CONFLICT

RESOLUTION
AND
NEGOTIATION SKILLS

CONFLICT RESOLUTION
The most interesting and challenging task
of communication is concerned with conflict
and negotiation. Almost all of us are
familiar with the situation in which conflicts
arise and the need to negotiate becomes
paramount. It happens quite frequently in
our personal and social lives. But there is
certainly no business organization that is
free from conflicts, and does not endeavour
to resolve its conflicts through negotiation.

DEFINITION OF CONFLICT
Literally conflict means (a) serious disagreement
and argument about something important and (b)
a state of mind in which you find it impossible to
make a decision or choice. In Business, conflict
involves a disagreement about the allocation of
scarce resources or a clash of goals, status,
values, perceptions, or personalities. Quite a lot
of our conflicts arise from our communication of
wants, needs, and values to others. Our
communication may or may not suit others.

The essential ingredients of conflict,

therefore, are (a)Disagreement
(b)Arguments
(c)Clash of goals, interests, perceptions
etc,
(d)Difficulty in making a decision
(e)Inadequate or poor communication, and
(f) Incompatible personalities

 Conflict, in this way is situation that

require serious attention, and resolution
through negotiation. In a business
organization such situations crop up very
often, especially in the context of labourmanagement relations. A manager can
no
doubt
use
dominance
and
suppression in handling conflicts with
employees. But such an action can,
sooner
or
later,
prove
to
be
counterproductive. The best option for
him is negotiation.

DEFINITION OF
NEGOTIATION
Negotiation can easily be defined as
a process by which two parties
interact to resolve a conflict jointly.
J.L. Grahum, who has done extensive
research in this area of
communication, defines negotiation
as a face-to-face decision-making
process between parties concerning
a specific product.

The distinguishing features of a negotiation are

the following(i) There are a minimum of two parties present.
(ii) Both parties have predetermined goals.
(iii) some of the predetermined goals are not shared by both
participants.
(iv) There is an outcome
(v) Both parties believe the outcome of the negotiation may be
satisfactory.
(vi) Both parties are willing to modify their position.
(vii) The parties, incompatible positions make modification of
position difficult.
(viii) The parties understand the purpose of negotiation.
It has been found by researchers that in case any of these
features is not present, the interaction does not qualify to be
called a negotiation.

FACTORES IMPORTANT TO
SUCCESSFUL NEGOTIATION
Negotiation is a complex communication process.
It becomes all the more complex in view of the
fact that one round of negotiation is just an
episode in a long-term relationship. That is
exactly what happens in labour-management
relations. Adequate preparation is a key concern
for the negotiation. Before getting into the
process of negotiation a review of the history of
previous negotiating sessions and their outcomes
must be taken in to account. Without careful
consideration of the previous session the
negotiator runs a great risk.

This will help him in planning his move/moves.

Anyway, before that, we must take note of the
factors that vitally determine the outcome of
the negotiation process. They are:
(a) Whether the parties see their interests as
depending on each other;
(b) the extent of trust or distrust that the
parties repose in each other;
(c) the personalities of the people actually
involved in negotiation;
(d) the goals and interests of the parties, and
(e) each partys ability to communicate clearly,
persuade, or force the other party to accept its
point of view.

 Be an active listener.
Try to satisfy your opponents emotional and
psychological needs.
Be careful lest you should hurt his ego.
Begin with positive gestures like warm
handshake, a friendly eye contact etc.
In case of an impasse(deadlock),identify the
cause and try to remove it.
Respect your opponents cultural
background.
Do not let your personal objectives interfere
in the negotiation process.

Four approaches to
Negotiations:
1. WIN OR LOSE: one party wins and
the other loses -- should be
avoided.
2. LOSE-LOSE: both parties lose
should never be accepted.
3. COMPROMISE: both gain a little
and lose a little -- minimum
acceptable.
4. WIN-WIN: both emerges as winners
-- should be the aim of all