Forhandlinger er komplekse, fordi man både har med fakta og mennesker at gøre. Det er klart, at forhandlere frem for alt skal have en god forståelse af et emne. De skal være opmærksomme på virksomhedens generelle politik, indledende forhandlingsposition samt reserveposition.
Kendskab til disse fakta er dog ikke nødvendigvis tilstrækkelig til at nå til enighed. Den menneskelige faktors rolle skal tages i betragtning. Tilgangen og strategien i forhandlinger er præget af seje, klare logiske analyser. Men aktørernes personlige behov skal derfor tages i betragtning. Disse behov kan omfatte behovet for venskab, velvilje, troværdighed, anerkendelse af status og autoritet, et ønske om at blive værdsat og forfremmet samt behovet for at komme tidligere hjem fredag aften.
Forskere, der har studeret forhandlinger, anbefaler at adskille folk fra fakta. Desuden, mens forhandlinger bør indirekte og upersonlige former anvendes. Desuden bør en virkelig hård forhandler være hård ved kendsgerningerne, men blød mod folket.
Sproget varierer også afhængigt af den valgte forhandlingsstil: det kan enten være en kooperativ eller en konkurrenceform. Samarbejdsstil er baseret på win-win principper, når begge parter ønsker at drage fordel af aftalen. Denne stil er ofte accepteret inden for en virksomhed eller mellem virksomheder med langvarige relationer, når fælles mål forfølges. Konkurrencepræget forhandlingsstil kan være passende for engangskontrakter, når målet er at opnå de bedst mulige resultater uden at tage hensyn til fremtidige relationer og risici for sammenbrud i forhandlingerne. Desuden kan sproget blive fjendtligt og truende.
I virkeligheden er forhandlinger en kompleks måde at samarbejde og konkurrere på. At forhandle med succes indebærer, at man beskæftiger sig med fire hovedkomponenter i forhandlinger: mennesker, fakta, samarbejde og konkurrence.
Negotiations are complex because one is dealing with both facts and people. It is clear that negotiators above all must have a good understanding of a subject. They must be aware of the company`s general policy, initial bargaining position as well as fallback position.
However, awareness of these facts may not necessarily suffice to reach the agreement. The role of human factor must be taken into account. The approach and strategy in negotiations are influenced by cool, clear logical analyses. But the personal needs of the actors must therefore be considered. These needs might include the need for friendship, goodwill, credibility, recognition of status and authority, a desire to be appreciated and promoted as well as the need to get home earlier on Friday evening.
Researches, who have studied negotiations, recommend separate people from facts. Moreover, while negotiations indirect and impersonal forms should be used. Furthermore, a really tough negotiator should be hard on the facts but soft on the people.
Language also varies according to negotiating style adopted: it can be either a co-operative or a competitive mode. Cooperative style is based on win-win principles when both parties want to benefit from the deal. This style is often accepted within one company or between companies with longstanding relations when common goals are being pursued. Competitive negotiation style can be appropriate for one-off contracts when the aim is to get the best results possible without considering future relations and risks of the breakdown of negotiations. Moreover, the language can become hostile and threatening.
In reality negotiations are a complex mode of co-operative and competitive styles. Negotiating successfully implies dealing with four main components of negotiations: people, facts, co-operation and competition.