In order to overcome these challenges, it’s essential to differentiate between two problem areas. The first problem area is the negotiation content. It concerns substantive issues and questions that should be discussed and solved. The second area is the negotiation process. It concerns the steps and actions taken by the participants and the resulting manner in which the negotiation proceeds.
Quality, efficiency and success of a negotiation don’t depend only on substantive issues. They are influenced just as much by how the parties negotiate together.
It isn’t easy to pay attention to both the content (the “what”) and the process (the “how”) during a negotiation. In fact, negotiators tend to focus mainly on the negotiation content. As a result, the process is neglected and the quality of the negotiation suffers. The purpose of negotiation management is to help the parties to go through the negotiation process almost automatically, so that they can focus on the substantive issues and find the best solution possible.