One of the first steps toward better negotiations is to set aside the fear of conflict. Ask what your subordinates think before you blurt out your own opinion. Negotiation may be the best tool managers have to get people to do what needs to be done-short of outright bribery, of course. Most people tend to think of negotiation as a contest between adversaries, a situation in which one side must win completely and the other must lose everything. Fight hard, concede nothing-or as little as possible.
Negotiation can satisfy both parties, leaving everyone involved better off.
If it's handled well, it can be a process in which the parties decide together what each will give and take in a long-term relationship, whether that relationship is between peers or bosses and subordinates. Of course, that exchange can be particularly tricky to manage when multiple parties are involved or lines of authority are unclear. At one organization I was involved with, for example, a project team leader had to manage two subordinates over whom he had no direct authority and whose differing work styles caused constant friction between them. His strategy was to form a three-way negotiation. As a result, the manager learned that Bob felt he had a lot of responsibility but had no way to check progress reports on Joe's performance, so he had begun stopping by his cube several times a day.