4C NEED TO KNOW Negotiation

In the business world often the most obvious solution to you might not be the same or ideal for someone else.  In addition, students are not usually in a position to compel or demand changes from the school administration.  So careful persuasion is necessary. 

Here are some negotiating tips:

·   Be clear in what you want to achieve.  The Campus Waste Audit will already have shown where there are opportunities to reduce plastic waste.

·   Figure out who is/are the right person/people to talk to with the authority to make changes.  Even though Procurement may be the people who focus on cost, who else could be a party to these negotiations and be a persuasive influence?

·   Put yourself in the shoes of those people – try and think about their priorities and problems any change will cause them. Don’t always accept naysayers, keep looking to find someone who WILL listen.

·   Simply explain the problem to be solved and why.

·   Listen! Let the other person speak and then recap their position so that they know you have understood.  Example: “If I have understood, you are faced with three problems; first the procurement contracts cannot be changed this year, the school has no facilities for washing reusable cutlery and plates and finally, the waste management contract is controlled by the city.”

·   Let them know areas of common understanding and agreement and isolate those issues that need work and ask what they think about how to make progress.  Example: “It’s too bad that we can’t change the procurement already, but could we start now to ask students to bring their own reusable kit and wash it themselves?  Could we go together to talk to the city about the waste management?”

·   Offer to help. Example: “Would it help if there were student volunteers who could sort the waste better into compostable, recycle and general waste?”

·   Don’t try and push for 100% change if there is strong resistance – be prepared to accept less and compromise - since some progress is better than none.

·   Give your negotiating partner thanks for any improvements and let others know. 

·   Do your homework. (research, research, research – like a chess game with all the possible outcomes).  The ideal outcome is to eliminate single use plastics and at the same time save money for the school.

·   Look for Intangible benefits to add to your case: for example, If students are seen with a school branded reusable water bottle It adds good environmental credentials to the school when they go off campus.

·   Remember that swapping out single use with multi-use utensils, plates and cups requires washing.  How can the extra labour that this requires be met?  Is this something that student volunteers can do?

·   Don't be in a hurry. ... this is essential as someone who feels cornered may not be so willing to accommodate your requests

·   Understand you are likely to hit walls – think about how you can work around them

·   Don’t give up – go back and regroup and find a different tactic.  Maybe approach another person or persuade another person in authority to support the changes requested.