In consulting, oftentimes you will need to be involved in negotiations. These can be with clients, vendors, and many other important stakeholders. Learning the skill of negotiation can take an average consultant and turn him or her into a solid performer.
Empathy
One of the first steps to becoming a skilled negotiator is building a sense of empathy and understanding of your stakeholders before a negotiation needs to take place. With a client for example, understanding the pain points they have and their perspective goes a long way. Oftentimes this means having a deep understanding of both the business that your client operates in and also the department within the client.
For example, if you are dealing with a health insurance client, it makes a tremendous difference if you are negotiating a new scope of work and project with the actuarial department on claims or the IT department processing those claims. The actuarial department might have business requirements and demands that heavily differ from those of the IT department. Building an understanding of this nuance will be needed to negotiate a contract for a project that can be run smoothly, versus one where there can be many conflicts on each side.
Bringing the right value proposition
The next critical capability in being a skilled negotiator is coming up with the right value proposition for a given situation. Using the insights you have gained before, you need to provide something not only of value but also to the right stakeholder at the right moment in time. If you are for instance pitching a project to improve a finance department’s yearly close, it might be best to speak to the CFO a few months before the close while that process is high on their priority list. This way there is an urgency to act on your proposal.
Building urgency
On the topic of urgency, one important negotiation tactic is to build urgency in your proposal. This both ensures that the counterparty both takes your proposal seriously but also for you to ensure your time is spent on high value opportunities. Without urgency negotiations often falter and fail to achieve a meaningful outcome.
With the right combination of these capabilities, a consultant can negotiate many difficult situations and complete successful projects!
About PrepareConsult:
PrepareConsult is a platform to practice the consulting case interview with AI and peers. PrepareConsult is founded by Milad Mohammadi and Sahhas Nathella.
Milad Mohammadi – 7+ years of experience in consulting and professional services with experience across North America and Europe.
Sahhas Nathella – 5+ years of experience in consulting and professional services with strong experience in complex digital transformations.
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