The course will feature:

• Understanding the key issues in forming and maintaining alliances
• Applying critical thinking when planning to negotiate
• Defining the stages within a negotiation process
• Discussing how to defend yourself from aggressive tactics and ploys in negotiation
• Developing higher level communication skills for influencing others
• Applying more influence when negotiating through practical exercises

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Describe a framework for the analysis of business alliances
• Understand how to apply influencing skills during the negotiation phase
• Recognize and manage difficult negotiators who use aggressive tactics during negotiation
• Understand the key principles of persuasion and its importance to negotiation
• Apply critical thinking when planning to develop business alliances

This course is suitable to a wide range of professionals but will greatly benefit:

• Personnel from a wide range of business disciplines
• Delegates wishing to develop negotiation skills in alliance building
• Delegates who regularly work with external suppliers or customers
• Departmental Heads requiring to form interdepartmental alliances to achieve results

Day One: Developing Alliances

• Characteristics of a strategic alliance – effects of market dominance
• Culture and perception – and effects in building alliances
• Achieving results in the life cycle of the alliance, through building trust
• Personality - strengths & weaknesses in negotiations
• Minimising communication blockers to maintain relationships
• Development review and action planning

Day Two: Influence & Persuasion Skills in Managing the Alliance

• Challenges of meetings – group and individual strategies
• Positive influence of listening in challenging situations - good and bad news!
• Applying rules of influential presentations to maximize impact
• Maintaining compatible body language & using logic, credibility and passion
• Feedback and action planning

Day Three: Strategy in Negotiation Skills for Partners and Allies

• Steps in win-win negotiation
• The keys to collaborative bargaining in partnering
• Leverage: What it is and how to use it?
• Negotiation tactics and ploys
• Dealing with difficult negotiators and barriers
• Ethics in negotiation

Day Four: Higher Level Negotiation Skills for Challenging Situations

• Listening and responding to signals and informal information
• Recovering from reversals, errors and challenges
• Developing a climate of trust
• Higher level conversation techniques
• Concentrating action on the needs of alliance partners

Day Five: Maintaining Alliances: Critical Thinking for Decision Making

• Gaining control and using information – formal and informal
• Identifying sources and testing assumptions
• Framing the problem
• Decision making under pressure
• Reviewing strategic alliances and building personal action

BTS attendance certificate will be issued to all attendees completing minimum of 75% of the total course duration.