Negotiating and Applying Influence and Power, is a three-week online course that will empower you with the essential skills needed to solve problems, innovate, and drive change within your team and organization through a proven negotiation method for achieving results advantageous to all parties.
The course teaches the Mutual Gains Approach, a negotiation method developed by MIT and Harvard, co-led by Larry Susskind, and well-proven through extensive research. The method allows all involved parties to both maximize their gains and maintain positive, long-term business relationships. You will learn to Prepare, Create Value, Distribute Value, and Follow Through in negotiations.
The course is well-suited for professionals and entrepreneurs in business, industry, government, and other organizations at both the managerial and individual levels. Specific positions that may be particularly well-suited are directors of sales and account representatives. However, professionals from any area interested in improving their negotiation skills to maximize negotiation outcomes while maintaining long-term relationships will benefit from the course.
The coursework features video lectures, real-world case studies, and interactive projects with a focus on peer-review as an application of the course skills. Assessments include numerous practice activities—with immediate feedback—and learning scenarios—including several case studies in negotiations—, followed by self-reflection and discussion with peers and course TAs.
The course’s first week will focus on the foundational principles of the Mutual Gains Approach negotiation methodology. You will learn key concepts and strategies from negotiation and conflict resolution theory, theories of social influence (persuasion), and theories regarding the exercise of power within and between organizations. At the end of the week, you will start to put the method into practice with the Multisumma 6-person negotiation roleplay.
In the second week, you’ll learn how influence—particularly persuasion—is a key component of negotiations between multiple parties. You’ll explore how different styles of communication, negotiation, and leadership interact with different audiences and how to tailor your approach appropriately. At the end of the week, you will continue to practice and refine your skills in the Common Measures 5-person negotiation role play.
In the third week, you will explore the impact of differing sources of power and power differentials—obvious and subtle—on the effectiveness of negotiation strategies. You will also explore how coalitions form and interact throughout a negotiation. At the end of the week, you will have two opportunities to continue refining your skills, with the Multimode 2-person, and the optional Three Party Game 3-personal negotiation role-plays.