Negotiation

[Tensai]

Any of the real Project Managers that lurk on CUK should be able to help you.

Negotiation with suppliers is rarely just on price. The trick is to look at all the T's and C's and figure out where the manoeuvrability is. Which of these (for example) would you like to get if you couldn't get a rate increase;

- Working from home more frequently
- Occasional paid flights home or better accomodation (if expat)
- Getting paid more quickly (less applicable if via an agency, I agree)
- Performance bonuses for faster delivery

You get the idea. Most negotiations break down because they concentrate too much on price.

My 2p's worth.

[NotAllThere]

Negotiation with suppliers is rarely just on price. The trick is to look at all the T's and C's and figure out where the manoeuvrability is. Which of these (for example) would you like to get if you couldn't get a rate increase;

- Working from home more frequently
- Occasional paid flights home or better accomodation (if expat)
- Getting paid more quickly (less applicable if via an agency, I agree)
- Performance bonuses for faster delivery

You get the idea. Most negotiations break down because they concentrate too much on price.

My 2p's worth.

I do get the idea. Why is why it would be really good if I could find a way of having someone who can really negotiate for me.

The problem is that agent, who are ideally placed to do this, well, it really isn't in their interest. How can we arrange things so that the people who are in a positiion to aid us this way can make money?

[Tensai]

I do get the idea. Why is why it would be really good if I could find a way of having someone who can really negotiate for me.

The problem is that agent, who are ideally placed to do this, well, it really isn't in their interest. How can we arrange things so that the people who are in a positiion to aid us this way can make money?

1) stating the bleeding obvious, in the current climate your room for manoeuvre is limited, it's a buyers market
2) professional negotiators will take a % of whatever they can get above your minimum target rate, which is likely (IMHO) to be more than an agent's margin
3) rule 1 of negotiation : you need to be willing and able to walk away from the deal (which isn't always on option - see (1) above.)

[mailric]

1. Decide what you want, stick to it and walk away if you don't get it.

Exception: If your desperate, accept whatever they offer.

[Stan.goodvibes]

well, maybe I was oversarcastic in saying "get away with". But "company policy" just means "somebody in the company decided to do it this way". And when EDS says "this is our policy", it somehow feels more immutable than when I say it on behalf of my company. When I say "this is our company policy", half the time the client says "oh come off it, that just means it's what you decided and you could just as easily un-decide it": but the same client buckles in the face of other suppliers' "policy".

When the client starts to say 'oh come off it' just cut him off by pushing the palm of your hand really close to his face and saying 'Speak the the Hand!'

Works every time.

just my 2c worth...

[Beefy198]

2) professional negotiators will take a % of whatever they can get above your minimum target rate, which is likely (IMHO) to be more than an agent's margin

Surely some basic maths will also prove that it wouldn't be in their interests to push hard for a much bigger increase anyway? The extra effort and work for an increase, unless significantly large, don't justify the extra money they would make. It's the way percentage cuts work and why an estate agent won't always work in the seller's interests.