Short Paper: Culture and Gender in the Negotiation

You work with a large global packaging company in the United States. The company has branches all over the world. You are in charge of a research project that must have the experiment process completed in Japan, due to the facilities and equipment. The branch in Japan was just recently acquired through a merger and while the branches have good relationships they rarely interact and have very different management strategies and structures. Your project could take several years to complete and you envision the need for a positive long term relationship with your colleagues in Japan. Further, your project will be the first collaboration between the two branches.

Before the project begins, you must negotiate some key terms with your counterpart in Japan:

Equipment that can be used for the research project

Time available for your team's use of the equipment

Use and availability of additional offices for your team while they are conducting the research

Use and availability of additional workers from the branch in Japan

Procedures for storage and shipping of materials

Answer the following questions:

What cultural-based traits will and will not influence this negotiation process? Why?

What negotiation biases will you need to be aware of and how would you avoid it?

How can you respond to the negotiation patterns used by the Japanese negotiator?

What gender-specific traits could be helpful in reaching agreement?

What strategies will you use to reach a good agreement for both parties that would combine the cultural and gender differences explored in this module?

Consider reading the following articles to help you formulate your answers.

How to Negotiate "Yes" Across Cultural Boundaries

Tailoring the Mutual gains Approach for Negotiations with Partners in Japan, China and Korea.