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Business Practice Report: The Harvard Model & HeartSelling

From classic seller-customer relationship to strategic partnership, by Melanie Martinelli

Client: Medical product manufacturer operating in the pharmaceuticals sector

Group size: 12 scientists from Germany and Austria

 Program: “Collaborative Engagement, Strategic Partnership”

 Duration: 2-day training; one year later, 2-day refresher module

Background

As part of a change process program relating to sales strategies, the aim was for employees with a scientific background (so-called medical researchers) to accompany the sales representatives to meetings with the customers, medical professionals working in oncology, on specific medical products, and to provide expert advice. The goal was to move away from the classic buyer-seller relationship and work toward a strategic partnership.

As the medical researchers have detailed knowledge of both the effects and side effects of the products, they are best placed to answer the medical professionals’ questions. However, because they come from a scientific background and their work has previously been primarily of a data-driven nature, they are to receive support in developing their sales skills. To do so, we developed a 2-day training seminar called “Collaborative Engagement, Strategic Partnership” based on the Harvard Negotiation Model.

Refresher module with HeartSelling

We decided to use HeartSelling to kick off the follow-up module in which the topic was to be consolidated. The aim was to repeat, while at the same time enable the learners to actively experience, the contents of the practice-related aspects of the Harvard Model taught in the first part of the training program.

 Duration: 45 min HeartSelling, 2.5 hours reflection, followed by role plays to consolidate the Harvard elements.

Staging

“As you know, a year ago we spent two training days in each other’s company. Now we have two more days to delve even deeper into the topic. At first, it is important to ask: What has happened since the first training module? What now works well? Where are there questions and issues or need for further practice? In order to make it easy for us to really get into the topic in a playful way as well as to tease out one or two other points, we will kick off with a simulation relating to the topic. I’m sure you will immediately recognize a lot of aspects from your business lives and, of course, also from the first module....!” 

Reflecting on key areas through appropriate questions

Which elements of the Harvard negotiation model were important?

Did you experience the Harvard Model more in terms of a “collaborative mindset” or more of a “competitive mindset”? 

Did you try to understand the interests of the other team? Or did you go to market only with your own interests in mind?

How open were you toward the other teams? That is, which information did you share or hold back?

Reactions of the group

All participants said their experience of the learning project was very positive and was very conducive to deep reflection. For the very scientifically oriented group, it was a true “aha moment” for them to realize they could learn so much through a game. As the first training module was more cognitive and heavy on theory, the participants were surprised how much fun and excitement they experienced doing HeartSelling at the beginning of the refresher module.

It was clear that, although the theory behind the Harvard concept formed the basis, individual mindset, in particular, plays a key role in how the concept is experienced in reality. As HeartSelling is like a mirror on reality, authentic behavior comes to the fore, helping each participant to see clearly how he or she “ticks.”

The role that transparency or lack of transparency plays also became clear. The group with information about the heart shape decided to withhold this information from the other group during the learning project. The participants then realized that, in their professional lives, such as when they receive new data, they tend to “keep it up their sleeve” like a joker instead of directly discussing it with the medical professionals, something that would help both sides. The group was struck about how more transparency in terms of information brings true added value.

What the trainer learned

Although it would be easy to think that HeartSelling is only suitable for classic selling scenarios, I was truly surprised at how deeply one can delve into a range of related topics (such as negotiating and strategic collaboration). Indeed, the Harvard method is somewhat more demanding and more complex, so that in-depth reflection is possible. I was particularly struck about how the topics of mindset and attitude enabled them to address their experiences. It was also easy for me to establish a link between the simulation and the overall theoretical framework, particularly also because the participants were not typical sales people. 

Of course, there is often a lot more to selling – and HeartSelling enables you to explore all aspects, both overt and covert. For example, the sales process can be structured like a bazaar: the other person makes an offer, I make a counter-offer and, in the end, we meet in the middle. Or, by way of contrast, I try to creatively develop added value for all parties involved. I was surprised at how many possibilities there were for getting the most out of the tool. 

It was also clear to me that HeartSelling is excellent for reviewing, that is, for repeating content.

Collaborative Engagement: the seven elements at a glance

Introduction

The seven elements are a conceptual approach that helps us to be more cooperative in how we structure, prepare, conduct and follow-up on our discussions (with colleagues, external stakeholders and clients). The seven elements encourage us to be more open in our approach and more creative in finding solutions, to ask more specific questions, to listen more attentively and to plan more strategically. The method behind the seven elements of Collaborative Engagement was originally derived from the Harvard Negotiation Project. 

The seven elements are

 Communication

 Relationship

 Interests

 Options

 Legitimacy

 Alternatives

 Commitment

Communication


Intention: Letting the person you are talking to know that you understand him or her.
Question: Am I prepared to actively listen and ask questions?
 

We frequently have different perceptions about what we want to achieve.
Actively strive to find out what the perceptions of others are and understand what they see and why they see it that way.
It is not a question of necessarily agreeing with the other side, but of communicating with them in such a way that they feel that you are really listening to them, that you have understood them and recognized why they see things in a particular way.
Even if you don’t agree with each other, you should acknowledge each other’s point of view so that you understand each other.
Summary: Talk, listen, sound out perceptions.

Relationship

Intention: To build an unconditionally constructive relationship. 

Question: Am I prepared to go down this path, even if it gets difficult? Am I prepared to achieve what we all want? 

“Unconditionally constructive” means to only do what is good for the relationship and for everyone concerned – irrespective of whether the other side also does the same. 

Be authentic. Be yourself. 

Be open: Let yourself be persuaded and do not shy away from showing your motives. 

Build trust: Will you lay your cards on the table? 

Show respect: Acknowledge each other’s point of view. 

Summary: Establish unconditionally constructive trust 

Interests

Intention: Know what is important for others and be prepared to let others know what is important to you. 

Question: Do I really know what is going on inside the head of the person I am talking to and what is influencing his or her behavior? And am I prepared to let him or her know what my motivations are? 

“Interests” mean needs, concerns, goals, hopes and fears. We have both personal and business interests. How well do we know the interests of our clients?

If we want to truly understand others, the superficial conversations that we generally have are not good enough. Successful collaboration means truly understanding the motivation of the other person and also being prepared to share what motivates us. 

Without this information, it is difficult to find effective solutions that best meet the needs, concerns, goals, hopes and fears of our clients. 

Summary: What is important? Try to find out what the personal and business needs, concerns, hopes and fears of the other side are.

Options

Intention: To create as many options as possible that take the interests of both parties into account. 

Question: What are the different possibilities to best achieve the true goals of those involved? What solutions are there that address the needs, concerns, goals, hopes and fears of all involved? 

Creating value means creating something that previously did not exist. The more interests I cover in our meeting, the more value I generate and the more valuable I become.

Sometimes the ideas are further refined over several rounds of talks. In order to establish which interests we have not yet covered, it can be very useful to ask the other side to criticize our suggestions. Collaboration with a larger team can generate ideas that one would not have thought of oneself. 

Summary: Interests-based added value for both parties

Legitimacy

Intention: Ensuring that what we do is fair, advisable and reasonable for everyone concerned. 

Question: What criteria do I use to ensure that everyone has the feeling that what we are doing, or will do, is fair? 

For most people, fairness is an important motivator. However, we may sometimes have to appeal to objective standards in order to agree on what fair is. We don’t all share the same opinion about what constitutes fairness in any one particular situation. Referencing a neutral standard can make it easier to talk about what fair is when there are different options available.

Some fairness standards are potentially more persuasive than others. Ask yourselves what is fair for you and at the same time fair for me? Be open in your discussions, allow yourselves to be persuaded. 

Summary: Fairness standards.

Alternatives

Intention: Protecting our interests even when the other side does not agree with us. 

Question: Do I know what my best alternative is, and am I willing to discuss it? 

It is best not to discuss alternatives in a threatening atmosphere, but rather in a supportive one. An alternative is something that safeguards my interests as much as possible but does not satisfy the interests of the other side. 

Alternatives are frequently addressed during negotiations. When you know what your alternatives are and, if necessary, present your best alternative, this may get stalled talks moving again. It is also important to know the alternatives of the other party and, in particular, their best alternative. 

In order to get talks moving again, ask how well the alternatives satisfy the other party’s interests. Use the discussion about alternatives to jointly find options that are better than the alternatives.

Commitment

Intention: Complete clarity about who will do what and by when in order to fulfill what we agreed. 

Question: What commitments can I take on and what commitments do I expect others to take on? 

Be realistic when considering what your next steps will be. If each party has unrealistic commitments, implementation of the agreement could easily fail. For this reason, you should ensure that all commitments are proportionate to achieving the envisaged goal. 

When discussing the commitments, you should clarify right at the outset that they need to be realistic, proportionate, and feasible. The details can be worked out later. The quality of the success you want to achieve depends on how decisively you act. 

Summary: Clear, realistic; agree practical next steps.

Melanie Martinelli is Co-Founder and Director of The Learning Gym Ltd in Bangalore, India, and in Hong Kong. Originally from Switzerland, Melanie has gained more than ten years’ experience in the international training industry, and both she and her team are passionate advocates of the experience-oriented learning philosophy. She is a highly-experienced user of METALOG training tools, works with Accelerated Learning and is, of course, certified in the Kirkpatrick Model.