In this hyper-competitive climate, companies lose their focus by going after quantity and not quality. When there is so much pressure to hit goals, organizations tend to discount their offers, negotiating away their profit margins. Price then, and not value, becomes the center point of the conversation with both internal and external customers and suboptimal agreements are achieved for one or all involved.

There have been dozens of books on negotiation, but what’s been missing until now is a book that focuses on conducting collaborative negotiations — specifically, a book that describes what to say, what to do first and last, and how to sequence your moves in any type of negotiation.

Grande Lum, Accordence’s Founder and Managing Director, has been named Director of the United States Small Business Administration’s HUBZone Program, which assists Historically Underutilized Business Zones, under the Obama Administration.

Heather Meeker Green conducted an open session entitled Effective Negotiation: Does It Require Aptitude or Attitude? which provided an opportunity for project managers to refresh their knowledge, learn new skills, and practice effective negotiation, critical for managing project scope, personnel, timelines, and outcomes. The 4-hour evening event, held in Westborough, Massachusetts was organized by the PMI Central Massachusetts Chapter.

Scott Roberts, a Senior Consultant at Accordence, shared over 20 years of his negotiation and strategic consulting experience in a webinar entitled Influencing Without Authority on June 28, 2010. For free access to a recording, please go to the webinars section of the site.

Rick Gibney, a Senior Consultant at Accordence, shared over 20 years of his sales and strategic consulting experience in a webinar entitled Building Trust With Your Customers on May 21, 2010. For free access to a recording, please go to the webinars section of the site.

Founder of Accordence, Grande Lum, has been asked to serve on the prestigious Board of Overseers for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Scott Roberts delivered an interactive presentation on The Power of 3: Persuasion for the Central Indiana ASTD on May 28th, 2010.

Grande Lum, founder of Accordence and Director of the Center for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution at UC Hastings, helps the CNDR make the US News and World Report’s Top Law School Dispute Resolution Programs List for the first time ever.

Focusing on tools for effective negotiations, Jessica Notini, Senior Consultant with Accordence, has collaborated with Advantage Performance Group, to present "Expand the Pie: Negotiating to Create Value." This negotiation webinar was presented live on October 23, 2009 and is now available in pre-recorded format. Jessica shares the critical components for creating the most value possible in a negotiation. This enables negotiators to maximize success and make it easier to claim value when the time to decide on a final option arrives. This material is designed for negotiators of all levels who would like to improve their outcomes and build and maintain long-term relationships with their negotiation counterparts.

Jessica Notini of Accordence will conduct a live 1-hour webcast in conjunction with its partner Advantage Performance Group.

Scott Roberts has written a negotiation article for sales management that identifies preparation and high expectations as the key components for how really great agreements get negotiated. Scott's article has been posted on Paul McCord's Sales and Sales Management Blog (7/23/09)

June 9, 2009 - Heather Meeker Green conducted an open session entitled Getting Off the Escalator: Resolving Conflict Effectively which provided an opportunity for project managers to learn some new skills for effective conflict resolution, critical for managing project scope, personnel, timelines, and outcomes. The evening event, held in Westborough, Massachusetts was organized by the PMI Central Massachusetts Chapter.

Accordence® has designed a negotiation course that will virtually captivate learners! The agenda is based entirely on the well-honed components of its flagship 2-day course entitled Just Negotiate®.

When you have conflict with someone else, look for the conflict inside yourself.

Accordence professionals, Grande Lum, Managing Director, and Jessica Notini, Senior Consultant, have been conducting Negotiation Mastery courses through Stanford University's Continuing Studies throughout 2008 and 2009. The popularity of these open sessions speaks to the increasing realizations by and expectations of professionals to negotiate smarter and more successfully in increasingly challenging business conditions.

For optimum results, we have limited the open sessions to 24 participants. Attendees represent a range of industries and various job functions in which enhanced negotiation skills are critical. The course, Negotiation Mastery: Achieving Outstanding Results and Relationships, continues to be offered multiple times per year due to its high demand and typically registration closes early and a waiting list is maintained. The next scheduled sessions are May 9th and 16th. The interactive course offers participants practical tools and techniques for generating creative solutions in difficult situations.

Companies that are interested in designing a customized course offering to help their internal teams hone their negotiating skills should view our negotiation training solutions and contact us about on-site and virtual negotiation workshops.

Building on the theme of price-driven negotiations, Scott Roberts, Senior Consultant with Accordence, has again collaborated with Advantage Performance Group, to present "Everybody Wins When You Negotiate Well." This negotiation webinar was presented live on March 6, 2009 and is now available in pre-recorded format. Similar to his earlier presentation "Enhance Your Negotiation Success," Scott revisits the key elements of a negotiation framework in light of current and ever-changing economic challenges impacting the global marketplace.

This material is designed for sales people and management who are constantly facing price-driven negotiations and need help to increase their company's bottom-line and sales-peoples' commission during tough economic times. Scott Roberts explains how to make negotiation a competitive advantage when you learn how to discount less, or not at all.

Accordence is pleased to announce a more efficient method for clients to purchase its ICON Negotiation Approach E-Module. To facilitate registration and eliminate a separate step for payment, clients interested in the on-line negotiation course may purchase the e-module through our secure e-commerce web page. The cost of the 90 minute, self-paced, interactive program is $149 USD per person. Volume discounts are available by contacting us and furnishing details about your company, participant group size, and training requirements. A preview of the e-module is also available to explore content and format and match it to your learning style and professional development goals.

On Saturday, October 4, 2008, Grande Lum, Managing Director and Founder of Accordence®, conducted a one day NEGOTIATION MASTERY: ACHIEVING OUTSTANDING RESULTS AND RELATIONSHIPS session at Stanford University for their Continuing Studies program. The full session included individuals from a range of industries and various job functions to which their enhanced negotiating skills would be applied. The interactive course offered participants practical tools and techniques for generating creative solutions in difficult situations. This was the third public negotiation course Accordence has taught at Stanford University, and the next open session is scheduled for February 2009.