Introduction to

negotiations

SKILLS

LEVEL NUMBER LANGUAGE

Upper-intermediate BS_0301X_EN English
Goals

■ Practise discussing various

negotiation strategies
■ Practise taking part in
negotiations
■ Practise compromising

www.lingoda.com 2
 I‘m not sure if I agree with those
terms, so perhaps we can do it this way
instead.

What is the probability of getting a

better outcome?

I expect a raise that matches the value I

bring to your company.

www.lingoda.com 3
Preview and warm-up

■ This lesson will give you an introduction to negotiating. Negotiation is a process

used to resolve conflict and reach an agreement between both parties with
different interests wanting different things.

I will drink half of this milk if you agree to give me four more biscuits.

www.lingoda.com 4
Warm up

Negotiations are an integral part

of daily life. Can you list some
everyday uses of negotiations?

www.lingoda.com 5
Warm up

Now think about your

professional life.
Why is it important to be able to
negotiate at work?

www.lingoda.com 6
 What is a negotiation?

• Negotiation is a process used to resolve conflict and reach an agreement between

two parties with different interests wanting different things.

• Negotiating happens in various professional areas like business and politics, as well
as in less formal settings such as within families and between friends. Knowing how to
negotiate, in short, is an essential and transferable skill.

• Each negotiation can have a different kind of outcome: a good outcome, a great
outcome, a bad outcome or a terrible outcome.

• Negotiation requires preparation. If you want something, you cannot simply rely on
charisma and charm. Taking the time to think about the arguments the other side
might make, as well as your own points, not only makes the process of negotiation
easier, but increases your chances of a good outcome.

If you think about it, the requests I‘m making here are not only fair but point
to an outcome that suits everyone here!

www.lingoda.com 7
Discuss

? ? ? ? ?
What are the?best
? for a negotiation?
?
ways
?of ? ?
preparing
? ?? ? ? ?
www.lingoda.com 8
Preparing for a negotiation

■ Preparing for a negotiation can be difficult. However, if done right, you can obtain
the optimum results. Consider the points below.

How to prepare: Questions to ask yourself:

What are my interests and what do I care

Have a clear idea of what you want.
about?

Gather information. What kind of data would be useful to know?

Research the other party. What are their values?

What can I do if we don’t reach an

Consider the alternatives.
agreement?

Know the interests of the other party. What do they care about?

What can they do if we don’t reach an

Anticipate their alternatives.
agreement?
What are some solutions that meet our
Anticipate other possible options.
interests?

www.lingoda.com 9
 Preparing for a negotiation

Describe the possible outcomes for this scenario.

You really want to get the highest raise possible at your job and you strongly believe
that you deserve it. However, before negotiating, you want to be prepared and know
all the possible outcomes. Describe them.

good outcome great outcome

bad outcome terrible outcome

www.lingoda.com 10
Describe the picture

Think about your current job. What are the positive and negative
aspects of it? What would you change about it if you could?

www.lingoda.com 11
Negotiating your dream job

Now imagine that you have been headhunted for a position within
your field. You are meeting the headhunter tomorrow to discuss
the role.
Plan for the meeting by answering the questions below.

1. What are my interests and what do 2. What kind of data would be useful
I care about? to know?

4. What can I do if we don’t reach an

3. What are the employer’s values?
agreement?

6. What can they do if we don’t reach

5. What do they care about?
an agreement?

7. What are some solutions that meet 8. Do you have any other thoughts or
everyone’s interests? things you want to note down?

www.lingoda.com 12
 What to say in a negotiation

Another aspect of being prepared for a negotiation is feeling confident that

you know the right kinds of words and phrases to use.

Have a look at the examples below. What do you notice about the kind of
language that‘s used?

I think a good trade-off for increased working hours would be a

higher salary.

What are the odds of opportunities for progression becoming

available?

www.lingoda.com 13
 Vocabulary review

possible Would it be possible to make an appointment with you tomorrow?

sure I am sure that we can reach an outcome that everyone is happy with.

suitable I‘m sure we‘ll figure out a suitable agreement.

I will agree to your terms, although I‘m not sure I agree with the last
terms
condition.

realistic What are some realisitic expectations for you?

to consider What do you consider to be a workable solution?

www.lingoda.com 14
 Vocabulary review

to predict I predict an increase in salary this year!

The plan to lower the prices requires a simple conversation with the
to plan
manager.

to expect I expect results!

to hope I hope that we can work together in the near future.

There is a strong probability that we will reach a satisfying

probability
conclusion.

likelihood What is the likelihood of an increase in holiday days?

www.lingoda.com 15
 Earliest stages of negotiation

Mr Daniels, I‘ve been meaning to talk to you about something.

I hope that my performance in the company meets and
exceeds your expectations so far.
We think you are a very good employee, and as far as I‘m
concerned you‘re making excellent progress.
It‘s great to hear some positive feedback. I‘ve been working
here for two years now. I was just wondering, what is the
probablity of getting a raise?
We would have to look over your performance reviews, but
given your work so far the likelihood of getting a raise is high.
That is good news! I am sure we can consider a raise that
matches the value I bring to your company.
Indeed. Let‘s plan to discuss your performance in further detail
next week. I‘ll need some time to consider what we‘ve
Great! I‘ll expect to hear from you about this at some stage discussed today.
next week then. Thanks for your time, Mr Daniels – I‘m sure we
can work out a suitable arrangement!

www.lingoda.com 16
 New phrases

How likely… How likely is it that we will reach a resolution today?

What are the

What are the odds of it succeeding this time?
odds…?

I really cannot
I am sorry, but I really cannot accept this offer.
accept this offer.

Let’s do as you
Excellent, let’s do as you suggest!
suggest!

I think a good
I think a good trade-off for that would be increased maternity
trade-off for that
leave for receiving less maternity pay per month.
would be…

Final offer, take it

This is the final offer, take it or leave it!
or leave it!

www.lingoda.com 17
 Fill in the gaps

Final offer, take _______________ of you agreeing to my

it or leave it terms?
We are _______________ to give you a 5
percent increase on your salary. What are the
Considering all of your hard work, this odds
_______________. I have gone for two years seems fair.
on the same salary I started out with! How
How likely
about 10 percent? That seems more than
fair.
Based on your performance reviews,
likely
_______________ 7 percent.

Let‘s do it as you Realistically, _______________ is it that you

suggest can go any higher?
We think a good
This is our _______________! trade off would
be...
I am sorry, but I
really cannot Ok,_______________.
accept this offer

www.lingoda.com 18
Hard negotiating

Read back over the completed dialogue above and answer the following
questions.

1
Think about the kind of language in use. How does it differ
from our everyday conversations in the office?

2
Do you think that negotiations are usually so quick and
straightforward? Explain your answer.

3
Have you ever been in a situation where you have had to
negotiate for yourself like the one in the dialogue?

www.lingoda.com 19
 Modal verbs

Modal verbs in the past tense are especially helpful when negotiating. Among other
things, you can use them to politely express regrets (and then outline what could have
been done differently) or speculate about past events and figure out a way forwards.

In the examples below, modal verbs are used to communicate the same message in two
different ways.

Sorry, I should have been clearer. I’ll rephrase that.

You may have misunderstood me. I‘ll try to be clearer.

www.lingoda.com 20
Modal verbs review

■ Here are the nine modal verbs and their corresponding negative forms.
■ The modal verbs in blue can be used in the past tense by adding have + past
participle.

must (not) might (not) may (not)

will (not) would (not) shall (not)

could (not) can (not) should (not)

www.lingoda.com 21
Modal verbs review: present tense

■ Modal verbs are used in combination with another verb. Their purpose is to modify
the meaning of the second verb.
■ To form a modal verb in the present tense, combine modal verb + infinitive
(without to) of second verb.

■ You must finish the report before the meeting.

■ Who knows? It might be an awe-inspiring speech.

■ I may visit you soon, but this week I am out of town for business.

■ You shall not allow her to accept those terms too quickly.

■ You cannot be too careful when handling the negotiation process.

www.lingoda.com 22
Modal verb practise

Fill in the modal verbs that correspond to each sentence.

could may might cannot should

1. _______________ I have a few days to think about the

offer?
2. I _______________ accept the offer because it does not
seem fair to me.
3. I _______________ prepare for the interview today if I
have time.
4. You _______________ not accept the offer right away.
Tell them you will need to think about it.
5. I _______________ offer you additional products, if you
choose to buy from our company.

www.lingoda.com 23
Modal verbs: past tense

■ To conjugate a modal verb in the past tense, use the following formula: modal verb
+ have + past participle.
■ To form a negative phrase using modal verbs in the past tense, add not between
the modal verb and have: modal verb + not + have + past participle.

■ You could have finished the report before the meeting.

■ Who knows? It might have been an awe-inspiring speech.

■ I would have stepped in to help, but I didn’t want you to feel I was overstepping.

■ You should not have allowed her to accept those terms so quickly.

■ You could not have known about this recent turn of events.

www.lingoda.com 24
Modal verbs in conversational negotiation

You may have heard rumours about extending the marketing budget for
this year, but I have to make it clear that there’s no realistic possibility of
expanding our finances at the moment.

I did hear that there could be some flexibility. Is this a final decision? I
think we could really benefit from putting some more resources into the
social media plan.

We really can’t stretch the budget any further, unfortunately. Martina and
I should have been much clearer in the meeting last week. We must try
to work with the resources we have!

www.lingoda.com 25
Complete each sentence with a modal verb in the past tense

1. I _______________ more direct with I should have been more direct with
my boss. my boss.

______________________________________________________
2. He _______________set definite
goals everyday. __________________________________________________

______________________________________________________
3. They _______________let you speak
more often. __________________________________________________

______________________________________________________
4. I _______________ moved on my
stance. __________________________________________________

5. We _______________ given some ______________________________________________________

explanation for why we feel this __________________________________________________
way.

www.lingoda.com 26
Review

Take a moment to think about the

lesson.

Summarise all of the important

things you need to remember for
negotiating.

www.lingoda.com 27
Role play

You have been headhunted for a position within your field. It’s now time to
meet the headhunter.
Begin negotiations with the headhunter – how can you make this position as
close to your dream job as possible?

• Go back to the notes you made earlier on p. 12. Use

any bad points to bring up the salary.
• Negotiate on the salary by suggesting a very high
amount and decreasing it in small increments.
• Use modal verbs where you can! For example: I
cannot accept a starting date within the next two
months.
• Remember phrases like:
• What are the odds of...?
• I think a good trade-off for that would be…
• Last offer, take it or leave it!

www.lingoda.com 28
Reflect on the lesson

Take a moment to review any new

vocabulary, phrases, language structures
or grammar points you have come across
for the first time in this lesson.

Review them with your teacher one more

time to make sure you don’t forget!

www.lingoda.com 29
30 www.lingoda.com
Exercise p. 18
What are the odds of you agreeing to my terms?
We are likely to give you a 5 percent increase on your salary. Considering all of your
hard work, this seems fair.
I am sorry, but I really cannot accept this offer. I have gone for two years on the same
salary I started out with! How about 10 percent? That seems more than fair.
Based on your performance reviews,we think a good trade off would be 7 percent.
Realistically, how likely is it that you can go any higher?
This is our last offer, take it or leave it!
Ok, let‘s do it as you suggest.
Answer key (1/2)
31 www.lingoda.com
Exercise p. 23
May I have a few days to think about the offer?
I cannot accept the offer because it doesn’t seem fair to me.
I might prepare for the interview tomorrow if I have time.
You should not accept the offer right away. Tell them you will think about it.
I could offer you additional products, if you choose to buy from our company.
Answer key (2/2)
Homework

www.lingoda.com 32
Prepare to negotiate

You want to take some extra holidays around Christmas time but
your boss is reluctant because it would leave your team short
handed. Prepare points for negotiating with her!

could possibility

would realistic

what are the

how likely is…?
odds…?

www.lingoda.com 33
Start off the negotiations!

Using the points you prepared in the previous activity, write an

email to your boss beginning negotiations. Request the extra time
off, make points about why you deserve it, and ask if she would be
free tomorrow to discuss it further.

– □ ×

To:

Subject: Christmas holidays

Dear Ms Caroline,

www.lingoda.com 34
About this material

This material is proudly provided by

and can be used by anyone for free and

for any purpose.

Who are we?

Why learn English online?

What kinds of English classes do we offer?

Who are our English teachers?

How do our English certificates work?

We also have a language blog!

www.lingoda.com 35