Pitching and Negotiation Skills Assignment - Doc

Pitching and
Negotiation Skills

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1. Determining negotiation and reason for its occurrence and key stakeholder in this process.
......................................................................................................................................................1
P2. Steps involved in negotiation process ...................................................................................2
P3. RFP process and relevant types of documentation required for this.....................................3
P4 Contractual Process and how documents are monitored........................................................4
P5. Develop a pitch applying key principles that achieve sustainable competitive edge............6
P6. Potential outcome of pitch.....................................................................................................7
P7. Determine the ways in which an organisation can fulfil their post-pitch obligations,
highlighting and potential issues..................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION ..............................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Negotiation is a process for two parties to identify an effective solution to a complicated
conflicts or issues. It takes place when two or more people with various view comes together to
attempt to reach agreement on an issue. This is about the acquiring best possible deal in best
possible way. It is important to have negotiation and pitching skills as it helps them in winning
all contracts according to terms and conditions. To understand this concept effectively company,
Marks and Spencer is being selected for this report. It is a British multinational clothing and
general merchandise retailer with headquarters in Westminster, London, UK. The information
which is required for negotiation is being explained in this report. As different types of
documentation relevant to tenders and contracts is being discussed in this present report. To
achieve a sustainable competitive edge, a pitch is being developed in this present report. Apart
from this outcome of pitch is also assessed.
TASK 1
P1. Determining negotiation and reason for its occurrence and key stakeholder in this process.
Negotiation is a process of settlement of people issues. In other words it is a strategic
communication which resolve an important problems in a manner which both parties find it
acceptable. This assist parties in achieving excellent outcomes by get rid of all the issues which
are barriers in business operations. This is very important for two business entities in order to do
their business with transparency so no one can do any fraudulent activities. The negotiation can
occur in any situation of business.
Reason for occurring negotiation
The reason for occurring the negotiation is when there is two or more parties have an
interest, but the outcome is yet to determined by them. For example, negotiation occurs between
a buyer and seller in the buying of any second hand bike or simply even between groups of
friends when they decide about which place to go for an outing (Chang and Rieple, 2013). The
negotiation process which is used by Marks and Spencer, are as follows:
Key stakeholders in negotiation
The negotiation needs at least two parties who have adequate information about the
products that are dealing and have good interpersonal skills to crack a profitable deal for
company.
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Customers:
Customers are the key stakeholder in business of negotiation as they can negotiate for
price of product of Marks and Spencer.
Employees:
The employees negotiate for their salary with organisation as at the time of joining and
appraisal time.
Supplier:
Supplier are those who supply raw material to the business for manufacturing product. As
both the parties negotiate for enhancing the price of raw material.
In reference with organisation
 As Marks and Spencer deals in clothing product so they have to decide the price of their
products with supplier so they can purchase the product at affordable price which helps
company in order to generate more revenues (Cremades, 2016).
 M&S provide the products at various range in their retail outlets. So they required to
negotiate with their customers in order to sell provide at affordable rate.
P2. Steps involved in negotiation process
Negotiation is continuous and long term process that reduce and eliminate the confusion
of employees in an organisation. It helps in motivation of employees so that they can contribute
their best in order to achieve organisational objectives and goals. This assists an organisation to
provide better solutions for conflicts and issues arises at the workplace. The negotiation process
is being discussed below:
Preparation:
Preparation by the parties is very important in order to avoid further conflicts in an
organisation. The preparation includes when and where a meeting will take place to discuss the
issues. The Marks and Spencer may well have policies which they can refer in preparation of
negotiation. Both parties of negotiation should have information about topic of discussion and
should have pitch for the deal.
Discussion:
At this stage the members of each party take forward the case as they see this. During the
discussion it is very important to listen what other party is saying. Each side should have an
equal opportunity to present their case. The information should be shared by both parties and it
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information needs to be authentic as scattering of wrong information can make impact of
goodwill of M&S.
Clarifying Goals:
From the discussion, the goals, objectives and interest of both parties of disagreements
need to be clarified. It is an essential part of negotiation process, without clarification the
misunderstanding can occur which can be a barrier to reaching a beneficial outcome.
Negotiate Towards a Win Win outcome:
This stage mainly focus on win-win outcome where both parties feel that they have got
something positive in process of negotiation and they feel that their point of view has been taken
into consideration. The role of stakeholders of M&S is to bargain deal in a manner that deal
should be turned as win win outcome for company.
Agreement:
This is the stage where everyone is involved to keep an open mind in order to accomplish
an acceptable solutions. As agreement is formulated between both parties.
P3. RFP process and relevant types of documentation required for this
The request for proposal (RFP) is considered as most important process for purchasing
organisation. This is a bidding solicitation in which organisations announces that their funding is
available for a particular project and companies can place bid for the project completion. This is
process which outlined the bidding process and contract terms and give direction about how bid
should be formatted and presented (Dawson, 2014). The RFP involve a statement of work
describing activities which needs to be performed by the winning bidder and a specific timeline
for finishing work. For example – The M&S has issued a RFP for financing, designing and
maintaining its new store. As interested parties submit proposal according to requirement
outlined in document. As based on the proposal received the company establish a commission
for evaluating and reviewing proposals. The company will choose the proposal which is most
effective for achieving goals of company. Main elements related to documentation with process
of negotiation is being discusses below:
Establish project's boundaries:
This is first step of request for proposal process as before writing any RFP, organisation
should evaluate the major constraints of project and company should evaluate its budget, time
period and other elements so proposal can be prepared in an attractive and effective manner.
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Determine stakeholders and advisor:
As writing an RFP and analysing responses includes a lot of work, knowledge and
information of different vendors and consultants. For each of company project it needs an RFP
so there should be leader who lead process. Leader of M&S will identify various stakeholder and
advisors for the project.
Write a RFP:
At this stage request for proposal is being written by the companies.
Creation of draft of scoring criteria:
After talking to shareholders and writing of draft it is the stage where organisation needs
to draft of scoring criteria. According to this scoring criteria the company rank replies on a scale
of 1 to 10 for each criteria. On the basis of this criteria, proposal will be accepted.
Circulate RFP:
At this stage the proposal which is prepared, now company will circulate this proposal to
different stakeholders and vendors in order to create awareness among them.
Review responses:
This stage focus on performing an initial go through and review of responses and paying
particular attention to their offered solution (Healy, 2011).
Score responses and select vendor:
This is the stage where organisations are supposed to score responses which given by
different vendors and clients. And select the appropriate vendor for project.
Negotiate and sign a contract:
To bind in agreement it is necessary to have an agreement between both parties. This
agreement includes the details of project deadline, cost and budget etc.
The Marks and Spencer can use this process RFP process to draft a proposal and identify
the clients.
P4 Contractual Process and how documents are monitored
Contract management is the process of contracts from vendors, partners or employees.
An effective contract management requires an understanding of every step in the contract
process involving any step which contributes, creates or utilizes data. Contract is an agreement
between two or more parties which creates duties and obligations which are enforceable by the
laws. It includes any written agreement like deed, transfer, instrument, assignment, obligation
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and assignment which are signed by person and authorised by the government. There is a process
for the contract which is being explained below:
Selecting a contract:
The first stage of contractual process is to selecting a type of contract. At this stage the
types of contract is being selected. Often sponsor select the agreement type negotiation. Apart
from this the Marks and Spencer can use the proposal type contract also.
Collecting crucial information:
This is an important process for not to engage in any activity without formal and written
agreement signed by the authority. There should be proper checking of crucial documents which
are required in formation of contract and which are need of particular contract. The information
which are required for formation of contract is discussed below:
 Signed routing sheet
 Budget
 Schedule of payment
 Statement of work and other supporting documents
Choose a Negotiator:
As it is very important for parties to choose a negotiator which is negotiate on the final
terms and condition of contract. The negotiator should be authorised by the government one can
not be negotiator without authorisation (Hill, 2017).
Contract review process:
Review of contract is very important as it helps to identify any omission in contract. This
process helps to know deviation in contract and take corrective action for these deviation so an
effective contract can be formed. This will be helpful for Marks and Spencer to form a suitable
contract related to project.
Contract Signing:
The signing is final stage of contract formation. Both the parties mutually sign the
contract which is enforceable by law. After the signing of contract both parties are responsible
for perform contract. The non performing of contract by any party could lead to legal penalties
on party.
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This is a contract process which can be used by Marks and Spencer to comes into a
contract and perform the duties.
The company can monitor documents by direct observation like by means of personal
and physical observations. And other way is monitoring is the storage location, audit trail,
security and access control and version control etc.
P5. Develop a pitch applying key principles that achieve sustainable competitive edge.
Pitch is process which is utilized by organisations to assure an efficient and effective
interaction among the employees of organisation so they can motivate others to work in effective
way as this assist business to accomplish its pre set goals and objectives. This is very essential to
have a good communication and interpersonal skills for performing the task in effective manner.
As effective communication process is helpful in the many ways like it enables people to resolve
their conflicts and also provide an opportunity to both parties to express their views and
opinions. The effective and useful way of communication is meeting, presentation, e-mails and
conferences (Horton, 2016). It is very important for business to have enough funds and resources
which helps Marks and Spencer to serve their customers in effective manner. The capitalist need
to evaluate and examine the complete process and its components with the help of them they can
achieve desired goals. To get the desired outcome Marks and Spencer should use easy and
effective process instead of difficult process which decreases chances of being successful. The
relevant and authentic data in presentation should be presented by presentor in order to achieve
goals effectively. This will help presentor to increase and boost their morale and make a good
impression among all audiences.
The presentor can use the all accessible data and content which helps in enhancing the
effectiveness and draw a valid conclusion. As the included information should be authentic and
properly examined which will help in avoiding any types of chaos. There are different kinds of
problems and issues can be arisen at the time of presentation so one should make and formulate
effective strategy in order to face the situations. The information which is being presented to
stakeholders should be original and authentic which will help to get faith and trust of
stakeholders. As the demand and requirement of stakeholders should be covered in presentation.
Each and every component which affect outcomes should be properly determined and evaluated
by managers to manage activities and assets in efficient way (Nudelman, 2017).
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Pitching investors are hired by business organisation to launch their new product in
market in efficient way so that company can take competitive advantage.
P6. Potential outcome of pitch
Evaluation and identification of all the factors which effect last result of outcome shows
the manager that the how well formulated strategy worked. The investors and capitalist plays an
important role in determining and evaluating factors to make decision on investment. The
potential outcome can be described as follows:
Acceptance:
As there are different element that created impact on activities and decision process of
organisation. Therefore to achieve the sustainability and increasing the customer satisfaction ,
this is very crucial for business to cop up with changes which are required for pitching. Elevator
pitch is an important component which mention that if an individual has capacity to create
impact on others then it can effect in either positive or negative manner. The acceptance depend
on provided agreement if provided agreement is not fruitful for company then there is no need to
approach business project in future. The agreement should be signed by every individual after
reading all terms and conditions properly (PaçoFerreira and RaposoRich, 2013). Because if once
agreement is being signed then it is known as acceptance therefore agreement should be properly
read by all parties.
Rejection:
The rejection is an another outcome which can be faced by business. The capital investor
can reject project. There can be several reason for rejection of project like presentor could not
able to communicate effectively or presentor could not influence investors. As this kind of
situation is considered as ineffective and non beneficial for business. So to deal with this kind of
situation, this is very important for firm to determine and analyse the communication channel
effectively, this can be helpful for getting acceptance from investors (Schech, Skelton and
Mundkur, 2016).
No Response:
No response is considered as significant component of pitch which is called elevator
pitch. As each and every component and data should be presented in very efficient manner so
capitalist might not get annoyed. Thereafter, this evaluation assist in taking best decision which
support desired result.
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Come back later:
This come back later is an outcome which needs to be evaluated because these outcomes
have high importance on working. The organisation should decide and estimate those feature
which facilitate in managing things in efficient and better way so that desired result can be
drawn. If proper and advantageous gains are not anticipated in a better frame then manager
should execute and use beneficial attributes which further helps in getting advantageous position
in this competitive market. This will also help to gain customer loyalty and signifies outcome. In
this scenario company should acquire the better and efficient resources so that company can use
these resources in an effective way. This should be understand by Marks and Spencer properly
by which they could manage their working in an adequate frame and can gain new customers in
market.
P7. Determine the ways in which an organisation can fulfil their post-pitch obligations,
highlighting and potential issues.
Pitching is considered as one of an effective source by which a business can increase
their working and determine best result for the various issues. This encourage and assist in
solution of different aspects in a better frame so that effectiveness and efficiency could be
properly managed and maintain (Teckchandani and Obstfeld, 2017). An association should
require to execute the pitching process in a very efficient and signifies way so they could aid and
shape the operation better so that effectiveness and efficiency could be well managed and
maintained. This is crucial that Marks and Spencer is providing adequate documentation to its
partners with the goal which can be comprehended by company in a successful manner. To do
this work is adequate manner assembling and workshops need to be guided with aim that
organisation can tell about the vision and mission of their organisation before speculators and
partners. Thus, prior to defining method and plans, it is important that each one of changeable
and components are taken into consideration with the aim that they can meet financial specialist
on time.
CONCLUSION
In the conclusion it can be said that negotiation plays and important role in the business
and there are some key stakeholders which are involved in negotiation process. There key steps
which are included which is needed for negotiating and generating deals. As there is RFP process
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which is used by organisation to invite the clients. Contract management plays an important role
for drafting contract, so there is complete contractual process which needs to be followed. There
are pitching principled which helps in achieving the sustainable competitive edge. The pitching
has potential outcome. There are some ways by which organisations fulfil their obligations from
pitch.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Chang, J. and Rieple, A., 2013. Assessing students' entrepreneurial skills development in live
projects. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development. 20(1). pp. 225-
241.
Cremades, A., 2016. The art of startup fundraising: pitching investors, negotiating the deal, and
everything else entrepreneurs need to know. John Wiley & Sons.
Dawson, C., 2014. The Mature Student's Study Guide 2nd Edition: Essential Skills for Those
Returning to Education or Distance Learning. Hachette UK.
Healy, K., 2011. Social work methods and skills: the essential foundations of practice. Palgrave
Macmillan.
Hill, P., 2017. Agent extinction: Hype versus reality. Journal (Real Estate Institute of New South
Wales). 68(4). p.32.
Horton, S., 2016. The Leader's Guide to Negotiation: How to Use Soft Skills to Get Hard
Results. Pearson UK.
Nudelman, G. R., 2017. Engineering identity: Analysing e-portfolios in a professional
communications course. South African Journal of Higher Education. 31(2). pp. 211-
225.
Paço, A., Ferreira, J. and Raposo, M., 2016. Development of entrepreneurship education
programmes for HEI students: The lean start-up approach. Journal of Entrepreneurship
Education. 19(2). p. 39.
Rich, C., 2013. The Yes Book: The Art of Better Negotiation. Random House.
Schech, S., Skelton, T. and Mundkur, A., 2016. Building relationships and negotiating difference
in international development volunteerism. The Geographical Journal.
Teckchandani, A. and Obstfeld, D., 2017. Storytelling at its best: Using the StartUp podcast in
the classroom. Management Teaching Review. 2(1). pp.26-34.
Online
Contracting Process. 2018. [Online]. Available through:
<https://rgw.arizona.edu/administration/negotiation-and-acceptance/contracting-
process>
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