Communication and Negotiation

Question 1

What forms of communication are you aware of?

Answer 1

• Verbal either in-person or via phone.
• Non-verbal by body language, eye contact, gestures and appearances (smart/casual).
• Written through emails and letters.
• Graphical such as diagrams, tables, drawings and etc.
• Presentations.
• Virtual - Video conferencing through Teams/Zoom.

Question 2

What are the barriers to effective communication?

Answer 2

• Overuse of technical language that is not understood by layman clients, therefore use simple and concise language.
• Language barriers.
• Disinterest and boredom.
• Prejudice.
• Bias.
• Interruptions and distractions.
• Poor call quality or internet quality if calling via phone or video conferencing.
• Delivery of speech is unclear.

Question 3

Please explain to me your approach when negotiating in challenging circumstances?

Answer 3

• Undertake detailed research on the matters and form an opinion.
• Compile supporting documentation and substantiation to any claims.
• Arrange a meeting with the client and project team to discuss matters.
• Reach an agreement that is befitting of both parties and above all else it MUST BE FAIR AND REASONABLE.
• If it helps, try to develop a more partnering approach as oppose to an adversarial one by keeping the project and its deliverables at the heart of the discussion.

Question 4

What makes a successful negotiation?

Answer 4

• Preparation and collating of supporting documentation.
• Each party given the opportunity to present their case in a calm manner.
• Identifying bargaining positions and politely making proposals.
• Confirming in writing on what was agreed following the meeting and any outstanding items to be actioned and by whom.
• Confirming next steps to bring a negotiation to a close.

Question 5

What would you do if at the end of a negotiation, both parties do not achieve a fair and reasonable settlement?

Answer 5

• I would refer to the contract and look at what dispute resolution is referred to.
  For example:
• On Palm Court, which is administered under a JCT SBC 2016 Contract, any matters/disputes arising under this contract are referred to adjudication.

Question 6

Please provide examples of when you have used oral communication skills?

Answer 6

• During my time at Alban LLP, I delivered a presentation on contract insurances.
• On Palm Court, I have participated in account meetings to discuss schedules of variations and what reviews I have conducted.
• Depending on the situation, rather than sending an email, I have not hesitated to pick up the phone to the client and/or other project team members and discuss project related matters with them.

Question 7

What are your thoughts on using email as a form of communication?

Answer 7

• They can carry the same legal value as a letter and contracts can be inadvertently produced via email such as instruction of variations.
• Depending on whom the email is being sent to, one should be careful of the language used as it would be considered unprofessional to use informal language if being addressed to a client or wider project team.
• Make sure to select the correct recipient/s as selecting someone else, one could divulge sensitive information to someone outside of the company as well as the client’s company.
• Emails can be rather than long as depending on the situation, it may sometimes be easier to simply pick up the phone and contact the client or other project team members.

Question 8

Provide an example of when you have successfully negotiated matters on a project and how you went about achieving this?

Answer 8

On Palm Court, the Client was becoming frustrated due to many variations being issued by the Contractor and why it was taking much time to agree them.
As a means of addressing this, I prepared a schedule of the variations to date and noted my comments against them following my review of each one.
I then held a Client account meeting where the Contractor was also present to go through the schedule of variations.
Where possible we were able to reach an agreement on some variations and others required further actions from the Contractor to substantiate the value of their claim.
In the end, the meeting turned out to be a success as both parties were satisfied of the outcome.

Question 9

How would you go about delivering a report to the client?

Answer 9

• Email the report and follow it up with a phone call or arrange a meeting in person to run through it with the client.