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Negotiation template

“What’s it going to take to get you into that car?” asks the used car salesman as he sneaks up behind you. You think to yourself, “a new salesperson,” and cringe at the thought of the dance that is about to ensue. He starts high, you start low, and you both end up somewhere in the middle. 

Then, he escorts you into the office where he crunches the final numbers. “Wait,” he says, “I need to get this approved by my sales manager.” “Here we go,” you again think. Then, every negotiation trick in the book is thrown at you: making you wait, false sense of urgency, good cop / bad cop, fear of missing out, and other negotiation tactics. 

After what seems like a whole day, you walk away with a used car, a new payment, and a bad taste in your mouth. 

This is a perfect example of how we shouldn’t negotiate as project managers. So, what is the best way to negotiate with others? The PMO Squad Negotiation Checklist will help you negotiate in good faith and come out with win-win solutions for all parties.

A Risk Tracking template will help you better manage risks on your project

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Why use a Negotiation Checklist?

In a word, to be prepared. A used car salesperson will spot someone a mile away who hasn’t done their research or doesn’t know what they want. Similar scenarios play out in the business world if you haven’t clearly defined what you need or want. What are some areas where negotiation occurs?

Scope - A client has specific requirements for a project that need to be delivered by a certain date. You know you can’t accomplish what they are asking for. But, by splitting the project up into Phases 1 and 2, you’ll be able to deliver 80% of what they want in Phase 1, and the rest of the scope right behind it. Let the negotiations begin!
Resources - Word comes down from above (as in, the C-Suite) that your project timeline has just accelerated. You are charged with making it happen, which means getting additional resources from functional managers whose teams are already tapped out. Here comes the bargaining!
Cost - A vendor comes in 25% higher than where you thought they were going to land. The budget is already bursting at the seams and this is going to put you over by a considerable amount. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to negotiate a lower cost with similar end results. It’s your move!

Use a Risk Tracking template to capture and manage risks on your project

How do you Use the Negotiation Checklist Template?

We’ll continue with the example of buying a used car, applying the steps of the Negotiation Checklist Template to demonstrate how it prepares you to accomplish better outcomes:

Identify Negotiables - Create a ballpark list of what you are looking for in a used car. You would like it to be a certain year / make / model, within a certain price range, and with particular bells and whistles. If the car ends up being a year or two older, or maybe black in instead of blue, you would be okay with that if the price was right.
Identify non-Negotiables - Come up with those items that you know you will not budge on. For example, the car MUST be a convertible, or the car MUST have a sunroof. If it doesn’t meet this criteria then you are not interested.
Prioritize the List - The next step is to prioritize the list from what is most important to least important. This could be a High, Medium, Low exercise with multiple items in each bucket. Or, better yet, you can force rank each negotiable from 1 to X with 1 being most important and X being least important.
Identify 3 Key Values - Now that you have the prioritized list, determine what your Starting Point, Expectation, and Walk Away Points are. For example, if your number one priority is that the car is a convertible, the Starting Point is “convertible,”  Expectation Point is “convertible,” and  Walk Away Point is “not a convertible.” Or, maybe price is a bit lower on the priority list. Thus, your Starting Point would be $33,000 (what they are asking), Expectation Point $30,000 (based upon your research), and Walking Away Point $31,500.
Stick to the Plan - You’re using the Negotiation Checklist for a reason–to remove emotion and subjectivity out of the equation. To do this, you need to stick to the plan. All sorts of variables and options will be thrown into the negotiation process by the other person. Don’t get bamboozled or sideswiped. Keep referring to your checklist and stick to the plan!

Two points. You don’t need to use a checklist for simple, daily negotiations. A good example is, “Hey, if you work on Saturday to get this project done, you can take two days off before the end of the year–does that work for you?” But, you should always keep in mind what's important and what you will or will not accept.

Secondly, this checklist is also useful on the other end of the negotiation process. You could be the person selling the used car, in which case you would have your own values for Starting Point, Expectation, and Walk Away Point.

Benefits of Using Negotiation Checklist Template

Using the Negotiation Checklist Template will allow you to:

Have a Plan - A lot can be said for walking into a negotiation with a plan instead of being unprepared. You’ll convey confidence, which only comes from thinking about what you are asking for, and knowing what’s important.
Be Educated - It is so easy to find out what others have paid for similar services or products, by searching the internet. Think about all the information that is available for used cars. Similar information is available for other business and project-related services such as contractors, equipment, and even what the market rate is for great employees.
Know Your Floor or Ceiling - Using a Negotiation Checklist will remove the emotion and subjectivity out of the deal. You know you will only pay $31,500 for that vehicle, regardless of the “low monthly payment of only $Y” that tacks on another $2,000 to the purchase. Once the negotiation has gone below what you are willing to accept or above what you are willing to pay, walk away.

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