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.