Negotiation Skills for Scientists

Aims

Whether you remain in academia or make the transition to industry, you need to be able to negotiate well. The modern workplace is often highly collaborative but there are still competitive elements to every environment. Being able to negotiate positive outcomes is a skill essential in order to progress.

The scientific environment has its own particular set of challenges. Highly intelligent, independent and innovative men and women already have their own plan. In an environment with such people, excellent negotiation skills are essential in order to ensure that people are prepared to modify that plan to fit with the group goals. You need to be able to influence and persuade to be able to progress together.

Content

This workshop will cover how to persuade difficult people, when it is appropriate to use authority, negotiating win-win outcomes, resolving conflict and dealing with conflicting motivations, differing goals and the inevitable “ego” problems that come with any group interaction in the decision making process.
And because merely having the skills is not enough, there will be a module on how to genuinely and lastingly improve your self-confidence so that you can put those skills into action.

This workshop covers:
1. Goal setting techniques
2. How to persuade effectively
3. Building confidence and being appropriately assertive
4. When it is appropriate to use authority and creating a solution focussed attitude and environment
5. Dealing with conflicting motivations and resolving conflict
6. Dealing effectively with difficult people (The Red Liner Model of interpersonal interactions)
7. Ensuring clear communication and dealing with differing gender or cultural communication styles

Methods

The workshop draws on the personal experience of all participants as well as that of the trainer, thereby ensuring that the training is specific for and relevant to the participants’ individual needs. The workshop will be a structured discussion forum to facilitate ideas and develop strategies.
The workshop will be VERY interactive. Expect to be asked lots of questions, expect to be challenged, expect to participate!
Participants will learn how to provide strong arguments when necessary and negotiate win-win outcomes - Essential for success in today’s competitive working environments.

Target Group

All Doctoral Candidates & Postdocs

About the Trainer

Rob Thompson has worked both in industry and with research scientists. He has over 12 years’ experience helping groups in the public and private sectors to optimise their interpersonal relationships and group management. His experience means he is well placed to bring the most appropriate practices to the scientific arena.
By combining his extensive knowledge of people-management with his experience of training and leading groups, Rob gives workshops to help intelligent people optimise their interpersonal relationships and group management skills. He has delivered workshops in many of Europe’s most prestigious research institutes.
www.rtta.net
rob@rtta.net

Workload

Total of 17h (Preliminary work: 30 minute questionnaire (max. 1 hour), 16 hours course attendance)

Feature

Should the covid-19 situation change and we are required to switch to an online format, the course will take place on 26, 27 & 28.02.2024, from 09:00-15:00.

Once registration is open, applications will be collected for 24 hours and course places allocated by lot. All registrations received after the initial 24h period will be put on a waiting list and assigned on a first come, first served basis.

Course places/places on the waiting list will be confirmed by e-mail. Course registrations can only be canceled before the registration period ends (send an e-mail to grace@unibas.ch). Full course attendance is mandatory. Participants who fail to attend a course without prior notification or withdraw after the registration deadline are subject to a fee of CHF 30. In addition, participants who cancel their course registration at a later point in time, are absent without an excuse or do not attend the entire course will, for reasons of fairness, not be considered for course registration in the following semester and will be removed from other courses offered in the same semester. Please find the detailed regulations on the Transferable Skills Homepage.