How to – Say No to the Proposal AND Not Reject the Vendor Just about every difficult conversation that people have in business is enhanced tremendously when they can separate issues from personalities and do it convincingly. Conversations that are unpleasant or sensitive are made easier and more effective if you can separate the two – and that holds especially true when you have to say no to a vendor.

You might think to yourself: “Hey, this is business. If feelings are hurt by rejection, that is not my problem; maybe that vendor shouldn’t be IN business,” and you are not wrong. Business is all about the deal that gets made as well as the deal that doesn’t get made. Anyone who takes business personally definitely has a problem. But hurt feelings could present a problem for you as well:

• You might want a proposal from that vendor again in the future. You want them to have positive feelings about you and your organization.

• A teaching opportunity exists in your rejection by communicating what the vendor needs to do in order to get your business. That message will only be received if the relationship between you and the vendor is maintained.

There is no law that says you have to explain why you are not accepting a proposal, but there is a benefit to doing exactly that. Not only is giving a concise reason for selecting one proposal over another the decent thing to do, it is critical if you want to preserve a positive relationship with a potential future supplier. It also helps to educate the vendor about how he or she might serve you better in the future, which could be beneficial to both of you.

Try to communicate your quantifiable, objective target compared to what is in the proposal. Avoid making judgmental statements about personalities, talent or capabilities.

Remember:

1. Say no to the proposal, not the vendor.
“Your proposal for the work was very impressive, Lucy, and it created a lot of discussion. But the approach outlined is too costly and we are going with a scaled-back version. I want to thank you for a great effort and I’d like to call on you in the future. I’m glad we had the chance to meet and got the opportunity to see what your firm can do.”

2. If possible, be optimistic but don’t mislead.
“We've reviewed your proposal but what you propose is not up to our specifications. We’re looking at other vendors, but there is still a month before the deadline. Perhaps you would be interested in reviewing the spec sheet and submitting a revised proposal by the deadline.”

3. If the vendor is way off course, do NOT respond. You could get caught with an unexpected follow up call. While you don’t anticipate wanting to do business with them now or in the future, in business, what goes around comes around. Be firm and decent: “Your proposal came in 50% over our budget limit. That’s a gap that I can’t see myself asking you to close. I went with a proposal that is much closer to our constraints.”  10:37 AM •  0 Comments •

How To - Win at Office Politics I started out my career wishing that Office Politics didn’t exist because I was so bad at playing the game. In the workplace, almost everyone competes for things: opportunities, money, customers, resources, and promotions, face time with colleagues, prestige, recognition, advancement, and power. Because so many people plot and scheme, it illustrates the truth about politicking - it works. So getting better at office politics is critical to survival and success.

TYPES

When it comes to the political game, people can be divided into three types:

The Idealist - focused on work. They don't like politics, work hard, follow the rules, try to do what is “fair” and “right”, and feel frustrated when decisions made are not “fair” or “right”. They end up sounding like organizational martyrs, griping about how unfair things are.

The Schemer - often arrogant, sometimes a bully and always with a clear focus on what is best for them. They climb over others, manipulate, deceive and exploit people and situations to get the upper hand.

The Pragmatist - respects the rules and gets that the unofficial rules of politics can be more important. They know that decision makers have both personal and professional buttons that need to be pressed.

Politicking describes the act of examining business relationships and learning how to influence others more effectively. It means using informal AND formal channels; and that isn't always a bad thing. Understanding politics and knowing how to exert a little influence can help you pull people together and achieve outcomes that are in the firm's best interest.

DON’T
• Be completely candid with anyone, any time, no matter where, when, or who might be listening
• Focus only on your needs, goals, and objectives
• Believe good work trumps alliances and relationships
• Blow your own horn
• Use people and steal ideas

DO
• Be aware of the pecking order, the organizational chart, friendships and alliances
• Pay your dues
• Align with people who are successful
• Identify the sharks and develop a survival strategy
• Know what the goals are of others and support their efforts
• Make people aware of your accomplishments and give credit to others
• Be aware of (and prepare for) the consequences of your actions

Office politics is a lot like the national political scene. You can play the game, learn to play it well, or get left behind. It's completely up to you.  9:51 AM •  0 Comments •

How to - Use Small Talk to Get Big Outcome Small talk, cocktail chatter, kibitzing – it’s the communication staple of networking. Many people confess that they are not very good at it; so they end up either avoiding it completely, talking on and on about things that hold no interest for anyone, or making a sales pitch as soon as they are introduced.

Shooting the breeze EFFECTIVELY is strategic and focused. You can use small talk to help develop a team, create and strengthen your relationship with colleagues, obtain leverage to help secure support or simply make your relationships more pleasant.

If you enjoy the art of making conversation, it is probably because you like learning about other people. However, many people simply enjoy hearing themselves talk! Not that there is anything wrong with that, but if you want to harness the power of small talk, enhance your relationships, or improve the work environment you will have to give up listening to yourself and begin learning about others.

Engage Them

Reduce the amount of declarative sentences you say and increase the number of questions you ask. Shift from “Hey Donna! I just saw the new Indiana Jones movie over the weekend,” to, “Donna, do you like movies?”

You already know what you like and don’t like. Rather than use up valuable air time repeating what you already know, use small talk to learn something new. If knowledge is power, then the more you know about Donna, the stronger your basis for communication with her.

Small talk allows you to learn the wants, needs, goals, desires, thoughts and hot buttons of the people with whom you work, and those with whom you want to work. The more you know about these folks, the more effectively you can communicate with them.

It is to your advantage to appeal to the self interests of others, and small talk is the vehicle that can help you learn about those interests.  10:46 AM •  0 Comments •