InDaBa-Solution Based Negotiation

I took much of this article from a Reuters news feed and began thinking.   In the world today we are forced into global thinking, despite many countries or people wanting isolationism.   It won’t happen.

We also, as a world, do not negotiate well.   Their goal (any nation, person, or company) is often to win, not to compromise, or find long term solution.

“Negotiations are difficult by nature. Managing negotiations between 195 countries in order to arrive at a legally binding agreement, on the other hand, is nearly impossible.” This was the problem that United Nations officials faced in the recent historic climate-change summit in Paris. To solve it, they brought in a unique management strategy.

The trick to getting through an over-complicated negotiation comes from the Zulu and Xhosa people of southern Africa. It’s called an “indaba” (pronounced IN-DAR-BAH), and is used to simplify discussions between many parties.

An indaba is designed to allow every party to voice its opinion, but still arrive at a consensus quickly. It works because opinions and arguments can only be aired in a particular way:

Instead of repeating stated positions, each party is encouraged to speak personally and state their “red lines,” which are thresholds that they don’t want to cross. But while telling others their hard limits, they are also asked to provide solutions to find a common ground.

When on Thursday (Dec. 10, 2015) things got particularly tricky in Paris, indabas were held in private rooms at all hours of the day. Different delegations rotated officials so that everyone could get some sleep.

It seems to have worked. “Including everyone and allowing often hostile countries to speak in earshot of observers, [one indaba] achieved a remarkable breakthrough within 30 minutes”. The agreement was presented and in a historic first all 195 countries adopted it without any objections.

 Indabas were first introduced in climate negotiation talks in Durban in 2011. In the last minutes of the meeting, negotiators reached a deadlock. To prevent talks from collapsing, the South African presidency asked representatives from the main countries to form a standing circle and speak directly to each other.

The technique clearly impressed many. “It is a very effective way to streamline negotiations and bridge differences. It has the advantage of being participatory yet fair. It should be used much more when no way through a problem can be found.”

As a business consultant I have worked all over the world, and with companies that wish to negotiate, or with buyers/sellers striving to “best” the situation.   Although “win/win” business relationships are harder to do than most people think, “win/win” on global issues are actually much easier by use of the IndaBa technique.

At our firm we work to “split up” dissension, meaning move it to the lowest common denominator in number of people present, and in number of issues to be solved when we work with a client with an issue.

Indabar simplifies. Negotiations usually complicate, as they involve winning, and the human ego.

Chip Evans, Ph.D is a business consultant, 38 years of traveling to over 85 countries, and working with businesses of all types.