HRM, Management, Marketing, Finance, Operations > Business Communications
Business Negotiations
Shamim Ansary:
Negotiations can be called as a way of resolving disputes. It is considered as being synonymous to settlement, agreement, collaboration and bargaining. It takes place almost in all spheres of life -be it is business, personal circumstances (married life, parenting, etc.), legal procedures, government matters, etc. Negotiation can be defined as a channel of communication intended to reconcile differences between parties and to settle conflict jointly. The parties aim at achieving a win-win position. Business Negotiations
Business Negotiations requires a lot of homework, such as asking what is the need of negotiation, who all are involved, what are their view points, what are your aims, what is expected from negotiation, etc.
Negotiation involves minimum of two parties. The aim of negotiation is understood by both parties. The parties are willing to arrive at a mutually agreeable outcome. The outcome is acceptable to both parties.
There are certain do’s and don’ts in case of negotiations:
A. Do not discuss too many issues, emphasize on the prior issues.
B. Be honest and straightforward. Don’t get carried away by rumors.
C. Never give deadlines, it might lead to delays in deals.
D. Keep away personal differences. Just focus your arguments on facts.
E. Keep on giving recaps during the negotiation process.
F. Avoid being rigid. Listen to the other parties view point if valid.
G. Give testimonials for your argument. Support your argument with facts.
H. Don’t make demands which can’t be accepted at all.
I. Don’t let emotions overwhelm you.
J. Be optimistic. Don’t fear losing. There are opportunities in other transactions also.
Shamim Ansary:
An interview means a face to face interaction between the interviewer and the candidate/candidates so as to obtain desired information from him/them. It can also be defined as a way of exchanging meanings between individuals by using a common set of symbols. Interviews generally need a preparation. Job interviews seem frightening, even if the individual is well prepared. Interviews have a definite structure. Clear communication should take place during an interview. All interviews have a definite purpose familiar to the interviewer and the candidate/interviewee.
Tips for the Interviewee
I. The interviewee should be dressed formally, and not casually. Have a pleasing appearance as the candidate’s personality is a significant
part of the communication.
II. Always carry an extra CV, a notepad to write on, a pen, and all essential things required in an interview.
III. Practice, practice and practice in advance. Prepare and rehearse for the unexpected also.
IV. Research a lot about the organization for which you are being interviewed.
V. As soon as the interview gets over, pen down the name of the interviewer, your strengths and weaknesses, answers to questions raised
by you during the interview and the feedback of the interviewer.
VI. Be punctual. Try reaching before time for the job interview.
VII. Do not indulge in a fight or argument with the interviewer.
VIII. Answer the questions specifically, truly and undoubtedly.
IX. Be courteous and sophisticated during an interview.
X. Just “be yourselfâ€. Do not boast about yourself. The interviewer is smart enough to judge the candidate’s intelligence and aptness for the
job.
XI. Do not make negative statements or comments about your past employer.
XII. Your body language should be positive during the interview, i.e., maintain an eye-to-eye contact with the interviewer, sit in well balanced
and confident posture, do not lean on the table, do not yawn, smile when appropriate, etc.
Tips for the Interviewer
I. The interviewer should be an active listener. He should not interrupt unnecessarily.
II. The interviewer should be considerate enough. Even if the interviewer does not agree with the interviewee, he must respect the latter’s
feelings.
III. The interviewer should be friendly and understanding. He should begin the interview in a friendly manner, some friendly conversation and
then show concern in family background, hobbies, etc. This will make the interviewee more relaxed and comfortable.
IV. The interviewer should restrain to the time allotted. He shouldn’t indulge in arguments unnecessarily. He should try to be precise.
V. The interviewer must be thoroughly prepared for the questions that are likely to be asked. He should be a good planner.
VI. The interviewer must focus attention on the interviewee. He should use positive gestures when conducting the interview.
VII. Encourage/invite questions from the interviewee. Ensure that the interviewee clarifies the question he has. When selected a candidate
should not feel he was not told about a certain aspect of the job.
VIII. Avoid distraction in the interview area.Ensure that there is no or minimal distraction where the interview is being conducted. A phone
ringing all the time in the background can distract the interviewer and interviewee.
Shamim Ansary:
A resume is also known as CV or curriculum vitae. Resume is an influential and credible summary of an individual’s employment qualifications. There is no standard format for a resume. It gives an idea to the reader that how you can be an asset to their organization. A resume should be:
- Neat
- Have factual and relevant information
- Self describing
- Clearly indicate why you are best suited for this job
- Up to date
Resumes should be written not for yourself but for the reader. A good resume must be properly planned, drafted and finally revised. Regard your resume as work in progress and give it a polish every couple of months. You never know when you will be asked for it. Your resume needs to recap and capture the spirit of our competency/what’s best about you.
Resumes are of two types:
Chronological Resume- These resume gives a quick brief up of what the candidate has done in a timeline-beginning with the latest events and moving back in reverse chronology. It stresses upon the degrees, job headings and the dates. Such a resume demonstrates steady development/movement to the current time.
Skills Resume- These resume stresses upon the skills and competencies possessed and used by the candidate, rather than the job and the date in which those skills have been used. It is generally prepared when the candidate frequently changes his job or when his education and experience do not harmonize/match with the position for which the candidate is applying.
Do’s and Dont’s in your Resume
01. Shouldn’t be too long. It should not exceed two pages generally.
02. CV should be true and factual.
03. The first page should contain enough personal details for a recruitment consultant or potential employer to contact you easily.
04. Choose a format that highlights key skills, key competencies, key achievements or key attributes.
05. Your employment background should begin with your current job and work backwards.
06. List all relevant qualifications.
07. Do not include negative or irrelevant information.
08. Include details of training or skills development events attended.
09. Include personal details.
10. Use a very good quality paper.
11. Do not use a type size less than 11pt.
12. Typefaces such as Times New Roman or Arial should be used.
13. CV should be carefully typed. No spelling errors should be there.
14. Use bulleted paragraphs. This will save space and make the CV more effective.
15. Emphasize achievements that are recent, and are most relevant for the position for which the candidate is applying.
16. Items in resume must be concise and parallel.
17. While submitting a resume, it must be accompanied with a cover letter to make the readers aware of what is being send, and how can it be
beneficial to the readers.
18. Include references if possible in a resume. If giving references, use three to five. Include atleast one lecturer, and at least one employer.
19. To stress upon the key points in a resume, put them in appropriate headings, list them vertically, and provide details.
Shamim Ansary:
What is Report Writing ?
A report can be defined as a testimonial or account of some happening. It is purely based on observation and analysis. A report gives an explanation of any circumstance. In today’s corporate world, reports play a crucial role. They are a strong base for planning and control in an organization, i.e., reports give information which can be utilized by the management team in an organization for making plans and for solving complex issues in the organization.
A report discusses a particular problem in detail. It brings significant and reliable information to the limelight of top management in an organization. Hence, on the basis of such information, the management can make strong decisions. Reports are required for judging the performances of various departments in an organization.
An effective report can be written going through the following steps-
A. Determine the objective of the report, i.e., identify the problem.
B. Collect the required material (facts) for the report.
C. Study and examine the facts gathered.
D. Plan the facts for the report.
E. Prepare an outline for the report, i.e., draft the report.
F. Edit the drafted report.
G. Distribute the draft report to the advisory team and ask for feedback and recommendations.
The essentials of good/effective report writing are as follows-
A. Know your objective, i.e., be focused.
B. Analyze the niche audience, i.e., make an analysis of the target audience, the purpose for which audience requires the report, kind of data
audience is looking for in the report, the implications of report reading, etc.
C. Decide the length of report.
D. Disclose correct and true information in a report.
E. Discuss all sides of the problem reasonably and impartially. Include all relevant facts in a report.
F. Concentrate on the report structure and matter. Pre-decide the report writing style. Use vivid structure of sentences.
G. The report should be neatly presented and should be carefully documented.
H. Highlight and recap the main message in a report.
I. Encourage feedback on the report from the critics. The feedback, if negative, might be useful if properly supported with reasons by the
critics. The report can be modified based on such feedback.
J. Use graphs, pie-charts, etc to show the numerical data records over years.
K. Decide on the margins on a report. Ideally, the top and the side margins should be the same (minimum 1 inch broad), but the lower/bottom
margins can be one and a half times as broad as others.
L. Attempt to generate reader’s interest by making appropriate paragraphs, giving bold headings for each paragraph, using bullets wherever
required, etc.
Shamim Ansary:
Presentation can be defined as a formal event characterized by teamwork and use of audio-visual aids. The main purpose of presentation is to give information, to persuade the audience to act and to create goodwill. A good presentation should have a good subject matter, should match with the objective, should best fit the audience, and should be well organized.
Characteristics of a Good/Effective Presentation
01. The presentation ideas should be well adapted to your audience. Relate your presentation message/idea to the interests of the audience. A
detailed audience analysis must be made before the presentation, i.e., an analysis of the needs, age, educational background, language,
and culture of the target audience. Their body language instantly gives the speaker the required feedback.
02. A good presentation should be concise and should be focused on the topic. It should not move off-track.
03. A good presentation should have the potential to convey the required information.
04. The fear should be transformed into positive energy during the presentation. Be calm and relaxed while giving a presentation. Before
beginning, wait and develop an eye contact with the audience. Focus on conveying your message well and use a positive body language.
05. To communicate the desired information, the speaker should use more of visual aids such as transparencies, diagrams, pictures, charts,
etc. Each transparency/slide should contain limited and essential information only. No slide should be kept on for a longer time. Try facing
the audience, rather than the screen. The speaker should not block the view. Turn on the room lights else the audience might fall asleep
and loose interest. Organize all the visuals for making a logical and sound presentation.
06. A good presentation must be planned. The speaker must plan how to begin the presentation, what to speak in the middle of presentation
and how to end the presentation without losing audience interests at any point of time.
07. Rehearse and practice the presentation. This will help the speaker to be more confident and self-assured. The more the speaker rehearses
the better the presentation turns to be.
08. The speaker should encourage more questions from the audience. He should be honest enough to answer those questions. If any biased
question is put forth by the audience, rearticulate it before answering.
09. Summarize the presentation at the end. Give final comments. Leave a positive impact upon the audience.
10. The speaker must have a presentable appearance while giving a presentation. The speaker should stand with feet far apart maintaining a
good balance. He must use confident gestures. He must use short and simple words.
11. Try to gain and maintain audience interest by using positive quotes, humour, or remarkable fact.
12. The speaker must be affirmative and optimistic before giving presentation. He should ensure all tools and equipments to be used in
presentation are working well.
13. The speaker must state the objectives of the presentation at beginning of the presentation.
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