Critical Review: Fells DNA of Negotiation in Online Negotiation Process

This critical review evaluates the online negotiation process between the union and management of Exchange Bank Pty Ltd. and discusses which element of Fells’ DNA of negotiation were more influential in shaping the course of the negotiation. The review concludes that reciprocity, information exchange, and power elements of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seem to have influenced the overall online negotiation process. The negotiation process reflected cooperative or integrative bargaining behavior, and there was a strong cooperation and matching behavior, which can also be called bonds of reciprocity.

Critical review

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY.............................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES...........................................................................................................................5

“Which components of the Fells DNA of negotiation were more influential in shaping the
course of your online negotiation?”
INTRODUCTION
Each and every negotiate a great deal more than anyone realise. Many a times it goes
on without any issue and sometimes it becomes more complex. Although, there is much
advice in regards with the manner of negotiating and becoming a winning negotiator, the real
experiences does not seem to be forthright as it is suggested by studies. The main reason
behind this is negotiation is a very complex process. Considering this, the present critical
review grapples with these complexities in the online negotiation process being performed
between the union and the management of the Exchange Bank Pty Ltd. The bank is operating
in Australia for more than 60 years and has many banks operations across the Australia. The
bank is planning to make an agreement for the purpose of securing and retaining skilled
labour. The critical review will evaluate the overall negotiation process between the union
and the management and will discuss which element of Fells’ DNA of negotiation were more
influential in shaping the course of the online negotiation. In addition to this, it will also be
going to consider the degree to which aspects of the online negotiations reflected competitive
(distributive) or cooperative (integrative) bargaining behaviour.
MAIN BODY
Exchange Bank Pty Ltd. is operating in Australia for more than 60 years and has
many banks operations across the Australia. The bank is planning to make an agreement for
the purpose of securing and retaining skilled labour. Additionally, the bank had agreements
with the union for the last thirty years and thus they prefer this strategy to follow this
association. Both the union and the management also have awareness that the Fair Work
Commission will not be going to support the agreement in case it does not accomplishes the
’better off overall test’. There were many issues and problems that were being arose during
the negotiation process (Patton and Balakrishnan, 2018). However, there were three main
provisions that remained unresolved such as pandemic leave, wage increase and working
from home arrangements. These three provisions to be exchanged rotate around significant
issues of principle and it should be possible to negotiate as well as reach agreement deprived
of investigating too much into the mechanisms of the banking services.
In the current case of Bank, both the parties that is the union and the management
involves in the online negotiation wherein both the two parties with differences in views and
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opinions which they desire to solves makes every possible effort to reach to agreement by
exploration of the options and exchanging offers along with an agreement. However, it is
important to ask, what things will make this negotiation process work? There are varied kinds
of components that might be considered as the DNA of negotiation and all these components
are hard wired into the procedure of attaining an agreement. Further, they are being regarded
as an integral to the strategies being employed by both union and management of the bank
and thus, it is important to comprehend for managing the process effectively and efficiently.
According to Fells (2020), there are four important elements in DNA of negotiation that is
reciprocity, trust, power, and information exchange. Talking in relation with the first one that
is reciprocity, it is just the social interaction that takes place between the negotiators wherein
one party is being reciprocated by the other. It is that aspect which can be managed easily.
The second important element is trust, it is being referred as an expectation that the other
party will perform actions in a beneficial instead of exploitative manner. The third one is
power, which reflects the alternatives open to the negotiator for achieving their desired
objective and finally, information exchange which involves sharing of information so that
both the parties can gain good understanding of the real or actual situation.
Underpinning the discussion further, there were different arguments were being
offered by the management regarding the first issue that is pandemic leaves that the
management is ready to offer pandemic leaves however only when breakdown of certain
machinery and stoppage of any work due to any certain reason. Nevertheless, to this the
union had a very strong point that the COVID-19 situation doesn’t appear to be winding up
and there are number of cases that will soon going to rise and thus, it is important to include
Schedule X of the Banking, Finance and Insurance Award 2020 which offers supplementary
measures throughout the covid19 for rights related to unpaid pandemic leaves (Kesting and
Nielsen, 2020). In this, power element of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seems to have
influence the online negotiation process because the union has presented an effective
alternative to the offer being posed by the management. the response of the union towards the
offer being posed by the management reflect the presence of power and concern in regards
with the having a good alternative. This has brought the management to the negotiating table
and kept them there.
Nevertheless, the management again makes an argument to the offers being made by
the union in regards with the first issue and the second issue related to wage increase and in
this, the information exchange element of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seems to have
influence the online negotiation process. The information being shared by the management in
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relation with the Fair Work Commission, Fair Work Act, Annual Wage Review 2021 along
with the Fair work commission Banking, finance, and Insurance Award 2020 (MA000019)
was proved to be a learning process because there was an exchange of information so that
both the management and the union gain a comprehension of interest and actual condition.
The management of Exchange Bank Pty Ltd. along with union have both naturally assumed
that their interest is in contrast with each other and this is also being defined as a fixed pie
perception (Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Enterprise Agreement 2018–2021, 2021). The Union
along with the management have understood their positions and the interest, value was being
generated and this helped in emergence of a solution for the first issue.
However, for the second issue, still the Union contradicted the offer being made by
the management and have argued that the management should remember the “Better Off
Overall Test (BOOT) of the Fair Work Act 2009”. In this, the union has explained their
situation and the reasons in asking for a wage increase for the workers. In addition to this, the
management reciprocated this form of information exchange by being truthful in regards with
the reason behind unable to offer this wage increase to the employees, however was able to
make sure that the Union was within their limits and in right direction. Thus, it can be said
that in regards with the first and the second issues, both power and information exchange
element of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seems to have influence the online negotiation
process with little impact of reciprocity element (Commonwealth Bank Group Enterprise
Agreement 2020, 2020). Other than this, an integrative bargaining approach was also seemed
to be present and there was also an absence of power play. The management could have
insisted on their stand by not giving a wage increase or unpaid pandemic leaves however
instead the management of the bank have expressed their support that was being aimed at
creation of novel options for reaching a consensus.
Additionally, in respect with the third provision that is related with the working from
home arrangement, the unions have offered their terms to the management of the bank that
under section 65 of the Fair Work Act, certain employees have a right to request flexible
work arrangements, however this has limited application for the employees of the banks.
Moreover, the union also said that they are agreeing with the management that a new
‘working from home’ clause in the EBA as defined by the International Labour organisation
would be advantageous to both parties (Ford, 2019). To this, the management does not have
any contradiction or argument and they simply agrees to what the union has offered because
they too had a same kind of a thought. Considering this process of negotiation and based on
the literatures and studies in respect with the negotiation process, it can be critically said that
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reciprocity element of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seems to have influence the online
negotiation process that took place between the management and the union (Fells, 2020).
This is supported or evidenced from the academic literatures which states that reciprocity is
the fundamental element and a shared feature of numerous social interactions. In the
negotiation process that took place between both the parties for the third provision, there was
a matching or exchanging of behaviour of the same valence that the other part has offered or
carried out. Other than the pattern of exchange, what one party does tend to suggest
convinced responsibilities in regards with the other party. Furthermore, this negotiation
process clearly involved the norms of the reciprocity as there was an involvement of informal
process of exchange in favours which have not comprised any particular communication or
interactions in relation with terms or conditions and is also able to impact the manner people
reciprocate in different cultures across the world. Thus, it can be said that there are some acts
of reciprocity in the case and it plays a big role in this negotiation.
Moving further, the first and the second aspects of the online negotiations reflected
cooperative or integrative bargaining behaviour (Govindarajan and Trimble, 2015). This is
due to the fact that there was full exchange of information for comprehending the offer being
made to each other by both the parties for achieving a cooperative result that favours both the
parties. Moreover, there was a joint along with open consideration of situations of both union
and management. it has also reflected a high level of trust as they believed the negotiation.
This condition has taken place as there was an amicable association amid both the parties.
CONCLUSION
Thus, from the above analysis, it can be concluded that reciprocity, information
exchange and power elements of the DNA of negotiation metaphor seems to have influence
the overall online negotiation process. in addition to this, there are more acts of reciprocity
and information exchange in the current case and they played an important role in this
negotiation process. in addition to this, there was mutual exchange of information between
both the parties and this has resulted in feelings of goodwill, where the union was able to trust
management in regards with the wage increase and pandemic leaves provisions to be
included in the agreement. Further, there was also a strong cooperation and this matching
behaviour can also be called as bonds of reciprocity.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Fells, R., 2020. Effective Negotiation: From Research to Results. 4thed. Cambridge
University Press.
Ford, P., 2019. Book Review: Unlocking the DNA of Negotiation. Journal of General
Management. 35(4). pp.103–105.
Govindarajan, V. and Trimble, C., 2015. Organizational DNA for Strategic Innovation,
California Management Review. 47. pp.47-76.
Kesting, P. and Nielsen, R.K., 2020. The Meaning of Intuition for the Negotiation Process
and Outcome. Wiley Online Library. 36(3). pp.309-329.
Patton, C. and Balakrishnan, P.V., 2018. The impact of expectation of future negotiation
interaction on bargaining processes and outcomes. Journal of Business Research. 63.
pp.809-816.
Online references
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Enterprise Agreement 2018–2021. 2021. [Online]. Available
through: <https://www.fsunion.org.au/bendigo-and-adelaide-bank-enterprise-
agreement-2018-2021/>. [Accessed on 10thJune 2022].
Commonwealth Bank Group Enterprise Agreement 2020. 2020. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.fsunion.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Commonwealth-Bank-of-
Australia-Enterprise-Agreement-2020.pdf>. [Accessed on 10thJune 2022].
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