Negotiations: Interrelationship of Interests, Rights and Power - Essay Example

The history of the three ways to resolve disputes was developed based on the issue of ‘The Boots Dispute’. This was the case of a miner who lost his boots at work, and the managers did not agree to lend him a pair or even buy him a new pair. The non-compliance by the shift boss led to a dispute of interests and led the employee to go on strike. Ury, et.al, (1988) explain that a dispute starts when a claim or demand is made and is generally based on a need or aspiration. In the case where the miner complained of the lost boots, he was directly expecting the company to take responsibility and remedy the issue, however, due to the rejection, this led to a dispute (Ury, Brett, & Goldberg, 1988). Here this led to a conflict of interests, i.e. the interest of the miner was to get back his pair of boots, while the interest of the shift boss was not to spend extra as the company cannot be held liable for the loss of property.

Here these can lead to creative solutions, making trade-offs, or even concessions. The crux is to reach an agreement. However, not all negotiations are a means to reach an agreement. Some negotiations are focused on reconciling interests, while others on determining who is right, and a few others are based on who is more powerful (Lewicki, Barry, & Saunders, 2010).

However, there are several negotiations that are a mix of all three of the elements, i.e. to satisfy the interests, discussion of rights, and also focus on the power of the parties involved. In the case that the negotiations are focused on a single aspect, then they are referred to as, either, ‘interest-based’, ‘rights-based’, or ‘power-based’ (Lewicki, Saunders, Minton, & Barry, 2010).
The relationship of the three can be understood better in the form of concurrent circles, with the innermost circle being interested, the outer circle being rights and the outermost circle being power (see figure below).

The diagram clearly explains that any reconciliation of interests is basically within the rights and power of the parties. Similarly, the determination of rights is based on the levels of power. The three are interrelated and the overall resolution of a dispute can have a continuous shift between the interests, rights, or power (Lewicki, Barry, & Saunders, 2010).

Each of the three has a different impact on the overall costs, satisfaction, and also outcomes. There are four possible criteria in every negotiation.
a) The transaction costs, i.e. the cost of the overall negotiation. In the case of the Boots dispute, it would have been better for the shift boss to resolve the dispute without the strike. The escalated issue of strikes simply led the overall costs to increase to a great extent (Brett, 2007).

b) Outcome satisfaction is another crucial element that needs to be considered. Here the outcome was not to satisfaction for the business, or the employee alike. The business was faced with the loss of money, while the employee did not receive a new pair of boots. However, the employee was satisfied as this allowed him to vent his anger.
c) Impact on relationships, is the next crucial criterion. Negotiations are a part of day-to-day life (Lewicki, Barry, & Saunders, 2010). The type of negotiation chosen, there can impact the overall relationships. If the interests of both parties are met, the relationship will continue to be good, however, if power is used, then the relationship can become sour.

d) Finally, the last criteria are to ensure that the solution reached is durable and does not lead to recurring issues.
Conclusions:
Although the main focus is on interests and needs for resolving issues, this is not always the best choice as in some cases the use of power and rights are also important. Hence all these factors are interrelated and can impact the overall decision-making process to a great extent.