Derek Interviewed in Middle east by Leading Journalist

March 31, 2009

DOHA • Like Boy Scouts, negotiators should always be prepared, whether the talks involve political issues, business or even sports. Derek Arden, a well-known international conference speaker, business consultant and facilitator specialising in negotiating skills, told The Peninsula yesterday: “The first thing is trying to understand where the other party is coming from and what they are trying to achieve. Most don’t do enough research and there should be advisers on board to help out with little things.”

Arden, who was in Doha at the invitation of the International Bank of Qatar (IBQ) said there were much larger stakes in something like peace negotiations, for example, as opposed to business dealings where money and perhaps jobs are involved.

Body language is also an important aspect that should be taken into account. “Globally, something like the folding of the arms is a defensive gesture. Arms open pretty much means ‘yes’ throughout the world,” he said.

Though there are some gestures that are globally recognisable, some others may be peculiar to a country or region. So, should a businessman and his team head to Japan to strike up a deal, it would be best advised to have someone who knows the lay of the land or even have them meet the team at the airport itself, said Arden.

He highlighted the banging of the shoe by Nikita Khruschev at the UN which would be seen as an insult in most parts of the world. Nevertheless, it is a gesture still remembered way down the line.

With salaries being a key issue in a place like Qatar, what with the rising cost of living, Arden advises that the secret for an employee to get a raise is to prove oneself indispensable to the organisation. A good employee can be lost by a company and once outside groups find out that a hard worker is available due to dissatisfaction with pay, he or she will be immediately headhunted, said Arden.

Speaking of sports negotiations where agents notoriously play a key role, he said interested parties often bring the media on board, to ‘help’ a particular side, a tactic called ‘megaphone negotiations’.

He gave the example of Barcelona and Brazil superstar Ronaldinho, who English Premier League side Chelsea was ready to sign. Megaphone negotiations to a great extent helped raise the possible transfer fee from £35m to around £70m. Perhaps as a consequence, Ronaldinho continues to ply his trade in Spain while Chelsea sits wondering what happened.

The key to any negotiation is that people should be prepared and must ask the right questions. “Often they do not listen to what people are saying or what they are not saying,” said Arden.

A clear case of needing to read between the lines.

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