Introduction:

This conference provides an in-depth exploration of the skills and strategies necessary to develop and maintain effective alliances. Through it, participants will learn to navigate the complexities of negotiation, influence, and decision-making within partnerships. It empowers them to foster trust, communicate effectively, and achieve mutually beneficial outcomes in their professional alliances.

Conference Objectives:

At the end of this conference, participants will be able to: 

• Develop a framework for analyzing current alliances and develop an effective plan and strategy for negotiations.

• Practice and develop skills for influencing others.

• Perform ppropriate behaviors for each negotiation stage to deliver results.

• Recognize and counter the most common negotiating ploys.

• Prioritize and plan their negotiation strategy through critical thinking.

Targeted Audience:

• Personnel from a wide range of business disciplines.

• Delegates wishing to develop negotiation skills in alliance building.

• Delegates who regularly work with external suppliers or customers.

• Departmental Heads requiring to form interdepartmental alliances to achieve results.

Conference Outlines:

Unit 1:

Developing Alliances:

• Characteristics of a strategic alliance – effects of market dominance.

• Culture and perception – and effects in building alliances.

• Building trust through communication and achieving results for the alliance (bearing in mind its “life cycle”).

• Personality - strengths & weaknesses in negotiations.

• Minimizing communication blockers to maintain relationships.

• Development review and action planning.

Unit 2:

Influence & Persuasion Skills in Managing The Alliance:

• Challenges of meetings – group and individual strategies.

• The positive influence of listening in challenging situations - good and bad news.

• Applying rules of influential presentations to maximize the impact.

• Maintaining compatible body language & using logic, credibility, and passion.

• Feedback and action planning.

Unit 3:

Strategy in Negotiation Skills for Partners and Allies:

• Steps in win/win negotiation.

• The keys to collaborative bargaining in partnering.

• Leverage: What it is and how to use it.

• Negotiation tactics and ploys.

• Techniques for dealing with difficult negotiators and barriers.

• Ethics in negotiation.

Unit 4:

Higher Level Negotiation Skills for Challenging Situations:

• Listening and responding to signals and informal information.

• Recovering from reversals, errors, and challenges.

• Developing a climate of trust.

• Higher-level conversation techniques.

• Concentrating action on the needs of alliance partners.

Unit 5:

Maintaining Alliances: Critical Thinking for Decision Making:

• Gaining control and using information – formal and informal.

• Identifying sources and testing assumptions.

• Framing the problem.

• Decision making under pressure.

• Reviewing strategic alliances and building a personal action.