How to Enhance your Negotiations Through the Power of Influence
Looking for ways to improve your negotiations? Increase your influence and network, and be sure to nail your next negotiation before you even walk in the door.
While a top-ranking CPO delivered a stellar presentation recently, it was clear to everyone watching that they had the audience captured.
But why was their message and delivery so compelling? The content was fairly basic, it was nothing new and they weren’t pushing for any drastic change. So what was the allure? What was the magic?
The answer – they had influence.
Before the speaker even opened their mouth, they had already won the audience over by building a steady cache of influence within the organisation (and outside), which packed a punch when they needed to connect with a large number of people.
What is influence and why should you care?
Influence is defined in the Cambridge Dictionary as ‘the power to have an effect on people or things…’, and one of the remarkable things about influence is that anyone can acquire it. It is not restricted to high-level management – anyone at any level in an organisation, or at any stage in their career, can build influence: therefore, we are all capable of influencing others and we all have experience in this area. Anyone with a toddler sure knows some pretty powerful influencing skills! Anyone that has bought a house or a car knows that a good connection with the vendor, and pitching your story, can help you across the line and even save you some cash.
Influence is about connections, relationships and tied to your personality. It’s not usually enacted with a specific objective, outcome or agenda in mind, and it often gets confused with its close cousin persuasion, which is typically intentional, direct and usually linked to a specific action or desired outcome. The goal is to try to compel or convince someone to undertake an action.
The heart of influence is people
Procurement professionals often need early engagement in order to provide the best value to their organisation – it’s a tough ask to deliver an award-winning solution if you are only brought in when contract negotiations are going wrong! Influencing skills and building connections can help deliver good commercial outcomes by establishing a network that you can call on when you need it. Influencing others and being known among colleagues can also help when you require people to follow procurement rules and advice. In this context, the influence of procurement shapes and leads organisations.
The ladder of leadership
Influence is not confined to the realm of social media marketers who pose with products. It is a powerful tool that all procurement pros should master.
Influence is one of the key ingredients to being a successful leader. Leadership is not linked to hierarchy or specific job titles; anyone is capable of showing leadership!
You can position yourself as a leader and gain influence by following these tips:
- Build your network. For tips on how to make the most of networking platforms, be sure to read our article ‘How to Skyrocket Your Influence in Two Steps’.
- Be visible. Write a blog, a team newsletter or an article on networking platforms and begin to cultivate your voice. Read our tips in ‘5 Ways to Amplify Your Personal Brand’.
- Master body language. Learn about your own body language and how to read others. Practice deliberately shifting conversations by simply shifting your tone or posture. Read our ‘Ace your Next Negotiation’ article to get started.
- Be collaborative. Collaboration is in and competition is out – stop competing with others and start working with as many people – with diverse skills and backgrounds – as possible.
- Define it. Work out how you can influence strategy at the executive level, or engage impactfully with key people in key roles. Strategise how you will tackle these scenarios.
- Adjust your messaging. Tailor your style to the individual and remember to take their personal values and motivations into context.
Extending your influencing skills to negotiation
Negotiation strategies and formal negotiation training often focus or include persuasion techniques. It is not often coupled with the earlier (and critical) step of building influence. If you build influence both inside and outside the organisation, your position of power will potentially increase before a contract or negotiation is even on the horizon. Your bargaining power can be increased with the visibility and quality of your personal brand.
Here are some examples of how strengthened influencing skills play into negotiations:
- Influence helps build your credibility and can increase your confidence, impacting how you come across to others in negotiations.
- You have a greater understanding of your own personal style – including preferred positions and potential weaknesses.
- Honing collaboration skills is incredibly valuable if you are seeking a ‘win-win’ outcome for a negotiation.
- You have learned the ability to change your approach, depending on what you’re reading from the other parties.
Don’t banish influence to social media – get stuck in and polish up your influencing skills. You will increase your network and your personal brand in the process, setting you up for success before you’ve even walked in the door for your next big negotiation.
Want to learn more from our network? Check out what these four supply chain influencers have to say about what’s changed since COVID-19.
