L5M15 Advanced Negotiation Questions and Answers

Distributive bargaining treats the deal as a fixed pie: what one party gains, the other loses. It typically uses competitive tactics aimed at claiming value rather than creating it and is closely associated with win–lose outcomes.

Two core principles are toseparate people from the problemand tofocus on interests rather than positions. (The other two statements are not defining elements of the approach.)

High-risk/high-value scenarios (often coded “yellow” in CIPS frameworks) require acollaborativeapproach—building joint trust, sharing information, and developing win–win outcomes to manage complexity and mutual dependency.

Acold(detached) andtough(adversarial) style discourages collaboration and may escalate conflict. CIPS categorises influencing behaviour across two dimensions—warm vs cold and tough vs soft—with “cold and tough” seen as destructive.

Positional bargainingstarts from fixed stances and tends toward adversarial exchanges and concession trading, often impeding creative, interest-based outcomes.

Key playersin Mendelow’s Stakeholder Matrix (high power, high interest) must beactively engagedand involved in important decisions. Meetings are an effective way to build commitment, gain input, and secure their ongoing support.

Underexploitative authoritativemanagement (Rensis Likert model), leaders rely onfear and punishmentto control subordinates. Communication is top-down and trust is minimal—contrasting with participative or consultative styles.

“Principled negotiation” (sometimes called the Harvard method) is built on four pillars: (1) separate people from the problem; (2) focus on interests, not positions; (3) generate options for mutual gain; and (4) use objective criteria. Bob’s focus on creating options for mutual gain signals the principled approach.

The Big Five traits areOpenness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism (OCEAN). “Sensitivity” is not one of the five canonical factors.

ABusiness Needs Analysis (BNA)identifies what the organisation requires from a contract or supplier before negotiation. Typical key criteria includebudget(cost constraints),timescales(delivery or project duration), andquality(performance expectations). These factors form measurable negotiation objectives and KPIs.

Cross-cultural negotiation factors include social/ethical norms, legal and political systems, business systems, infrastructure, and financial/fiscal systems. “Environment” in the ecological sense is not typically classified by CIPS as a cross-cultural negotiation factor.

Developing negotiation strategy requires stakeholder consultation to align the negotiation with organisational objectives. Strategy defines direction; tactics are the methods used to achieve it. Planning strategy first ensures tactics serve long-term goals effectively.

Astrategic partnershipis a formal, high-involvement relationship with shared resources and joint governance—appropriate where risk/value is high and close collaboration is essential. Strategic alliances can be looser and not always resource-sharing.

Gamesmanship/brinkmanshipare aggressive, high-pressure tactics that can harm relationships. They are generally reserved forone-off or transactionalsituations where ongoing relationship quality is not a priority.

Physiologicalneeds (air, water, food, rest) sit at the base of Maslow’s pyramid. Higher-order needs (safety, belonging, esteem, self-actualisation) become salient once lower levels are reasonably satisfied.

According toMendelow’s Stakeholder Matrix, stakeholders withhigh power (importance)butlow interestshould be “kept satisfied.” They need concise, high-level updates to stay informed without excessive detail. Over-communication risks disengagement.

STEEPLE analysis(Social, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political, Legal, Ethical) helps identify external factors that could create risks or opportunities in procurement. It broadens situational awareness beyond immediate operational issues.

Expert powerderives from specialised knowledge, experience, or skill. The Technical Design Head, as the specification creator, holds expert authority influencing decisions through technical competence rather than hierarchy.

Positional bargaining starts with fixed opening stances and trades concessions from those stances. This often reduces flexibility and can make participants defensive or entrenched, inhibiting creativity and joint problem-solving.

Awin : perceived winoccurs where apowerful party winssubstantive outcomes while the weaker partybelievesit has also “won,” often due topower asymmetryand framing.

Statement D describes aFunctional Structure, not Human Relations. TheHuman Relations approachemphasises team collaboration, empowerment, and flexible cross-functional working to meet both organisational and social needs.

Conscious incompetencemeans recognising a skill gap—you understand what’s required but haven’t yet mastered it. It’s the second stage in the four-stage competence model: (1) Unconscious incompetence → (2) Conscious incompetence → (3) Conscious competence → (4) Unconscious competence.

Gain shareandbonus paymentsare positive incentives that encourage suppliers to perform beyond baseline requirements. Gain share rewards suppliers for creating mutual cost savings or innovation benefits, while bonus payments recognise exceeding service or delivery targets.

In contrast, pain share and service credits are deterrents for underperformance, not motivators.