HRM 1 Report: Coca-Cola Case Study Negotiation Analysis and Tactics

This report analyzes the Coca-Cola case study, focusing on the negotiation between the company and its black African-American employees regarding discrimination. It explores various negotiation models, including soft and hard negotiation, bargaining models (winners and losers), and different tactics such as defense in depth and flinch. The report delves into the application of power dynamics in negotiation, examining positional power, reward power, and sanctions. Furthermore, it discusses the relevance of distributive bargaining, integrative models, and intraorganizational models to the case. The report emphasizes the importance of a win-win approach, suggesting that Coca-Cola should prioritize resolving the issues by addressing employee demands and improving their working conditions to protect its reputation and avoid public disclosure of the matter. The analysis highlights the significance of negotiation tactics and models in achieving favorable outcomes, particularly in resolving conflicts and maintaining positive relationships within the organization.

Running Head: HRM
Human Resource Management
Report
System04104
4/19/2019

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Relationship and Negotiations of the Parties
Negotiation can be defined as a process in which two or more that two parties attempt to
reach a joint decision on matters of their common concerns. In the present case of Coca-cole
it is required that both parties solve the conflict with negotiation and save their own interest.
According to the Roger Fisher and William Ury, negotiation is a way of getting what you
want from others.” it is a process, which is designed to rich an agreement where two parties
have their own interests but other side opposed for the same (Brett and Thompson, 2016).
The present scenario required a win-win negotiation technique, where black African-America
can protect their own interest from the company and company can save the reputation in
outside without any public disclosure of matter.
Normally, there are two types of negotiation; soft and hard. In soft negotiation, both parties
treat each other as a friend and try to reach on a common consensus through an agreement.
The primary goal of soft negotiation is to reach on an agreement where both party agree.
However, in the hard negotiation both parties treat each other as adversaries and the primary
goal of hard negotiation is victory where defeat of other party is confirmed when first party
win the negotiation. In the present case, Coca-Cola required soft negotiation with other party
because somewhere company lack in providing all the facilities to its black African-American
employees.
Bargaining Model (Winners and Losers)
Negotiation or bargaining model (Winners and losers) can be defined as a plan to deal with
opposition party. Through negotiation strategy, one can determine whether first party
dominate on other party or collaborate with other party. In the following Coca-Cola USA
case there are several issues that violates laws legal laws which shows how company
discriminates with its black employees. Here, company have to deal with win-win negotiation
technique because if company loses the case and issue will be disclose in public, it will be
then a great loss for the company. The company should talk with their employees and should
listen their demand and what were the issue they were facing in the company. Even company
should try to fulfil their demand if they ask something. Company should have to compromise,
then the head if the company should compromise in that situation.

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(Source: Long, 2016)
Tactics Model
Negotiation tactics is a crucial phase of negotiation. It is a detailed method that is acquire by
negotiator to gain advantages over other party. There are eleven tactics that can be used by a
negotiator in negotiation. Auction, Brinksmanship, Bogey, chicken, defence in depth,
deadlines, flinch, Good Guy/Bad Guy, and Highball/Lowball are the eleven tactics than can
be used during negotiation (Rojot, 2016). Coca-Cola should use defence in depth technique
or even flinch tactics to solve the issue and consider the employees demand as in favour of
the company, because company dis fault in past and discriminated with their employees on
the basis of race and colour.
Power Model of Negotiation
Concept of power is used to influence other party in negotiation process. Power can be
defined as the capacity of one party to influence the decision of other party and force them
what first party want to do. There are various types of powers used in negotiation process,
which are as follow: Positional power or power of legitimate authority, Reward Power,
Sanctions, Force, Information, Expertise, etc. The power negotiation is not effective in the
case because if Coca-Cola use power negotiation then it will hike the need of employees and
even they lockout in the company. The current situation is not an appropriate situation for
power negotiation.

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Other model and theories apply on Coca-Cola case
Distributive bargaining is a situation in negotiation or bargaining process where one
party gain something only when the other party loses something. This case is the perfect
situation of lose and win situation (Lande, 2017). If Coca-Cola is trying to win the
negotiation by rejecting the demand of the black African-American employees then it will be
loss for the company. Company should talk with the employee union leader and resolve the
issues by losing side. The integrative model of bargaining involves win-win approach where
both parties consider the interest of other party. It is a negotiation strategy where both party
find a collaborative approach to solve their problem and both party happy with the outcome
of the negotiation process. This strategy is based on the mutual agreement that gives equal
benefit to both parties which is the requirement of time. Coca-Cola should try this negotiation
strategy where they can accept the demand of black African-American employees and should
hike their salary and basic facilities in the company (Ting‐Toomey, 2015). Intra-
organisational model of bargaining can be defined as an interaction between bargaining team
members and negotiator in order to achieve a desired result of negotiation process that is
acceptable for each party (Ting-Toomey, 2017). This theory can also be applied here, and the
head of the company should talk with the employees union and ask for their demand.

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References
Brett, J., and Thompson, L. (2016) Negotiation. Organizational Behavior and Human
Decision Processes, 136, pp. 68-79.
Lande, J. (2017) Building Negotiation Theory from Real-Life Negotiations. J. Disp. Resol., p.
53.
Long, B. S. (2016) Collective bargaining as the negotiation of competing stories:
Implications for leadership. Journal of Strategic Contracting and Negotiation, 2(1-2), pp.
166-181.
Rojot, J. (2016) Negotiation: from theory to practice. Berlin, Germany:Springer.
Ting‐Toomey, S. (2015) Identity negotiation theory. The international encyclopedia of
interpersonal communication, 11(3), pp. 1-10.
Ting-Toomey, S. (2017) Conflict face-negotiation theory: Tracking its evolutionary journey.
In Conflict management and intercultural communication, 14(4), pp. 123-143.