the Aracruz simulation was interesting. The simulation demonstrated that in any negotiation, there are hidden agendas. Whether you are working with people in other cultures, in other countries, other business groups or in our day to day live, each person or group has something that 1) they want out of the deal and 2) something they are willing to give up to get what they want. I am not a "supersalesman", but my negotiating philosophy is that a good deal is a deal where everyone walks away feeling like they got something they wanted, especially if the parties will have to continue to work together. In Aracruz, we had the Company with their objectives, the community with their own objectives (but they appeared to want the company to be successfull), the people- who seemed to only want what they felt was rightfully theirs, then the FUNAI and the NGO's with agendas that they claimed were to support the people, but I felt had an entirely different objective..power.

I felt our group was effective because we all came in with the attitude that we wanted to make this work, we wanted a win-win for all. I am not sure that this was an accurate depiction of the actual negotiations as I suspect emotions on all sides were very hot at this point...but in the end, we were successful.

how would I redo the simulation???? maybe the story is different (because it is hard in 10 minutes to feel passionate about our roles and truly defend our groups position...this made it easy to comprimise) ...possible scenario....the circumstance is 5 friends planning a vacation, each has someplace they want to go, but for different reasons. Maybe Mexico, France, Vietnam, New York & Costa Rica. some members like museums, some want the beach and the quiet relaxing atmosphere, some want adventure and exploring, etc. Each has a stake in where they go because this is probablly an expensive, long trip and should be memorable. Each person has a personal stake in the outcome, so thy might be inclined to act differently. Ultimately, they all have to agree on 1 destination (it doesn't have to be one of the original destinations mentioned). Just an initial thought and this needs to be built on.....

I think that stakeholder dialogue is usefull in every aspect of our lives. At work, at home and certainly when making large purchases...any time the stakes are significant (parting with large sums of money, values, work expectations, etc.) it is good to remember that the stakes might be just as great on the other side of the table, recognize this and work with it and try and find a solution that is a win for everyone on some level. Win-Lose means someone walks away disappointed and mistrustful, a Win-Win can allow everyone to walk away, saving face and happy.