Purpose

Build confidence in the ability to manage productive negotiations towards good outcomes by going through a structured checklist of elements to take into account.

When to Use

Particularly useful in preparation for a negotiation, but also during the negotiation to keep track of progress and prepare for subsequent interactions, and after it ends to reflect on the results and how to improve in the future.

Applications & Variations

The Canvas is comprehensive but also simple. Different circumstances may suggest adaptations:

• Quick preparation for simple negotiation or when time is short: prepare only parts of the Canvas identified as most critical for the upcoming interaction
• Expanded version for complex negotiations: use formats that can be easily expanded (e.g., a text document) to enable appropriate preparation in detail
• Multi-party negotiations typically require using several Canvases for different parties and/or tables of issues and parties summarizing different interests and alternatives (as well as other multi-party tools beyond the scope of this book)

Watch Out

While it offers a solid checklist to ensure reflection on the key elements of a negotiation, avoid getting too comfortable or complacent believing we know everything - be ready to learn and correct assumptions. Avoid using the format in a rigid or dogmatic way (which may lead to overpreparing or underpreparing): see Variations for potential adaptations to different circumstances.

Resources

Check the template and other Negotiation Canvas examples on the Learn page.

References

• Roger Fisher and Danny Ertel, Getting Ready to Negotiate: The Getting to Yes Workbook (Penguin Books, 1995)
• Roger Fisher, William Ury, and Bruce Patton, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In (Penguin Books, 2011)