Meet Tom Governale, new Scotwork VP

To help clients identify opportunities and get the best value, Tom Governale has been hired as Vice President, Negotiating Solutions for Client Results.

A seasoned client relations specialist, Tom has helped Fortune 1000 companies maximize return on investment through innovative business solutions.

   Email Tom 

From Tom's perspective...

"If we give the customer an exceptional experience, it can change the way that company does business. We need to continually reevaluate the best way to deliver optimum results to every customer."

Negotiation, step 4: propose (continued)

Whether your position is weak or strong, make that first proposal--so you can take control. The exception is when the other party has a legitimate complaint (e.g. your firm was late on a previous order), in which case you'd ask what the person wants from you.

When receiving a proposal, probe the basis on which it was created. Then you can respond in several ways:

Next month, we'll address step 5, package.

Tutor's corner: for better proposals, be curious

Marty Finkle Bio   Email

When negotiating, it's not enough to consider just your perspective. You need to put yourself in the shoes of those on the other side.

What are their needs and values? How do they measure success? What are they planning and why?

If you're curious throughout the negotiating process, you'll develop a better proposal, one tied directly to the other party's desired outcomes.

"Mediator" sides with NFL players

If given the chance to be a mediator, Terry Duffina of General Dynamics would rule in favor of the players, who have more to lose than owners. Congrats, Terry, our Feb. contest winner! 

Highlights of Terry's winning analysis

Any disruption to the year-round schedule would negatively impact the players' ability to maximize their salaries over a career averaging 3.4 years. While a lockout would cost owners short-term revenues, owners have the balance of power over the long term. So I rule in favor of the players, who have already proposed to cut $300 million off their share.

Enter this month's contest on handling price increases, and you could win a bottle of wine!  

Handling price increases: you decide

Despite the recession, prices of many supplies are rising, prompting conversations like this between suppliers and procurement specialists nationwide:

• Supplier: Our costs are up, so we need to raise prices.
• Procurement: We won't accept a price increase, which we would have to pass on to our customers.
• Supplier: We don't want to charge more, but we have no choice.
• Procurement: You're gouging us!

 Give us your opinion, win a bottle of wine!

 
Simon Letchford
Bio     Email 

See Marty Finkle's bio and email in the Tutor's Corner. 

Associate tutors

-David Boucher

-Jill Campen

-Al Green

-Jerry Langolis

-Gaetan Pellerin

Register here for the Advanced Negotiating Skills course on Apr. 25-28 or on any of these dates: 

Parsippany, NJ  

-Apr. 25-28

-May 23-26

-June 20-23

-July 11-14

-Aug. 22-24 ("Next steps")

-Sept. 12-15

-Sept. 26-29

-Oct. 10-13

-Nov. 7-10

-Dec. 5-8

Other sites  

-June 6-9 (IL)

-Aug. 8-11 (CA)

About Scotwork

North America