Negotiating for a Win-Win Outcome
Successful publishing is largely built on successful negotiations. These can include negotiations between author and editor, agent and publisher, editor and marketing manager, and production manager and suppliers. Such negotiations need to have outcomes which are acceptable to both parties and help maintain ongoing relationships.
Negotiating for a Win-Win Outcome is for anyone in publishing who negotiates with others, inside or outside the organisation. It offers plenty of tips, techniques and tools for successful negotiating. However, everyone has a different approach to negotiating, and the course encourages you to think about your current negotiating feelings and behaviours – which people and situations do you find most challenging? What goes well or not so well?
It also covers an understanding of the structure negotiations take, the behaviours which work best, how to deal with difficult parties and ways to build your own power, credibility and authority to get the outcome you need.
With a mixture of theory and practice, working on your own and in small groups, you’ll put a variety of techniques into action and learn how to be a more effective negotiator.
Who is it for?
Publishers, managing and commissioning editors, junior editors, production and design staff and anyone who needs to negotiate with others in-house or outside.
What will you achieve?
On completing this course you’ll be able to:
- Prepare for the different stages of a negotiation
- Make use of the other person’s motivations and needs
- Use assertive behaviour in negotiating
- Assess and build your negotiating authority and power
Programme
Day 1
Session 1
- Your personal objectives
- Introduction to win-win negotiating – process
- Group negotiating exercise
Session 2
- How thoughts and feelings affect negotiating behaviour
- Assertive behaviour as the foundation of negotiating behaviour
- Negotiating with “difficult” people
- Power, authority and credibility – how to increase yours
There will be a short exercise on building credibility to complete individually before Day 2
Day 2
Session 1
- Recap on learning points
- Rehearse negotiating in small groups using your own scenarios or those provided
Session 2
- Discussion of practice scenarios
- Features and benefits
- Methods of communication in negotiations
- Reflection on personal objectives
The course will include interactive discussion and small-group exercises in breakout rooms
Delegate feedback
“I enjoyed the course very much! There were plenty of exercises to engage our thoughts, and lots of information in the handouts and the presentation. I’ve increased my confidence, and gained guidance on how to approach negotiation.” Commissioning Editor, Bloomsbury Publishing
“The course was a great mixture of lecture-style teaching and interactivity. I have learned the skills behind being a good negotiator and it is helped me re-think my own approaches. I feel equipped with lots of great resources.” Pan Macmillan delegate
“The course was brilliant. The leader was incredibly insightful and a wonderful coach, creating a welcoming environment to share our problems. Collaboration was fostered between attendees during practical exercises, which were very useful. It was great to meet and bond with a diverse group of women working in publishing who were having similar difficulties with asserting themselves. I’ve gained confidence and reassurance in my abilities to negotiate. I now feel I can fully use my voice in some of the more challenging business interactions I face. An empowering experience!” Institute of Materials, Mineral and Mining delegate
“Valerie was an excellent tutor, engaging and extremely personable. She was patient and let us share only what we wanted to. I felt very comfortable talking to her and the group. The course structure was great, allowing time to learn directly from the tutor and to discuss with each other. I gained skills I can immediately use in my role and everyday tasks.” Class Professional Publishing delegate
“The course has given me newfound confidence in my own skills and new ways/tools of thinking about how to approach negotiation.” Bonnier Books delegate
“The course was perfect! I’ve gained the tools to enable me to go into meetings and negotiate successfully.” Sales Representative, Pan Macmillan SA
“I thoroughly enjoyed the course. Valerie was an excellent tutor. The group was lovely, and I felt like I'm not alone in my anxieties and fears. This course has really helped me gain confidence, both in and outside of work.” Commissioning Editor, Class Professional Publishing
“The training was extremely interesting and useful. Valerie is a wonderfully engaging presenter, very easy to listen to and the course was just the right mix of theory, practical demonstration and anecdotes. The materials she provided really helped put conflict resolution and good communication skills into perspective for us. They are simple, easy to follow and practical tools for us to use in our work lives.” IntechOpen delegate
“The course was excellent. I’ve gained a wider understanding of negotiating and what techniques are best to use. I have no further feedback as there is nothing I would change.” Operations Manager
“The tutor was very experienced, encouraging and gave practical, helpful advice. It was useful to have the spare day in the middle to reflect on and apply what we had learnt, and to revise the tips and learning points so the techniques really stuck. I’ve gained the confidence to negotiate and practical advice to apply to my own situations.” Head of Zeus delegate
About the tutor
Valerie Fawcett worked in publishing for about 15 years before moving into training. During this time, she specialised in educational publishing as an editor at Oxford University Press and a commissioning editor at Blackwells. Valerie has worked with a number of publishing companies including Elsevier, HarperCollins, Bloomsbury, Heinemann and Macmillan.
Valerie is an experienced Learning and Development consultant, specialising in providing training and coaching in people management and personal development. She has run courses for a wide variety of organisations in both the public and private sectors, and as a former publisher, enjoys combining both areas of experience in her work for Publishing Training Centre.
Valerie's professional training enables her to work with people on both improving skills and increasing the self awareness which enables change. She works with people on the three main gateways to change: behaviours (and skills); attitudes, and emotional intelligence. She uses Myers Briggs personality profiling, Transactional Analysis and other models in her work.
Dates
Thursday, 24 April 2025
Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Date information for future sessions
April 2025
- Dates: 24 & 29 April
- Times: Each session will run from 9.00am to 12.30pm
November 2025
- Dates: 11 & 13 November
- Times: Each session will run from 9.00am to 12.30pm
Course format
- Virtual classroom
- 9am to 12.30pm (BST)
- Four x 1.5 hour sessions plus breaks, comprising two half-day sessions on two days, one week apart
A number of discounts are available
What you will need
To join the course, you will need access to a computer, tablet or laptop with a camera and microphone. You will need to activate a free Zoom account to join the course. This takes two minutes and does not require any payment. It is purely for administrative purposes.