Steve Jones is one of the UKs leading negotiation experts. In this video he outlines the content of his short negotiation seminar – covering how to deal with conflict and getting the right deal
Seminar Content Transcript
Hello I’m Steve Jones – and I help companies make more money by negotiating the right deals
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but in the last couple of years negotiations seem to be getting tougher and tougher and any pretence of collaboration has gone out of the window – and most people seem to be quite happy to win at other people’s expense.
The knock-on effect is that margins are likely to suffer.
Do you ever find yourself pushed for time to plan or find yourself up against more experienced or better trained negotiators? If so, this session will certainly help you.
You’re probably doing okay in your negotiations – but I suspect an edge would probably be helpful and if you’re anything like me I always feel I can improve my skills. The short seminar I run focuses on getting the best results in the minimum time.
Although I’ve got wide experience in negotiation at all levels and I can share what’s worked for me, my advice is largely based on best practice research rather than anecdote
In the session I’ll cover a number of key areas:
I’ll help you look at how you prefer to deal with conflict – and what this means for your negotiation style. – and following on from that I’ll make some suggestions on how you might deal with difficult or tough negotiators.
I’ll also take you through the six stage negotiation process together with the key success factors in each stage. – I’ll also give you some negotiation hints and tips.
Most people think the negotiations are won or lost in the face-to-face interaction – but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Obviously it has an impact – and how confident you are does make a significant difference to your outcomes – in fact this is one skill where confidence and competence are inextricably linked, but undoubtedly the negotiations are won and lost in the planning.
Nobody ever has enough time to plan their negotiations – so I’ll show you how to plan quickly and efficiently. After all isn’t the key thing in business how to get the best outcomes for the minimum amount of work?
I’ll also show you an easy way of ensuring that your agreements stick and they get implemented. You’ll get comprehensive notes of everything I cover and a chance to put these skills into practice.
Most people find the sessions good fun as well as educational and you’ll also get the opportunity to discuss negotiation challenges you’re currently facing or you might face in near future. It could well turn out to be the most profitable few hours you’ve spent for some time!
Remember you don’t get what’s fair – you get what you negotiate.
Steve’s view on Tesco Booker merger
Transcript
Hello – if the last time you saw me was on Panorama talking about Tesco’s buying practises – you may not recognise the new streamlined Steve Jones. In fact, you may even be sick of hearing about what I had to say about the Groceries Code Adjudicator and the Tesco Unilever punch up on Radio 4 and Radio 5 live.
I don’t know if you agree with me – but it seems to me that the Tesco Booker merger only benefits them. It’s not in the interests of their suppliers and I think it’s anti-competitive.
Now here’s the rub: I was talking to a competition lawyer a couple of weeks ago – and his view is that it is by no means certain – or even likely – that the CMA will block this merger.
If you read the press releases – they’re forecasting savings of £175 million – and guess where this is going to come from?
Now I know life’s not fair but this seems to me to be particularly unjust – and I thought that rather than just whining about it – I would try to use my skills to redress the balance. We can’t just sit there and watch this happen.
You probably know that – not only have I trained their buyer, – but I have worked with various suppliers when other chains have merged to stop them getting taken to the cleaners. I’ve also run merger negotiations for retailers – so I reckon that I’m particularly well informed to help in this situation.
As I said, we can’t stop this but we can lessen the impact.
It may well be that you’ve already got your contingency plans in place – and you’re sure that you’re ready for the onslaught – but if you haven’t – or if you think your plans are not robust enough – my suggestion should be of interest.
The easy way to deal with this is just to give in early to all their demands – sorry requests – you can’t make demands under the GSCOP, can you? I’m assuming though that this wouldn’t be a very attractive outcome for you – but the danger is – if it’s not managed properly – it will be a year of negotiating hell – and a massive distraction for your business.
Talking to a couple of my clients we’ve come up with an idea. What I’m planning to do – is to get a small group of people together from different organisations – to discuss their past experiences of these kinds of mergers and to share some of our insights on a confidential basis.
For obvious reasons I can only invite one person from each industry – and as I am not making any charge for this – I would expect the remaining seats at the table to be taken up quickly.
If any of this resonates with you – let me know by return if you’d like to come along – I don’t think we can afford to waste any time.
CIM Negotiating mergers and price increases
Steve’s talk to the Horticultural Trade Association conference in which he explains the benefits and pitfalls of dealing with the multiples. He also runs through the various “protections” that are available from the GCA and highlights the lack of any real enforcement of the supplier code. The bottom line? You’re on your own – make sure you get outside help.
Steve Jones presentation to the CEOs of a number of Portugal Ventures portfolio companies. The 5 Commandments of Commercial Deals.
Video of parts of a short seminar Steve ran together with some delegate testimonials.