01
Scope
Are both offers actually covering the same product, quantity, accessories and exclusions?
Commercial judgement
A deal is not won at the lowest rate.
It is won when both sides understand the exchange clearly: price for quantity, speed for certainty, flexibility for commitment, or better terms for a cleaner order.
The art of deal making
Prepare calmly. Ask better questions. Trade deliberately.
A negotiation is not a performance. It is a structured conversation about what each side values and what each side can responsibly commit to.
In procurement, the strongest position usually comes from understanding the package better than the other side expects: scope, alternatives, lead time, payment, risk and the cost of waiting.
01
Prepare the ground
Know the scope, your alternatives and the cost of delay.
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02
Find the real constraint
Ask what matters to the other side — not only what they are asking for.
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03
Trade, do not give
Every movement in price should connect to a movement in value or certainty.
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04
Close with a record
Make the next step easy to confirm, execute and revisit.
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Prepare the groundPreparation gives you options. Know your target, your walk-away point and the facts behind both before the conversation starts.
A useful checklist
Before asking for a better price, know what “better” means.
A lower number is not always the better deal if it creates a longer lead time, a weaker specification or an unresolved commercial risk.
02
Timing
What is the cost of delay, and what certainty does the supplier need to protect delivery?
03
Terms
Can payment, warranty, freight, validity or phased delivery create more value than rate alone?
04
Next move
What exact response do you need, from whom, by when and in what written format?
A sentence worth keeping
“I am not asking you to move without giving something back. Let’s agree what would make the movement worthwhile for both sides.”
That sentence changes the conversation from pressure to exchange. It also forces the negotiator to understand what the other side values.
Good deal making leaves the relationship stronger because the agreement is clear, not because one side feels that it lost.
Have a negotiation coming up?