Negotiating for Project Managers
The big challenge for project managers is how he/she can use his/her project within time, money and with good quality to arrive at a project that also earns money (margin) and where the client is satisfied.
Projects are getting bigger and more complex
Several parties often play a role, the interests and risks are great, and it is an art and a skill to arrive at value creation and a reasonable value distribution together with the other(s).
The above visual shows how it often goes with larger complex projects (initiatives): You want a steep S-Curve (little learning time, quickly adding value, and you want to have added a lot of value over time). Due to all kinds of circumstances, the S will flatten during projects. It takes longer until you gain value, the value is often less than expected. It takes longer, the costs and risks increase and in the end no one is satisfied.
Leading projects is negotiating
You want to create value and have it fairly distributed. You want to have served your interests (and those of the other, see successful negotiation) limit your risks and earn money from it.
So the challenge is: how do you create a sharp S-curve and research shows that 3 negotiation criteria have an essential place:
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Clarity : Are you able to get the right information on the table, make clear agreements, and manage expectations well? Together you have a clear and same picture of the outcomes, the timeline, the KPIs. the deliverables etc.?
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Unity: Are you able to create togetherness in your team and in the larger team? Manage the dynamics, manage the emotions and (prevent) and resolve any conflicts.
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Agility: Are you agile to take the other(s) with you on the way to good results and are you able to creatively change the path if necessary to achieve a good outcome?
Creating Style S-curves is the job of the project manager in a complex environment. It is Constructive Negotiating the core around which everything revolves.
