To equip leaders and senior managers with the advanced strategic negotiation skills and governance frameworks necessary to structure and manage complex, high-value partnerships and alliances:

• Executives and Senior Managers involved in high-stakes contract negotiations.
• Heads of Business Development, Alliances, and Partnerships.
• Procurement and Sourcing Executives negotiating major supply agreements.
• M&A and Corporate Development Professionals.
• Legal and Commercial Managers responsible for strategic agreements.
• Anyone whose role involves building and maintaining complex external strategic relationships.

• Intensive negotiation simulation and role-playing exercises (e.g., supply chain contracts, M&A terms).
• Group exercise on mapping power, interests, and BATNAs for a complex negotiation.
• Case studies of strategic alliance failures and the impact of poor governance.
• Workshop on drafting the core strategic governance document for an alliance.
• Peer feedback and critique on personal negotiation style and effectiveness.

Unit 1: Negotiation as a Strategic Tool

• Differentiating between tactical, transactional, and **strategic** negotiation.
• Identifying the ultimate strategic goal (BATNA) and minimum acceptable position (ZOPA).
• Using pre-negotiation analysis to map power, dependencies, and interests.
• The role of the negotiation team and its strategic mandate.

• Strategies for maximizing the creation of joint value (Win-Win).
• Techniques for effective value claiming and securing a favorable slice of the pie.
• Managing the strategic trade-off between current win and future relationship.

Unit 2: Strategic Alliance Formation

• Defining strategic criteria for alliance partners (e.g., capability complementarity, cultural fit).
• Evaluating the risks and strategic dependencies associated with the partnership.
• Due diligence beyond financials: assessing operational and cultural compatibility.

• Key contractual elements for strategic alliances (scope, IP, termination).
• Designing incentive structures that align partner motivations with shared strategic goals.
• Techniques for addressing potential conflicts and divergence of interests upfront.

Unit 3: Partnership Governance and Value Management

• Establishing a clear governance structure (e.g., Steering Committees, Joint Working Groups).
• The importance of relationship management and building trust as a strategic asset.
• Defining the metrics and KPIs for alliance health and performance.
• Managing internal and external communication about the partnership.

• Strategies for adapting the partnership scope and terms as the market evolves.
• Identifying and managing strategic "creep" (unintended expansion of scope).
• The process of strategically exiting or renegotiating a failed or completed alliance.

Unit 4: Advanced Negotiation Dynamics

• Diagnosing sources of power in a negotiation (information, alternatives, legitimacy).
• Strategies for negotiating from a position of relative weakness.
• Techniques for managing complex, multi-party, and cross-cultural negotiations.

• Recognizing and exploiting negotiation biases in counterparties.
• Maintaining an ethical and high-trust approach in high-stakes settings.
• The strategic risk and reputational cost of aggressive or "dirty" tactics.

Unit 5: Integrating Negotiation with Corporate Strategy

• Ensuring the negotiation mandate is fully aligned with the corporate strategic plan.
• The role of the C-suite and Board in setting the strategic boundaries of a deal.
• Communicating the strategic rationale of a negotiation outcome internally.