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Negotiation, which means a formal discussion between people trying to reach an agreement, is a process by which at least two parties with different needs and viewpoints try to reach an agreement on a matter of mutual interests, writes KM Abdus Salam

IT IS very crucial to improve the capacity of civil servants, particularly, in negotiating with the counterparts. A negotiator representing the country and participating with specific objectives to achieving them are, of course, closely linked with national interest. National interest is the priority of the agenda of the negotiators but it should be softly presented on the table in a very diplomatic manner.

The British prime minister Palmerston once expressed his views on national interest in this way: ‘We have no eternal friends and we have no eternal enemies but it is our interest which is eternal. So, it is our duty to follow this interest.’ The renowned theorist of international politics Hans Morgenthau says in his book Politics among Nations, ‘The main signpost that helps political realism to find its way through the landscape of international politics is the concept of interest defined in terms of power.’ So, the negotiators must give importance and priorities to its national interest during negotiation.

Negotiation means a formal discussion between people who are trying to reach an agreement. It is a process by which at least two parties with different needs and viewpoints try to reach an agreement on a matter of mutual interests. Having a few experiences and following the growing literature on negotiations I am tempted to share some of the lessons.

— Every negotiation is special and different. No two negotiations are identical because each negotiation has its own agenda, its challenges and complexities, its cast of negotiators and its tone and momentum. A good negotiator must, therefore, never become complacent, Just because the negotiator has successfully completed one negotiation does not mean that the person would succeed in the next negotiation without putting in a major effort in learning and preparation.

— Both at the national and international levels, it is the responsibility of the leader of a delegation to build a cohesive and happy team. At the international level, the leader always leads a team composed of colleagues from many countries and cultures. At the national level, leader usually leads a team composed of colleagues from different ministries and agencies, from different disciplines and sometimes from different sectors of society. It is very helpful if the collective brainpower of the delegation is superior or at least equal to the negotiating counterpart.

— Exhaustive homework and good preparation are essential for a good negotiation. A good negotiator must attempt to master the brief to understand all aspects of his case, to understand the counterpart’s case and to be ready to respond, in a cogent and persuasive manner, to questions put across the negotiating table.

— In some cases, when some of the issues in dispute are very technical in nature, it is useful to consult foreign advisers who they can give good advice to the delegation. The advisers need to be integrated with the team on an equal and collegial manner. They should not be treated as subordinate or at arm’s length in the thought process. It can help to arrive at all decisions by consensus.

— Where the facts are in dispute, the parties should consider using a third party procedure in order to establish a common basis of facts. Land reclamation cases may me a good example. Without it, the negotiations would be much more difficult, if not impossible.

— The importance of emotional intelligence is one of the important factors in negotiation. This refers to negotiators qualities of leadership, empathy and ability to earn the trust and confidence of his own colleagues as well as those of his negotiating counterparts. Negotiations succeed better when the rapport between the negotiators is good and when they share a bond of mutual trust and confidence. Dining diplomacy, or eating together, may be a very effective tool in this respect. Intelligent negotiators do not make the negotiating partners ‘lose face’.

— An ideal negotiator should have intelligent quotient or cognitive abilities, emotional quotient or emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills and cultural quotent or cultural awareness and sensitivity. To negotiate successfully with another country, a good negotiator should study that history, culture and negotiating style of the country. A good negotiator should also cultivate the cultural intelligence. The beginning of wisdom is to understand that we all live in our own cultural box. We should, therefore, make an attempt to understand the content of the cultural box of our negotiating counterparts. This will help us to avoid violating cultural taboos such as serving pork to American Jews or food which is not halaal to our Arab friends. During negotiation, we should give importance to understanding the history, culture, frame of mind and negotiating style of the different countries that we negotiate with.

— The outcome of a good negotiation should be an agreement which is fair and balanced. It is not and cannot be zerosum. Instead, it must be a win-win outcome. To arrive at such an outcome, negotiators on both sides should focus on solutions which encompass the fundamental interest of both parties. Negotiations can only succeed if there is a spirit of give-and-take on both sides. When the fundamental interest of a country is at stake, a negotiator must be firm and let the counterpart know that it is a point on which the negotiator has no flexibility. A negotiation is not a zero-sum game; it is a game in which the challenge is to find a win-win outcome.

Negotiation permits a civil servants life particularly in policy-level civil servants and diplomats. But there are no specific prescriptions of how to become good negotiators. It varies from country to country and the nature of the text. These are the general guidelines of becoming good negotiators.

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KM Abdus Salam is a former senior secretary.