Morning Tips from your Negotiation Coaches @ 5P Health Care Solutions #1 Interests

This is #1 of a mini-series of 7 morning blogs giving you a hand on how to win whenever interests seem far apart & stakes are high at your negotiation table.

Why the heck don’t they get it !?

"We’ve invested millions in this new product and neither hospitals nor health plans understand why we need to charge that price. They screw us on discounts and seem to have all the bargaining power. We are at their mercy and there's nothing we can do to get out of this handcuffed-deal without risking the entire market."

Sounds familiar? Ever been in exact that situation where others don't get what your product or service is really worth?

This opponent mindset is fostered by fixed mindsets, positions, opinions, and the deep belief that ‘we are right’.

Negotiators call this phenomenon ‘partisan perceptions’. One object and two people see completely different things – like the rabbit & the duck.

Or, like the calendar date ‘1/2’ : in Europe, this is February 1st and in the US it's January 2nd. All of you working in project teams across the globe have fallen traps over this at least once.

People have even gone to war over that stuff.

Unlocking interests

The key to unlock this zero-sum game is to change the narrative from position to perspective. We do this by inquiring & probing interests. Through curiosity & with empathy, we can ask:

'help me understand ….' followed by a series of add-ons such as ‘… what makes you think that this price is unfair? what would be fair in your eyes? … you seem upset, how can I help clarify? … what aspect is most important to you?’

Once we have deeper insights into the other party's needs, pressures & goals, we start seeing the broader context of their realities and feel more comfortable to share our own perspective in our context.

I had no idea …

... this is what we as negotiation coaches often hear in our dayjobs, once the magic of breaking down silos and opening up communication channels unfolds.

'I had no idea that our therapeutic area had been deprioritized by their board of directors last year and there’s no penny left for them to invest in our product. During our discussion, we came to the idea that a meeting between our executives could help re-align our broader strategy and identify areas of common interest in the mid-to long term. This information helped me re-negotiate a better deal for the current year and eased the pain with a brighter prospect for next year.‘?

By comparing the top and bottom statements, you can see that leading with empathy & curiosity positively changes the tone & narrative.

This is what we as strategic health care business consultants experience often once the first step is made to truly understand what’s behind the other person’s (strong) opinion and once I took the time to clearly articulate why my view is really important to me and my stakeholders.

Here are 3 questions* you can ask yourself (and writing down your answers can help you with a great deal confidence!) to prepare the next deal:

• Am I clear on the other parties’ needs, challenges & frustrations?
• What does their criticism – if any – tell me about their interests & priorities?
• Am I prepared to clearly articulate my situation, needs & pressures?

Moving from a zero-sum game that destroys value to growing the common value pie by understanding each other’s interest allows to co-create novel solutions together. This is what we will talk about next week: #2 OPTIONS.

Cooperation is the New Winning in Health Care.

Contact us today for an exclusive offer to help you win and satisfy your interests whilst creating value for you and your clients! [email protected]

* You can find more background reading in the Founder's book It Takes 5 to Tango, from Competition to Cooperation in Health Care (chapter 5 on MPC)

Watch the narration of this episode here: