# Prepare for a negotiation

Interests, BATNA, walk-away point, concessions, and a negotiation plan.

- Topic: Projects & Operations
- Framework: RCTFVV
- Level: Advanced
- Tags: Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/prepare-for-a-negotiation

## Prompt

```text
Role: Act as a category manager and negotiator preparing for a supplier negotiation.

Context: The deal and its value/term: [DEAL_VALUE_TERM]. What we want to achieve (price, terms, service, risk, flexibility) and the priority order: [OBJECTIVES]. Our current position and spend leverage: [OUR_POSITION]. What we know about the supplier (their costs, their priorities, their alternatives, their pressures): [SUPPLIER_INTEL]. Our must-haves and walk-away conditions: [MUST_HAVES_WALKAWAY]. Our flexible variables and their value to us / cost to them: [FLEX_VARS]. Market benchmarks: [BENCHMARKS].

Goal: Go into the negotiation with a clear target outcome, a planned sequence of moves, and a concession plan that trades rather than gives.

Task: Produce: (1) the objectives with target / acceptable / walk-away for each; (2) the value levers - where the real money and risk are, and which to prioritise; (3) likely supplier positions and objections, with our response to each; (4) a concession ladder - each possible give paired with the ask we take in return, in sequence; (5) our BATNA and the conditions that trigger it; (6) the opening move, the anchor, and the agenda for the session.

Constraints: Every concession must be traded for something of equal or greater value to us - nothing given free. Do not anchor below our target. Keep it collaborative in tone, firm on substance. Flag any term that needs Legal or Finance approval before it can be agreed. Use the benchmarks to justify positions.

Examples: Concession-ladder row: 'If they hold firm on unit price -> we ask for a longer payment term (+30 days, worth ~[value] to us) and a volume rebate tier.' Objection response: '"Our costs have risen" -> acknowledge, ask for the cost breakdown, benchmark against [index], propose indexing rather than a flat increase.'

Format: Sections: Objectives (target/acceptable/walk-away) | Value levers | Supplier positions & responses | Concession ladder (table) | BATNA & triggers | Opening move & agenda. ~700 words.

Verification: Check every target and concession against the must-haves and any approval limits; flag concessions that assume supplier information we have not confirmed.

Validation: Pressure-test as the supplier's account manager: which of our asks would they walk from, and where would they sense we will fold? Strengthen those points and re-check the walk-away is real.
```

## What to fill in

- DEAL_VALUE_TERM
- OBJECTIVES
- OUR_POSITION
- SUPPLIER_INTEL
- MUST_HAVES_WALKAWAY
- FLEX_VARS
- BENCHMARKS
- value
- index

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.