HND Business: Pitching & Negotiation Skills - AOL vs Netscape

This report provides an analysis of pitching and negotiation skills, using the AOL versus Netscape case study as a focal point. It defines negotiation, identifies key stakeholders, and explores the reasons behind negotiations, emphasizing the importance of building trust and avoiding conflicts. The study evaluates key steps in negotiating and generating deals, including preparation, planning, defining ground rules, clarification, bargaining, problem-solving, closure, and implementation, while also addressing potential challenges and solutions. Furthermore, it explains and applies the Request for Proposal (RFP) procedure, detailing the necessary documentation and stages involved, such as project boundary establishment and stakeholder identification. The report also elucidates the contractual procedure, highlighting the stages of contract lifecycle management and the use of technology for monitoring and managing documentation. The conclusion underscores the significance of negotiation skills in achieving desired outcomes, improving organizational performance, and gaining competitive advantages through effective documentation and RFP processes.

HND PITCHING AND
NEGOTIATION SKILLS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
1- Defining negotiation, reasons and key stakeholders included in a negotiation procedure......3
2- Evaluating the key steps and information needed for negotiating and generating deals.........4
3- Explaining and applying RFP procedure and appropriate forms of documentation needed
within an organizational context..................................................................................................5
4- Explaining contractual procedure and how documentation is monitored and managed.........6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Negotiation and pitching are those essential skills that individual person tend to develop
and utilize to achieve set aims (Hu, Xiao and Wang, 2021). Pitching skill contributes to take
right and favourable decisions, while negotiation skill enable individuals to enhance their as well
as others performance. The current study will be based on AOL versus Netscape. It will define
the negotiation, key stakeholders and reasons related to the same. It will also explain key steps
and information required for negotiation and generating deals. Furthermore, the assessment will
justify RFP process and suitable types of documentation required. It will also clarify the
contractual procedure and how suitable documentation is managed and monitored.
MAIN BODY
1- Defining negotiation, reasons and key stakeholders included in a negotiation procedure.
Negotiation is defined as strategic discussion that includes two or more organizations or
ventures as parties that attempt to resolve a specific issue in effective manner (Zhang and et.al.,
2021). It is quite essential for individual person to make discussion appropriately that help to
obtain desire outcomes to each party. It is also considered as one of those effective approaches or
methods that people utilize to settle differences between them, which put negative impact on
their performance and practices.
Reasons-
The main reason behind negotiation is to build better and trustworthy relation between
AOL and Netscape. Another reason behind the same concept is to avoid further issues and
conflict between both companies that may put the adverse impact on their performance and
productivity level.
Stakeholders-
Managers, leaders, employees and owner are the key stakeholders who are included and
engage themselves in the procedure of negotiation, which enable them to obtain appropriate
outcomes at the end of overall discussion. The engagement of each stakeholder is essential for
continuous venture growth in the competitive market, where competition level is high. During
the process of negotiation, they may provide their suggestion and overview that help to reach
desire outcomes which plays significant role in the context of aim achievement.
Steps and information needed in preparation-

The overall process encompasses five different stages or steps that AOL and Netscape
may take into their consideration, along with strategic information that needed in preparation.
Each step may drive the attention of management toward conducting strategic practice
that affect positively upon AOL decisions and success factors. The first phase is quite essential
for management to take into their consideration appropriately as it may enable them to prepare
everything according to plan and expectation of stakeholders. All the five stages or steps support
organization to generate deal that provide benefits to each candidate or individual who may
engage themselves in the entire process, for varied reasons. Reason behind negotiation process
drive the attention of administration toward following the steps and completing each by
conducting some essential activities, which is important for them to do that. Organization go
through each step such as planning, ground rules defining, clarification, and then implementation
during negotiation procedure, for which essential information required to make preparation
effective and beneficial in varied terms.
2- Evaluating the key steps and information needed for negotiating and generating deals.
Preparation and planning-
Before starting negotiation, it is important for both companies to get information related
to conflict on the basis of that discussion rely on (5 Steps of Negotiation Process, 2022). It may
enable them to make appropriate plan and prepare to make important discussion, which aid to
reach final outcome as everyone expects to obtain. It can be critically evaluated that current step
of negotiation process provides management benefits to obtain desire results, while it may also
create issue in term of less focusing on areas which are important to cover in the same process.
Definition of ground rules-
Once the negotiation plan and tactic may develop, management may move to next step
and that is current one. Here, they may determine where will negotiation take place and what
time it constraint. It can be critically examined that grounding rules set by the management may
affect positively upon contractual agreement. On the other side, it may lead to create challenges
when the rule is not following by individuals.
Clarification and justification-
In the third stage, they may both inform each other their strategic actions and decisions.
Furthermore, companies provide documents that aid to support their position.
Bargaining and problem solving-

The bargaining and other activities may conduct at the end of process which help to find
out and implement the best solutions.
Closure and implementation-
At the end negotiation process outcome in closure and final decision implementation,
which is not that easy for any company to do so without having proper information (Rath, Rath
and Kononenko, 2021). It can be critically evaluated that lack of coordination and
communication issue might be arisen in this step that affect the expected outcome of
management in AOL.
Information required-
The data that firms needed to make a discussion or start negotiation is related to browser
market, products and strategies that adapt to gain competitive advantages.
Solutions for dealing with challenges that can arise-
It is important for manager and leaders in the AOL to find out the best solutions that help
to gain benefits in term of becoming browser leader in the market, where competition level reach
higher. During negotiation process they can utilize collaborative techniques like face to face
discussion and approval related to plan that approach to discuss in front of everyone.
3- Explaining and applying RFP procedure and appropriate forms of documentation needed
within an organizational context.
The procedure of request for proposal may begin with specific activity and that is drafting
a request for further proposal (Request for Proposal (RFP), 2022). It can be said that the bidders
review the solicitation and then submit recommendations to improve things. The process
includes more practices like implementation of feedback, that in turn provide outcome to
management in term of final request for proposal that is issued.
Project boundaries establishment, stakeholders identification, communication, written
RFP, draft development and review responses are the key stages, included in process of RFP.
Documents-
Background information behind proposal, details description of project, particular
requirement about tools, materials, systems and other things are needed as documents that AOL
utilize to win negotiation. A good budgetary plan, with clear invest amount is also require that
management may present during negotiation and then move a head toward discussing further
things, which is also related to Netscape proposal.

Consequences of breaching terms of an agreement-
When an organization breach terms and conditions that cover in a legal contract between
two parties, it may face varied legal challenges, which may affect negatively upon success and
progress of venture. For example, the most adverse impact of a contract or agreement breach is
non breaching party may suffer injury or damage as an outcome of breaching party' mission or
action. Another consequence that consider as a result of contract breaching is legal issues that a
party or company may face after not following the terms, which is important for them to do that
appropriately and ethically, without conducting any unethical practice that affect negatively.
4- Explaining contractual procedure and how documentation is monitored and managed.
Contractual process refers to the strategic application of key procedures that form the
concept-matter of Licenced BEGO patent rights and licenced VOXELJET patent rights
respectively as IP tools (9 Stages of Contract Lifecycle Management, 2022). This process
encompasses different stages such as contract request, review and redlining, approval, execution,
storage, record management, search & retrieval, audit & reporting and renewal.
During this process management may manage and monitor suitable document by using
the best systems that help to manage everything and advanced technologies for purpose of
monitoring activities related to the same (Vedel, 2021).
It can be critically evaluated that competitive tendering as well as contract procedure
provide a lot of benefits to user in term of increasing their power to achieve target aim and
objectives. It is fact that competitive tendering is useful for the users that are repeatedly have
projects or contracts work for tender.
Organization can take strategic action in term of suggestion that can help to complete
successful tender with minimal risk. It can take initiative to be selective, prepare and then choose
a team. It is quite essential for company to consider the overall process of successful tendering,
which enable it to take right decision. Along with other practices, they can consider the tender
documents which may usually set out in detail different situations, applicable to tender process.
CONCLUSION
On the basis of above discussion, it has been concluded that negotiation skill and their
utilization in the organization provided desire outcomes to management. It has enabled firm to
generate the best ideas and then implement the same into practical manner. The engagement of
each stakeholder in the process of negotiation has enhanced organizational performance and

productivity level. Furthermore, by summing up above analysis, it has been summarized that
utilization of appropriate documentation and managing the same, organization gain competitive
advantages. By following request for proposal process, management has improved business
performance and achieved aims, which is essential for them to do so.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Hu, M., Xiao, F. and Wang, S., 2021. Neighborhood-level coordination and negotiation
techniques for managing demand-side flexibility in residential microgrids. Renewable
and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 135. p.110248.
Rath, P., Rath, N. K. P. and Kononenko, N., 2021. Negotiating social identity through material
practices with stone. From Field to Museum—Studies from Melanesia in Honour of
Robin Torrence. pp.107-118.
Vedel, J. B., 2021. Balancing conflicting goals in interorganizational collaborations in the
pharmaceutical industry: a contractual dynamics view. European Management Review.
18(1). pp.71-83.
Zhang, H and et.al., 2021. Negotiation complexity: A review and an integrative model.
International Journal of Conflict Management. 32(4). pp.554-573.
Online
5 Steps of Negotiation Process. 2022. [Online]. Available Through:
<https://www.iedunote.com/negotiation-process-five-steps>
9 Stages of Contract Lifecycle Management. 2022. [Online]. Available Through:
<https://www.contractexperience.com/resources>
How Microsoft Outnegotiated Netscape In The Browser War. 2021. [Online]. Available
Through: <https://www.negotiations.com/case/browser-war/>
Request for Proposal (RFP). 2022. [Online]. Available Through:
<https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/request-for-proposal.asp#:~:text=The%20RFP
%20process%20begins%20with,Bidders%20then%20submit%20their%20proposals.>

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