflicts are bound to occur. These conflicts are normal and may in fact contribute to the health of the community. However, the positive contribution of conflicts greatly hinges on the conflict resolution schemes which are employed. As such, it is imperative that the people involved in the conflict resolve the issues constructively. Key to the constructive resolution of conflicts is the use of negotiation tactics and strategies.

In this paper, I shall review a conflict resolution between the Newtown School board and the Teacher’s association. As a member of the teacher’s association bargaining team, I shall analyze the various bargaining issues and the negotiation process that the two sides engage in so as to arrive at an agreement that suits parties across both sides of the divide.

The dispute

The first step in the negotiation process is to describe what it is that you want to negotiate. This is based on the concept that negotiation involves a conflict about particular resources. The participants therefore identify if there is a situation that needs to be negotiated. In the Newtown School dispute, the issues at play include the renewal of a contract between the board and the teachers following the expiration of the previous contract.

There exist a number of contentious issues which have so far resulted in the unsuccessful finalization of the new contract.

One of the contentious issues is the desire by the board to decrease the number of programs offered to students as well as decrease the number of teachers under its current employment. In addition to this, the board proposes to increase the workload of the teachers so as to increase the systems effectiveness therefore enabling it to work well within the budgetary constraints.

The teacher’s association bargaining team of which I am a member is opposed to all this proposals by the school board since it sees them as detrimental to the welfare of the teachers. While the board wishes to negotiate a three year contract, the Teacher’s association wants a one year contract which it believes will guarantee flexibility for its members. In addition to this, the my team is opposed to the idea of decreasing the number of teachers in Newtown Schools as well as increasing the work load of the teachers.

Negotiation process

Having acknowledged the presence of a conflict, the negotiations can be deemed as being ready to begin. The process ideally begins by both parties presenting their issues which are mostly in the form of demands and goals to be met.

Negotiation involves exchange of proposals and demands so as to reach a solution. The Newtown case in particular presented well defined goals by both parties involved. The goal of my team is to prevent the reduction of the teacher’s work force as well as ensure a flexible contract is given to the teachers.

The Teachers Association team also wants to ensure that the workload of the teachers is not unfairly increased. The goals of the Newtown School board is to reduce the cost of running schools by cutting on the number of teachers employed as well as the number of programs offered at schools. In addition to this, the board aims to increase the number of years for the teaching contract so as to stabilize the situation by creating orderly and predictable budgetary needs.

Despite the presence of these polarized interests between my side and the school board, there exist interests that are common to both sides. Both parties involved are genuinely concerned about the well being of their community and in particular, the quality offered to the children.

As such, it is desirable to reach a solution that does not alienate the teachers association and the school board since these two entities have always coexisted peacefully. In addition to this, both parties are subjected to the pressure of the community to come up with a solution that will not result in derailing of the educational process of the children. These joint interests are very pivotal in the reaching of an agreement.

Once the various positions of the negotiating parties have been established, the negotiating process can commence. For the negotiation process to be undertaken a strategy has to be followed. The strategic choice that was employed in this negotiation was the concession making.

In this strategy, each party is required to reduce their demands or aspirations so as to accommodate the other party. This strategies, applied appropriately, is arguably the most prudent given the fact that both parties involved in the Newtown dispute have their demands and there is little chance of either party giving in to the objectives of the other party without obtaining any gains.

Consensus building

Consensus building is a decision and agreement reached by all the identified parties. Through this process, unanimous agreement over the disputed issue(s) is reached.

At the onset of the negotiating process, both parties were unable to see the common value issues where no opposition existed. Through the negotiation process, my party and the school board have recognized common goals thereby showing us that we are in fact not adversaries. Building on this basis, we have come up with compromises for the community’s and our respective benefit.

One of the issues in which a concession has been reached is the issue or decreasing the teaching force in Newtown. While the reduction in the number of teachers under employment by the board is seen as necessary, my team at the beginning of the negotiation process opposed this move as it would have jeopardized the work security of the Teacher’s Association members.

However, it has been noted that thirty teachers did not return to the system due to either retirement or other reasons. In addition to this, there has been a notable increase (5%) in the number of retirements as the year’s progress.

Both teams have therefore agreed that instead of laying off teachers, the board can suspend employing new teachers in the coming years. As a result of this, the teaching force will naturally decrease without the current teaching force suffering from loss of employment. This is a position that is acceptable to both sides.

The other issue of concern is the term of the contracts. While the school board proposes a three year term, my team demands a one year term contract. Since both sides have their valid arguments to justify their demands, the only way that this matter can be resolved is through compromise.

The two sides therefore agreed on a two year contract which demonstrates a relaxing of the initial demands by both sides. As such, while none of the sides wins, both sides end up with a better bargain that what the other side previously demanded.

Conclusion

Since there was a desire by my team and the Newtown School board members to come up with a solution that would avert a strike, both teams engaged in negotiation efforts to constructively resolve the conflicts at hand. From these negotiation efforts, compromises were made and both teams agreed to terms that were acceptable to all parties.

Since there is goodwill and a desire to avoid dispute by both parties, it can be expected that both parties will fulfill their ends of the bargain therefore leading to a harmonious coexistence.

The article “Conflict management through the negotiations canvas: getting participants to understand” by Carrie Blair and David Desplaces (2018) explores how the use of the negotiations canvas, a visual tool for structuring and analyzing negotiations, helps students better understand and apply the concepts of conflict management. The authors argue that the canvas can assist students in knowing the various elements of a negotiation, including the interests, alternatives, and criteria of the parties involved and how these elements can be used to manage conflicts efficiently.

One main takeaway from the article is the importance of using visual aids like the negotiations canvas to apply conflict management concepts. The authors suggest that the use of visual aids provides an opportunity for students to grasp the complexity of negotiations and conflicts and to develop a deeper understanding of the key elements that are involved. Another crucial takeaway is the importance of involving students in the negotiation process through simulations and role-playing exercises. The authors argue that in these activities, students develop their negotiation skills and become more confident in dealing with conflicts. The authors also suggest that instructors should encourage the use of the negotiations canvas in class and provide response and direction to students as they work through the various stages of the negotiation process.

In summary, the article highlights the benefits of using the negotiations canvas as a visual tool, allowing students to learn conflict management methods. The authors suggest that involving students in simulations and role-playing exercises, providing feedback and guidance, using visual aids, and encouraging the use of the negotiations canvas in class, can lead to a greater understanding and success in the field of conflict management.

Reference

Blair, C. A., & Desplaces, D. E. (2018). Conflict management through the negotiations canvas, getting participants to understand. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 36(1), 39-51. Web.

Introduction

In all aspects of society life, conflicts are bound to occur. These conflicts are normal and may in fact contribute to the health of the community. However, the positive contribution of conflicts greatly hinges on the conflict resolution schemes which are employed. As such, it is imperative that the people involved in the conflict resolve the issues constructively.

Key to the constructive resolution of conflicts is the use of negotiation tactics and strategies in the mediation process. Stitt (2004) defines mediation as simply the act of facilitating negotiation activities so as to help the disputants overcome the various obstacles in the negotiation process and therefore get to an agreement.

In this paper, a review of a conflict between the Miami School District and the Miami School parents shall be made. An overview of the conflict in this particular case shall then follow with the major parties involved being identified.

The negotiation strategy to be used to address the issue will be discussed and the rationale behind it explained. In the end, the paper shall demonstrate the significance of the mediator’s skills in arriving at an agreement that suits parties across both sides of the divide.

Mediatory Role

Negotiation and mediation are termed as procedures that are utilized in dealing with opposing preferences. Negotiation involves the discussion between the opposing parties with the aim of reaching an agreement. Mediation on the other hand is a form of negotiation involving the presence of one or more outsiders. In the negotiation process, the parties in question may choose to take an approach in which discussions are held concerning their respective interests.

On the other hand, mediation is a process that employs a neutral party/parties to facilitate the negotiation process between the opposing members. Shamir (2003) states that “mediation is an assisted and facilitated negotiation carried out by a third party.”

Since I have no direct interest in the conflict or its outcome for that matter, my role as a mediator is ideal. Impartiality on my part is an especially crucial consideration since if either party suspects the mediator of being partial or having vested income in the outcome, the process would fail.

Poitras (2009) articulates that a mediator who is perceived to be impartial and only out to get a just solution will elicit the trust and confidence of the parties involved. The diplomatic nature of the mediator also increased the chances of achieving positive outcomes by facilitating unanimity.

The dispute

The school board and the student’s parents have coexisted peacefully over the past many years. The Contention arose following the decision by the school board to redraw the school boundaries resulting in many students not being able to stay at their present school.

The main concern of the school board results from the unexpected increases in enrollment. The board feels that school boundaries have to be drawn in order to take into consideration these new realities in Miami. The school board feels that if no intervention is made, overpopulation in schools will occur leading to the overworking of teachers and a decrease in the education quality.

As such, the school board feels that redrawing of boundaries is an important step to ensure better services are provided to the students.

However, the parents who are the other major stakeholders in this conflict do not share the sentiments held by the school board. The parents are particularly concerned that the proposed plans will lead to a disruption of the student’s school life since many students will not be able to stay at their present school.

In addition to this, the parents feel that this move will lead to an increase in student’s travel time are well as have social impacts on the children. Owing to the fact that the children will be transferred to schools that have lower reputations compared to their current school, parents also feel that the quality of education will be degraded.

Negotiation Grounds

Negotiation involves exchange of proposals and demands so as to reach a solution (Stitt, 2004). This particular case presents well defined goals by both parties involved. A goal is defined as a known or presumed commercial or personal interest of all or some of the parties to the negotiation.

The goal of the school board is to proceed unperturbed with its redrawing of school boundaries so as to offer better services to the student population. The goal of the parent’s on the other hand is to preserve the school boundaries so as to ensure continuity and avoid the degenerating effects that the proposed new boundaries are bound to lead to.

Despite the presence of these polarized interests between the two sides, there also exist common interests by both the school board and the parents. Both parties are genuinely concerned about the well being of the local community in general and the students in particular.

Both parties therefore desire to reach a solution that will not alienate them to each other since the two entities have always coexisted peacefully. These joint interests are very pivotal in the reaching of an agreement.

Negotiation Strategy

Having established the positions of the various parties and my role as the mediator, the negotiating and meditating process can occur. For the negotiation process to be undertaken a strategy has to be followed. The negotiating strategy that I will follow is the Integrative bargaining. Stitt (2004) affirms that “Integrative bargaining operates under the assumption that there is at least one settlement that results in a win-win situation for the various parties involved in the negotiation process.”

Each party will be required to reduce their demands or aspirations so as to accommodate the other party. The key factor that makes me favor this approach is that it tries to resolve the issue in an amicable fashion so as to ensure a health future relationship between the parties. Safeguarding of future the relationship between the parents and the school board is critical in these negotiation efforts.

The first step for me as the mediator will be familiarizing myself with the issue. I have therefore examined the background information so as to develop strategies on how to deal with both antagonists. I also intend to hold separate meetings with the concerned parties and clarified my role in the negotiation process. A mediator’s attempt to establish common values and experiences with the negotiating parties may yield to a good rapport with the parties.

As a mediator, once the goals and interests of both sides have been laid out on the table, I will be able to begin facilitating the negotiation process. I will begin by helping both parties better understand their interests and priorities. From this, it will be clear that the parents are not so much as opposed to the idea of the school board redrawing the boundaries as to the lack of involvement of parents in the process.

The parents view that this would result in crossing cultural and economic boundaries since the students would be placed in poorer districts. This crossing of lines would lead to a tainting of the community’s suburban image. It is therefore possible to appease the parents by having them elect members to be included in the boundary redrawing efforts. This will ensure that some of their interests are taken into consideration in this process.

The quality of education is one of the issues that are of high priorities to both parties. The need for redrawing the school boundaries is seen as inevitable by the school board. However, it can be done in such a manner that it does not lead to the high levels of objections.

As a mediator, I can look into ways that the school board can undertake this activity while ensuring that the travel time for students is kept to a minimal. The parents will however be willing to deal with the fact that economic boundaries may have to be crossed.

Through the course of the negotiation process, I will highlight an impasse created due to the parent’s perception that placing the students in a multicultural setting will result to negative influences. The parents believe that this will have a negative social implication since schools in the other neighborhoods have incidents of violence which the parents perceive to be as a result of culture.

By helping the parties to recognize these impasses, they can overcome the culturally-based impasses. Having done all this, it is possible that the two parties will reach an amiable compromise based on reducing their demands and dealing with the issues of high priority.

Since there exists goodwill and a desire to avoid dispute by both parties, it can be expected that both parties will fulfill their ends of the bargain therefore leading to a harmonious coexistence.

Conclusion

This paper set out to demonstrate that mediation can be used in negotiations to help in the timely reaching of an amiable stand by both parties involved. Since there is a desire by both sides to come up with a solution that will be beneficial to the community, both teams are likely to engage in negotiation efforts to constructively resolve the conflicts at hand.

Compromises will have to be made and both teams will have to agree on terms that are acceptable to all parties. The role of the mediator is invaluable in that it enables the conflicting parties to better understand their interests and also facilitates the moving forward of the negotiating process according to the needs and pace of the parties.

References

Poitras, J. (2009). What makes parties trust mediators? Negotiation Journal, Volume 25, Issue 3, Pages 307-325.

Shamir, Y. (2003). Alternative Dispute Resolution Approaches and their Application. PCCP Publications.

Stitt, A. (2004) Mediation: a Practical Guide. Routledge Cavendish.

When negotiations are held, the main intention is to come up with an agreement that will provide a roadmap for an action to be taken (Howard, 1982, p.5). Negotiations have mostly been aimed at ensuring that existing conflicts are resolved amicably. They occur over a wide area and have no restrictions. In addition, negotiations can occur between organizations, businesses, governments and in other personal situations.

There are many actual negotiation situations that have occurred in a global context. Examples include between international corporations and organizations, government to government and international acquisition (Howard, 1982, p.15). In international business there have been negotiations between the US and China (in relation to currency). China has been accused of manipulating the value of the Yuan. It has been agued that they have not moved towards a more flexible currency.

On the other hand, the US has been accusing China of being a currency manipulator because it has kept the value of its currency unchanged to the dollar for almost two years (Stohr & Mattingly, 2010, p. 7). There has been pressure for a Yuan revelation so as not to put their exports ahead of others like America. Most of the public pressure has come from the US as they have felt more offended than anyone else.

Chinas policies and practices have given most exporters an unfair advantage over their US competitors. As a result the US government through its Treasury secretary has been involved in negotiations to resolve this dispute once and for all. Some have been calling for immediate imposition of import duties to the Chinese.

This is ultimately a global issue that pits the world’s largest economies against one another. In coming up with negotiations to resolve this dispute some US lawmakers have argued that Chinese leaders are not committed to this issue (Stohr & Mattingly, 2010, p. 3). Of course it is evident that problems between the US and China can be solved through negotiations. There has been a multilateral effort to ensure that this issue is solved through negotiations.

Negotiations have been aimed at looking into the relationship between the two countries (that will define how they relate in business). Before these there has been a distributive bargaining where the US has urged China to try and correct the situation for better trade relations between the two countries. To resolve this issue China has been urged to move towards a more flexible currency.

As a matter of fact, the Chinese president was able to visit Washington in a bid to ensure that trade ties are not severed. On the other hand, China has put in place good measures that allow for negotiations in an aim to resolve this issue. An involving negotiation process has been called for among the players to reach an amicable solution as this is a global issue.

In a broader perspective, to give the negotiation process a professional approach many economic experts have been called in to ensure that the authenticity of the claim has a basis from which it can be well argued on. The process has involved the people who run treasury from the two countries (Stohr & Mattingly, 2010, p. 9). This is because it is an economic dispute that needs a comprehensive solution.

Although negotiations are the only way to resolve the dispute; it has not been successful over the years as the Chinese have not been ready (in many occasions) to sit down and commit themselves. The negotiation process is ongoing and will open a window for more issues to be looked into.

Reference List

Howard, R. (1982). The Art and Science of Negotiation. Harvard: Belknap Press.

Stohr, G. & Mattingly, P. (2010). (2010). Geithner Delays Currency Report, Urges Flexible Yuan. Web.

“Authenticity” is the essence of a primeval notion that is firmly rooted in its existing culture. However, new cultural expansions may also obtain the polish of authenticity in due course of time. This phenomenon is referred to as “emergent authenticity.” Based on this modification, the paper would establish the thesis that commoditization does not essentially obliterate the significance of cultural yields, although it may modify it or attach a renewed sense to existing ones.

“Tourism is said to lead to ‘commoditization’… within the domain of economic relations regulated by criteria of market exchange.”(Cohen, 372) Local traditions usually serve as the primary illustrations of such commoditization. Specifically, attractive local attires and mores, customs and banquets, and folk and cultural artefacts become tourist products, as they are presented or yielded to attract tourist attention.

MacCannell (1973) argues that commoditization hampers the authenticity of local ethnic commodities and hinders human associations. It leads to a substituted, concealed and “staged authenticity”. However, a different school of thought proposes that “authenticity” is a concept established in a social context and its social implication, in contrast to the philosophical connotation, is consequently not explicit, but “negotiable.” The comportment of the negotiation and its implications thus has a major significance in the sociological and anthropological aspect of tourism.

Given that authenticity is not a primitive assumption and is negotiable, it is important to appreciate the possibility of continuing emergence of authenticity of local cultural traits of artefacts from the perspective of the visitor. The cultural aspects, which might not have a definitive authentic value at one point of time, may be intermixed in the culture and gain the status of authenticity. “Emergent authenticity” emphasizes an aspect of broader occurrence of “invention of tradition”. One such example may be found in the American Disneyland, which was once viewed as the superlative illustration of artificial commercial entertainment, gradually came to exist as a vital symbol of modern American way of life. It should also be noted that the new, “external public”, in the form of the tourists, may present an opening to the manufacturers of cultural commodities to integrate fresh but “authentic” messages in them, which differ from those included in cultural artefacts intended for the target market formed by the local or ethnic population. These messages consequently emerged as new cultural lexis. Soon, these became standardized as “authentic” even by specialists.

Laurie Kroshus Medina of the Michigan State University, in the paper “COMMODITIZING CULTURE: Tourism and Maya Identity” investigates how the commoditization of traditions as a response to tourism influenced customary practices in a previously predominant Maya rural community neighbouring to the frequently visited Mayan ruins in Belize. The article reveals that although most of the villagers had discarded the Mayan identity, they reacted to the tourist insistence for symbolizations of an authentic Mayan culture by exploiting innovative means to revive customs they could no longer acquire through conventional methods. “They turned to the publications of archaeologists and epigraphers who study the ancient Maya” (Medina, 353). Although this approach is somewhat criticized by ethnic groups it has successfully led to the commoditization of Mayan culture and artefacts. It is argued by the author that this is not an illustration of “emergent authenticity” per se as it is a cases of revival of old traditions by unconventional means. However, given the negotiable traits of authenticity and owing to the doubts of complete authenticity the current scheme of things may evolve as authentic representation of Mayan culture in the eyes of the tourist, which leads to the notion of “emergent authenticity”.

Marvin Chodas in a case study of the Elizabeth Hickox and Karuk Basketry deals with the modernization paradigm and authenticity issues related to original Native American artefacts. “In the process of industrializing production, notions of authenticity … mass-produced commodities associated with the labouring classes” (Cohodas, 146). The author ascertains that authenticity, which involves a connection between ‘individuation’ and ‘innovation’, continues to be a subject of debate among aboriginal Americans in addition to anthropologists and people studying the evolution of art. Emergent authenticity in this case could have serious political and economic implications as it involves many Euro-American dynamics of curio trade.

Thus, in conclusion, it can be stated that Emergent Authenticity and commoditization are inherently linked with various aspects of tourism and have a considerable economic, political, sociological and philosophical impact on cultures and societies. In some sense, emergent authenticity has the potential of representing modern cultural existence in the times to come.

Works Cited

Cohen, Erik. “Authenticity and Commoditization in Tourism”. Annals of Tourism Research. 15, (1988): 371-386.

Cohodas, M. “Elizabeth Hickox and Karuk Basketry”. PDF File.

Medina, Laurie Kroshus. “COMMODITIZING CULTURE: Tourism and Maya Identity”. Annals of Tourism Research. 30.2, (2003): 353–368.

Introduction

A win-win negotiation is a pact that benefits all the parties involved in an equal manner. As such, both the sides in the negotiation produce a pact that is workable and advantageous to them (DInnocenzo, 2011). This essay seeks to discuss a concrete case that involved a win-win negotiation.

Challenges Facing Microfinance Institutions

Most Microfinance institutions face similar challenges. Key among these challenges is the inability to reach new customers due to cost implications (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). Secondly, most Microfinance Institutions are unable to cope up with growing customer demands in areas where they are already established (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010).

One of the best-known methods of solving such problems is adopting a money banking system commonly known as m banking. M banking refers to the process of conducting financial transactions by logging into the website of a financial services provider like a bank using a cellular phone (Gusain, 2009). It allows the subscriber to make withdrawals, pay bills, and check account balances as well as transfer of funds from one account to another (Gusain, 2009).

Tameer Microfinance Bank and Telenor Pakistan Negotiations

Tameer Microfinance Bank operates in Pakistan where statistics show that only 14 percent of the total population is banked (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010).

Tameer needed to reach the unbanked through a relatively low cost method as putting up of structures and deployment of staff would be very costly (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). In addition, potential customers shy away from the banks either due to distances from the banks or the cost of banking. Telenor Pakistan is the second largest mobile network operator based in Pakistan.

Tameer really wanted an m banking platform to reach the unbanked population in Pakistan to increase its customer base and revenues too (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). The regulator in Pakistan made it mandatory for an MNO to come up with m banking services by collaborating with a financial institution (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010).

In 2007, Tameer initiated negotiations with Telenor Pakistan with the aim of taking advantage of the over 30 million customers belonging to Telenor, its agent network of over 180, 000 and its national advertising and market presence (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). Telenor Pakistan needed a bank to collaborate with as per the regulations.

The following year, Telenor Pakistan bought 51 per cent shareholding in Tameer Microfinance Bank. They worked together to enhance m banking by creating the easypaisa brand money transfer service.

Problems Overcome: Win-Win

The negotiated partnership enabled Tameer reach new customers in an easy way. Secondly, Tameer Microfinance Bank is able to afford convenience to existing customers by reducing the cost of doing business since they do not have to go the branches but can access financial services from the comfort of their cellular phones.

On the other hand, Telenor Pakistan has increased its Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) and hence continued growth at Telenor Pakistan (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). ARPU is a measure of revenue used by telecommunications companies.

The partnership has also enabled Telenor Pakistan new sources of revenues since it charges a premium for the m banking platform (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010). Just like Tameer Microfinance Bank, Telenor has afforded convenience to its existing clients since they can access banking services through their cell phones (Kumar, Claudia, & Sarah, 2010).

Conclusion

Tameer Microfinance Bank and Telenor Pakistan thus reached a win-win situation as they collaborated to solve the problem of a large unbanked population in Pakistan. Both benefitted from the partnership as does their respective customers.

References

DInnocenzo, L. (2011, May 31). Sales Skills Development Blog. Web.

Gusain, P. (2009, August 26). Mobile Banking-Definition and advantages. Web.

Kumar, K., Claudia, M., & Sarah, R. (2010). Microfinance and Mobile Banking: The Story So Far, Focus Note , 62.

Negotiation Objectives

Though both pay rates and classification had been agreed upon in the previous negotiations, this negotiation dealt with four major objectives, namely: basis for increases in wages during the life of the agreement; agreeing upon the workplace arrangements, such as the process by which employees will be identified for, and can nominate for training; agreeing upon an hours’ roster, including implications for shifts and for overtime; agreeing upon the agreement duration; and last but not least, deciding on whether the set joint workplace committee should be a negotiating body or a consultative one; and whether any company information can be kept confidential from the committee.

For the purpose of this assignment, I will be arguing on the Dairy Co workers union side. My decision is based on the fact that, in most companies, unions enter negotiations without skills and experience on negotiation strategies and phases. As a result, most negotiations end up failing, or favouring the side of managers. So, this easy will provide them with different strategies, skills, principles and phases involved in an effective negotiation.

Negotiation Phases

During this negotiation, the four negotiation phases that were followed are: making organized, which involved a certain level of beforehand preparations; breaking up phase which involved agreement foundation development by “framing the issues, without becoming bogged down in the miniscule details” (Bazerman & Neale, 1992); accepting a common line or detail setting phase which saw demand reduction from both sides to try to reach at a conclusion; and the last phrase was finding a solution where the two parties reached at an agreement by finding better ways of protecting their rights as well as profits.

At the end of these phases, all objectives had been reached upon, and an agreement had been made which did not delve much in the intricacies of ice cream production.

How phase identification and preparation led to our success

The first phase in our preparation was making organized. This phase was very important particularly when coming up with comprehensive arguments towards our case. This phase was of great help particularly in avoiding admonished situations due to unpreparedness.

Making organized helped use in determining our negotiation objectives, as well as coming up with specifics we were going to negotiate about. According to Loudon, McPhail & Wilkinson, (2009), this is a very important phase especially in putting things right before contacting anybody with whom we were going to negotiate with.

This helps in the formation of negotiation agendas before the commencement of any negotiation; this is because the phase helped us in making union’s requirements. In this phase, the union identified correct individuals who will take part in the negotiation process, their duties along with their powers. It is stated by Lax & Sebenius, (2006) that, “Intelligence gathering is crucial in obtaining a picture of the other side so we can assess their needs, motivations, and goals with respect to our own” (Lax & Sebenius, 2006).

Breaking up was a very distressful phase in our negotiation process. At this phase, every party was very rigid in making decisions, demanding that every side has to accept what others have proposed. Meaning that, we were just having awkward stands hence we broke up with the management.

Break up occurred because, every party was presenting; our positions to each other. At this phase, every party was trying to influence the other party to follow its stand. It is clear that proper preparation and identification of this phase prevented us from what is referred to as “becoming bogged down in the miniscule details” (Loudon, McPhail & Wilkinson, 2009).

According to Ray.F, 2010, this break up occurred because, we are from different parties with different objectives, duties and authorities, but we were forcing the management side to take our stand without considering their side. However, due to the difficulties that were experienced in this phase, we come up with alternatives to be used in the next phase. (Rojot, 1991)

Accepting a bottom line phase was like a sharing or discussion stage, as the phase helped us to construct our agreement foundation through issue framing. In doing this, we were complying with Fisher & Ury, (1981) that we had to put together our building blocks with the aim of understanding fundamentals aspects of our agreement, which all of us are looking forward to achieve.

We come up with principles upon which all of us agreed upon, this included things like the agreement duration; ensuring that the set joint workplace committees should be a consultative body, other than being a negotiating one; and ensuring that any company information can’t be kept confidential from the committee. This agreement was reached after every side had reduced their demands depending on their bargaining power.

This phase defined the objectives and goals of every party involved in this negotiation. Fisher & Ury, (1981) states that this phase provides chances for the parties to find facts, apart from establishing some of the compatibility measures in the Dairy Company. At this stage “We advanced proposals and counter-proposals, back and forth, until some manner of tentative agreement was reached” (Bazerman & Neale, 1992).

Finding solution; this phase saw us reaching a common requirement apart from finding better ways of protecting our rights and their profits. It needed both of us to trust each other to find a solution which was mutual reciprocity and benefit. This phase was very significant particularly when it comes to matters concerning contract completion assessment.

At this phase, the management team and our team used external expertise in the venturing detail completion, which we were about to jointly settle upon. This phase provided us with the opportunity to discuss problems that might hinder realistic implementation of the new employment terms, to ensure that apart from being workable, it is viable.

In line with recommendation made by Nierenberg, (1995) that negotiators have to dig out detailed facts relating to “production, scheduling, handling delays, task responsibility and authority,” (Nierenberg, 1995) this phase gave us room to use people in management and technical areas to ensure that the process is streamlined, hence, apart from working smoothly, it also attained standards and requirements we both set.

This was particularly in matters relating to basis for increases in wages, an hours’ roster, including implications for shifts and for overtime, and the function of joint workplace committees.

At the final stages of this phase, the management team and union negotiators left everything to the wordsmith, particularly their respective lawyers, who Nierenberg, (1995) recommended that they will assist in putting what had been agreed upon into a document that is in a written form. They were also given the responsibility of describing contractual responsibilities to which the two parties had agreed upon.

This gave room for both of us to re-frame our partnership/employment terms to a level that we were all satisfied with basis for increases in wages during the life of the agreement; workplace arrangements, such as the process by which employees will be identified for, and can nominate for training; hours’ roster, including implications for shifts and for overtime; the agreement duration; the responsibility of joint workplace committees; and the confidentiality of any company information to the committee

The Contribution of Phases and Strategies to the Final Outcome

The union used competitive strategy or distributive bargaining, while the management team used both integrative and distributive strategies. Competitive strategy was selected because, According to, Barrick, Mount, & Strauss, (1993). its major aim is to maximize gains like wages, power, wages as well as status symbols; hence, the method was very appropriate with the union’s objectives.

This strategy helped us much in reaching a concession that favoured us much, this is because, “One must start high, concede slowly, exaggerate the value of concessions, conceal information, argue forcefully on behalf of principles that imply favourable settlements, make commitments to accept only highly favourable settlements and be willing to outwait the other fellow’’(Lax&Sebenius,1986).

Distributive bargaining helped us, as we tried to get advantage by insisting the negotiation to favour our side. We were just aiming at having more negotiators as compared to the counterpart to ensure that the other side has conceded to us.

On the other hand, the management used integrative strategy. With them, this strategy helped them particularly in the creation of rapport, which at the end made us to lower our demand. In addition, distributive strategy helped them to ensure that they don’t follow all of our demands. Hence, they also started at a lower level to ensure that they have also pulled us down in one way or the other.

Changing the Strategy and Phases Adopted

Considering the fact that this strategies and phases lead to a very successful negotiation process and everyone was satisfied by the outcomes, but, given the chance to change, I will opt for integrative approach. My reason for changing is based on the fact that, integrative phases and strategies gives a distinction between individuals and problems, they preferred interests to positions, apart from generating lots of options before deciding on one.

The strategy will also be in accordance Bray, Waring & Cooper, (2009), “base the result on some objective standard-are relevant from the time you begin to think about negotiating until an agreement is reached or you decide to abandon the effort” (Bray, Waring & Cooper, 2009).

This strategy will also lead to very successful outcomes as they will produce an agreement which is efficient, wise and possible. In addition, the outcomes that will be reached upon will not, and still do not hurt any relationship at company workplace. As compared to other strategies like positional bargaining or distributive negotiation strategy that was used in this negotiation, integrative negotiation will allow parties to work together as a team other than individuals focused on winning, or dividing on something.

The issue of separating individuals from the problem will also give room for the negotiators to compassionately and directly address the issues at hand, other than down grading other individuals. Pre-negotiation phase will be of great help particularly in the creation of rapport, which at the end leads to trust, apart from creating a friendly atmosphere which smoothen negotiations.

However, other phases will not change were very successful in concentrating more on basic needs of every party in the negotiation, other than encouraging win/loss strategy. Apart from the break up phase, which should be replaced by conceptualization phase? This will lead to efficient and effective outcomes. The issue of having open minds as a result of proper preparations will provide lots of opportunities for inventions which will aim at serving the interests of every side, as well as speeding up the negotiation process.

Conclusion

During this negotiation, all the objectives were agreed upon; hence new employment contract was signed by Dairy Company management and worker/union negotiators. With this negotiation strategy, it is evident that proper application of negotiation phases and negotiation strategy can lead to effective and efficient negotiation process, which will at the end lead to positive outcomes acceptable by all parties involved.

This has been proved by the efforts we made ourselves in Dairy Co. negotiation exercise. It is good to note that, “Anything worth doing is worth doing well, and as negotiation is something we can’t hide or run away from, we might as well do it right” (Fisher & Ury, 1981)

This is much correct if and only if we are ready to enter into negotiations with open minds, respect as well as understanding of other people’s interests, other than just focussing on our needs and personalities, without recognizing other trade-offs involved in any negotiation exercise, which has the ability of benefiting all parties involved in any negotiation (Sparks, D. 1993).

List of References

Barrick, M., Mount, K. & Strauss, J. 1993, Conscientiousness and performance of sales representatives: Test of the mediating effects of goal setting. Journal of Applied Psychology. 78, 715-722.

Bazerman, H. & Neale, A. 1992, Negotiating Rationally. New York: Free Press.

Bray, M., Waring, P., & Cooper, R. 2009, Employment Relations: Theory and Practice. Australia: McGraw-Hill.

Fisher, R. & Ury, W. 1981, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. New York, NY: Penguin Books.

Lax, D. & Sebenius, J. 2006, 3D Negotiation. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Loudon, R., McPhail, R., & Wilkinson, A., 2009, Introduction to Employment Relations. Australia: McGraw-Hill.

Nierenberg, G. 1995, The Art of Negotiating: Psychological Strategies for Gaining Advantageous Bargains, Barnes and Noble. Australia: McGraw-Hill.

Ray, F. 2010, Effective Negotiation: From research to results’,pp.193-201

Rojot, J. 1991. Negotiation: from theory to practice. Houndmils, Hants: Macmillian.

Shapiro, M. & Jankowski, A. 1998, The Power of Nice: How to Negotiate So Everyone Wins – Especially You! New York: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Sparks, D. 1993, The Dynamics of Effective Negotiation. Houston,Texas: Gulf Publishing Co.

Introduction

The reason why a lot of prior preparedness is done before the actual business negotiation is to ensure that there is a flow of events during the actual phase of negotiation. The main steps that are followed by the parties to the negotiation are drawn from the activities that are done prior to business negotiation, like planning and rehearsal. In this paper, the key steps and strategies that are used during the actual negotiation are discussed.

The paper begins by bringing out the desired steps during the opening of business negotiations. This is followed by a discussion about the vital steps to be adhered to in conducting the actual negotiation. In addition, the steps that ought to be followed in closing the negotiation session are brought out in the discussion. The discussion ends with an exploration of the attributes of a negotiation that entail a non-American partner in the negotiation.

Key steps in opening a business negotiation session

The opening of business negotiation is a critical step since it is the determinant of the mood and the pace that is set for the negotiation. Business negotiations often take place on formal grounds. Therefore, the first step in business negotiation is to ensure that all the parties to the negotiation are identified and introduced. It is important to engage a trained mediator to lead the negotiations owing to the fact that business negotiations are formal.

This emanates from the fact that firms are highly driven by the profit motive, which can be a hitch during the negotiations and probably resulting in a stalemate. Therefore, the importance of a mediator, probably a person who has established a reputable profile in leading business negotiations, is critical. The negotiator helps is steering the process by moderating the interests on each side to attain mutuality in terms of the objectives of each party (Lewicki & Hiam, 2006).

According to Cellich and Jain (2012), introduction of the parties to the negotiation is often followed by introduction of the main issue to negotiate about. Business negotiations revolve around issues like business mergers and negotiations, as well as business contracts. Therefore, comprehending the key negotiation issue is important as far as setting of the continuity of the negotiation is concerned.

The parties to the negotiation have to comprehend the key negotiation issues before getting into the formal talks to help in focusing the negotiation and avoid side interests that derail the process from focusing on the main attributes of the negotiation.

Each side to business negotiations come on the table with an idea of what they need to negotiate about, thus the explanation of the key issues is an emphasis on the need for the parties to draw and support their arguments based on the key issues only as they seek to secure the broader business goals and objectives from the negotiation (Cellich & Jain, 2012).

The main parties to the negotiation also have to be given a chance to explain their goals and objectives as they appertain to the negotiation. This happens when each party is given a chance to present their case. This entails the explanation of the objectives of a firm, as well as what the firm is willing to give up to foster successful progression of the negotiation.

The mediator can help to note down the cases for each firm so that they can be used as a point of reference in the main negotiation phase. The rules and code of conduct are rolled down in order to guide the behavior of each party as the negotiation progresses (Lewicki & Hiam, 2006).

Key steps in conducting a business negotiation session

According to Dutta and Folden (2012), the actual negotiations phase elicits a lot of arguments that are supported by the documented evidence that comes from the research that is done by the parties during prior stages of negotiation. Negotiations entail deployment of different persuasive tactics and techniques, most of which are based on the knowledge of each team.

The first thing in the actual negotiation is definition of the relationship between the parties. The relationship between parties is founded in the attributes of business that link the goals and business interests of the parties. When the parties understand the relationship that prevails between them, it becomes easy for each party to pursue its interests with the consideration of the interests of the other party.

This is vital since it helps to set apart the interests of the parties as aligned with the negotiation. The firms also understand the value of mutuality as outlined in the business objectives of each firm that is party to the negotiation. The acceptable modes of communication are then outlined to guide the manner in which the parties present their cases and arguments (Cellich & Jain, 2012).

After setting the rules on the modalities of engagement, the negotiation progresses by focusing on the interests. The interests of each party are contained in their arguments. Each party is left to bring out its argument, from which the interests are identified. Identification of interests leads to the other critical step, which is exploration of options.

This is the core part of negotiation since rationalization of issues is done as each party engages in a give and take exercise in order to propel the process towards a successful conclusion. The development of a common ground in business negotiations depends on the level at which each partner is willing to absorb the interest of the other firms as they work on modalities of ensuring that each firm gains out of the deal that is reached.

Dovetailing of each party’s business has the potential to lead to mutual gains. This is the ultimate goal of forging business negotiations. Negotiation calls for the parties to explore one issue completely and reach an agreement over the issue before progressing to the next issue. This is called successive progression (Lewicki & Hiam, 2006).

Key steps in closing a business negotiation session

Business negotiation is a continuous process. In this sense, it is important to make substantial conclusions or agreements, which act as part of the final conclusion and agreements that will be reached after completion of the negotiation process. Therefore, there has to be an assessment and recording of the progress reached during that session before any session is closed. This aids in offering a leeway for the negotiators to focus on other issues as they move towards conclusion of the process.

Therefore, the first step in closing a business negotiation session is to ensure that a recap of the issues that are negotiated during the session is done. This helps in the identification of the progress in terms of the agreements reached and the hitches encountered. Complete agreements have to be separated from pending contentious issues because agreements form part of the concluded sub-processes, while the contentious issues still form the subjects of negotiation in progressive sessions.

This is followed by setting of the agenda for the proceeding sessions. The agenda for the proceeding session is set by giving priority to the pending issues. The pending issues denote underlying problems whose solutions must be sought by the parties. This paves way for the parties to progress to other issues set out by the mediator (Dutta & Folden, 2012).

Business negotiation in the international context

Shi (2001) observed that business negotiations that involve parties from different business cultures are quite complex because of variations in the attributes of business that are embraced by each party.

Engaging in business negotiations that involve parties from outside the United States requires comprehension of the context within which international business negotiations take place. The first thing in such a situation is identification of variations between the business culture of the United States and the business culture from which the non-United States’ party comes from.

Each country has set a culture that defines the accepted codes of behavior that ought to be adhered to by firms engaging in business practices and deals. Therefore, it is important to hire a mediator who has a background of the business culture in which the parties are drawn from. This can aid in setting standards of negotiation that are acceptable to both parties, thereby avoiding an early stalemate that is common in such negotiations (Shi, 2001).

References

Cellich, C., & Jain, S. C. (2012). Practical solutions to global business negotiations. New York, NY: Business Expert Press.

Dutta, A., & Folden, H. W. (2012). Winning strategies: Secrets to clinching multimillion-dollar deals. Singapore: John Wiley & Sons, Asia.

Lewicki, R. J., & Hiam, A. (2006). Mastering business negotiation: a working guide to making deals and resolving conflict. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Shi, X. (2001). Antecedent factors of international business negotiations in the China context. MIR: Management International Review, 41(2), 163-187.

Introduction

Just like many other business processes, there is an increasing need to use the principles of management during business negotiation. These principles include planning, organizing, directing and controlling. They aid in attaining completeness, as far as business negotiation processes are concerned. This paper explores the need to embrace each of these principles during business negotiation.

Essence of planning, organizing, directing and controlling

According to Lewicki and Hiam (2006), businesses negotiation comprises of different processes. This is why there is need to have adequate preparation for negotiation. Strategic planning is vital since it ensures that all the issues to be negotiated about are identified and clearly understood by the negotiating team. Planning also helps in addressing the critical issues that need to be captured during the entire process. This ensures that there is flow in negotiation.

Organizing is another critical managerial principle in business negotiation. Organizing comes in during the pre-phases of negotiation. The essentiality of organizing during business negotiation revolves around the logistical issue that appertain the negotiation. Issues of venue, time, listing of issues to be negotiated about, and the approaches to be deployed in the process of negotiation are brought out (Lewicki & Hiam 2006).

Directing ensures that a certain level of command is attained by the negotiators in line with the main goals of the firm; which mostly revolve around business sustainability and profit making. Controlling ensures that the desired procedures are strictly adhered to during negotiation. Controlling also ensures that a desired level of flexibility is attained during the give and take part of the negotiation to ensure that the goals of a company are attained.

Skills and competencies for effective business negotiation

Business firms operate under a competitive environment. To this effect, any business negotiator has to be familiar with the prevailing aspects’ competitive dynamics in the market and the essential business strategies that can be used by firms to help ease the competitive pressure. Therefore, the first vital skill in business negotiation is to understand the microeconomic and macroeconomic dynamics in the business environment and how they affect the operations of a firm (Garrett, 2005).

The main reason why a firm engages in business negotiations is to secure outcomes that can aid in increasing the business payoffs for the company. Therefore, business negotiators have to understand the business goals and objectives of the company in order to further them during the negotiations. This also entails understanding the business goals and objectives of the business partners in order to make reasonable demands and adjustments during the negotiation (Lewicki & Hiam, 2006).

Essence of understanding and applying different strategies of negotiation

Several communicative attributes and strategies are deployed during business negotiation. Each of the strategies are applied with the aim of either ensuring that the negotiation flows or ensuring possible maximum payoffs are attained by the negotiating team. The planning stage in business negotiation entails the rehearsal stage.

Rehearsal is meant to ensure that all the strategies that are to be used during business negotiation are mastered by the negotiating team. The technical areas of each of the strategies are developed during the rehearsals. The strategies that are deployed by a given team in the process of negotiation ought to be patterned by counter strategies from the other team. This implies that a mastery of massive business negotiation strategies can help a firm to adjust and attain favorable outcomes (Cellich & Jain, 2012).

References

Cellich, C., & Jain, S. C. (2012). Practical solutions to global business negotiations. New York, NY: Business Expert Press.

Garrett, G. A. (2005). Contract negotiations: Skills, tools, and best practices. Chicago, IL: CCH.

Lewicki, R. J., & Hiam, A. (2006). Mastering business negotiation: a working guide to making deals and resolving conflict. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.