Harvard Technique gathers momentum

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People who use a method of reaching agreement known as the Harvard Technique will not be surprised at a current surge of interest in the concept in Australia.

Many have discovered the model in the book Getting to Yes by the researchers who identified it – Roger Fisher and William Ury of Harvard University. 

Fisher and Ury led the Harvard Negotiation Project which cut a clear path through many different approaches to negotiation. They came up with a method that is both simple and intellectually challenging at the same time.

It is based on the philosophical concepts of sub group, group and super group. (E.g. Ball point pen, pen, and writing implement.) 

When disagreement occurs, or even looms, the parties will often find agreement by going to the supergroup level. (e.g. can’t agree on pen, but agree that we need something to write with.)

My experience in training negotiators in Vietnam was that this method is very Asian. In fact some of my students called it the Confucian technique. It became slightly embarrassing to see young Vietnamese officials who I’d coached turning the tables on experienced bureaucrats from guess where – Australia.

For Australian, it can be a bit of a culture shock – but once understood it approached an almost religious status.

Some of our federal agencies specify the Harvard method as the only one to be taught in negotiation training programs.

In Australia, most of the well-respected negotiation trainers centre their programs on Harvard.  At Roger Fry and Company, we teach a Harvard Meeting Skills program, and offer the concept in other programs such as briefing skills.

Use of the technique helps to turn around an audience which a speaker predicts will be against a proposal.  Tony Blair used it in his speech to the joint sitting in Canberra in May last year – where he sought support for the UK involvement in Iraq to an audience which was fairly hostile to the concept.

We have worked with a number of clients who had heard me refer to the technique in other programs, and who asked for a specialised Harvard Technique session.

One federal agency has the responsibility to carry out an important international task for Australia. Its leaders not only attended a focussed Harvard course, but they are looking at dress rehearsing the use of the principles method for important meetings in the future.
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Another group discussing a program is a major state government agency team which negotiates multi million dollar matters several times a week – on issues both within and outside the organisation.

Other interest has come from one of the federal regulators.

All of these groups have welcomed one of the important after effects when agreements are reached using the Harvard Method - the relationship is preserved and often strengthened through the process of moving from disagreement to agreement.

As Fisher and Uri point out on the cover of their book – no one has to give in.

For those interested, Getting to Yes is published by Random House, and has sold over two million copies.  

If, however, you prefer fast paced workshop learning for your team (and three adjectives with every noun) we’ll be happy to talk.

Roger Fry

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