Question

CASE PROBLEM 4A: Katrina Wants Relief from the Open-Office Plan.
Katrina has been working as a business development planner at Gold Medal, a telecommunications company, for three years. Gold Medal sells telephone and Internet services to residential and commercial customers. Considering that the telecommunications business is intensely competitive, business development is essential to Gold Medal. Another reason that business development is essential at Gold Medal is that large numbers of customers are dropping their landline telephones and shifting to mobile. A major part of Katrina’s daily work routine is to identify potential customers who do not already have phone and Internet service or who are dissatisfied wither their current provider. In Katrina’s words, “I have to do a lot of heavy creative thinking.” Three months ago, top-level management at Gold Medal decided to switch to an open-office plan. Individual managers and workers would no longer be able to work in cubicles or private offices. Instead, everybody would work out in the open, seated closely to one another at long work tables. A few closed-door conference rooms would be available for internal meetings and meetings with commercial customers. A private conference room could also be scheduled for performance reviews, sensitive discussions, and disciplinary meetings. Katrina took an immediate dislike to the open-office plan. At the top of her concerns was that sitting in close physical proximity to coworkers made concentrating on generating new ideas for business development very difficult. Katrina also thought that the noise from the constant
chatter of coworkers was a stressor that interfered with creative thinking. Katrina scheduled a meeting with Branson, the marketing manager, to see if she could negotiate her way out of being assigned to an open-office plan. A partial transcript of her meeting with Brandon follows: Katrina: As I said in my e-mail, I can’t stand the open-office plan. You can’t expect me to do analytical work or think creatively when I feel that I’m working in a subway or on a crowded bus. Brandon You sure do feel strongly about the new office plan. But a lot of companies are using open-office space to spark collaboration and creativity among their workers. At Gold Medal, we are buying into an important new movement. Katrina: I know that management has given a lot of thought to the new office layout. The problem is that it is a disaster for me and a few other workers I have spoken to. Brandon: Maybe you have to give the new office layout a little more time. Katrina: I’ve got a better idea, Brandon. How about authorizing me three days a week to work remotely? When I work from home or some other quiet location, I could do all my analytical and creative work on those days. When I am at Gold Medal headquarters, I can take care of routine work. I know that I can take care of routine work amid noise and distractions. Brandon: You are asking for too big a change in company policy all at once. Maybe we can talk about this topic again in the near future. Katrina: Count on me to bug you again.

Case Questions
1. Which negotiating technique or techniques does
Katrina appear to be using?
2. How effective is Katrina so far in negotiating for a
favorable outcome for herself?
DuBrin_Ch04.indd 61 12/07/19 10:23 AM
Negotiation and Conflict Resolution in
Organizations
62 Chapter 4 Basic Negotiation Tactics
3. To what extent is Brandon looking to find a negotiated
solution to Katrina’s demands?
4. What suggestions can you offer Brandon to do a
better
job of negotiating with Katrina?

Answer 1

1. Katrina seems to be using Integrative negotiation. It is a merit-based negotiation. It is a win-win situation for both. Plus, it dwells more on forming a relationship than taking the entire pie for own.

Here, Katrina puts up a proposal of working three days from a remote location or at a quieter place and three at the headquarters. Thus, here she is taking care of both aspects, without demanding the full change of her office.

2. Katrina is effective, she put up a deal that is based on reason. She also knows her strength which is creative thinking while dealing with the customers and not putting up a demand that takes a U-turn to what has been suggested(like no offie work in open space). Thus, she considered both aspects of the stakeholder and her.

Her solution, offered to work from a quieter place for three days is also for the benefit of the company and that Brendon understands well

Thus, it is an effective negotiation. She has put up the first offer nicely. Here, her BATNA was to work the entire week from the open office space.

3. Brandon is considering her arguments. However, he feels that it is a big change to what is actually been proposed. Especially, as it would encourage others to get the same treatment, a few days work from a remote area.

He exclaimed towards the end that he would talk about it in the near future. Also since it was a deliberate decision from the management, asking something of this type is changing the company policy.

Thus, although Brandon is considering Katrina's demand, he is also skeptical to allow it and needs some time according to the case.

4. Brandon's should suggest Katrina to try the new setting for a few days, before making an opinion about it. He may also tell about the consequences of it like other people would also demand the same and then the entire purpose of open office would get ruined.

He may offer a solution, in house. For example, whenever there is a creative work to be done, or there is a lot of disturbance in the office, she could take one of the empty private rooms.

Thus, Brandon should put a counteroffer, where he is considering Katrina's thoughts but not willing to allow 3 days of remote working.

Here, Katrina has already made the first offer, thus Brandon can only counter it. He should also try to be in the style of Integrative negotiation but with different conditions, where her actions do not impact the working of the setting or encouraging other people to do the same.