This two to three-day program is highly participatory. It includes interactive discussions, role playing, many exercises, self-assessments, videotaping that will be used for feedback, coaching and actually making specific behavioral changes as needed. Appropriate individual and group exercises are included, such as:

Specific exercises on listening, feedback, conflict management and negotiation skills
Exercise to help participants see the power of subtle non-manipulative influencing communications skills
Actual negotiation practice based on real audit situations

The program is designed to not only help auditors become excellent at resolving conflicts and negotiating out differences of opinions; it includes communications and critical thinking skills that helps auditors operate as a leader, originator and manager of ideas and actions, and to develop ongoing, collaborative relationships with the other party. Whether the auditor is encountering conflict in the pre-audit preparatory stage, at the opening conference, during interim feedback meetings on findings during the fieldwork phase, at the closing conference or in follow-up, all the knowledge and skills laid out below are necessary for maximum results.

Auditors also have challenges at times working within audit teams; audit in-charges, managers and directors often need these skills when working with employees and external auditors, and CAEs need these skills at times to manage peer and their boss’ expectations and relationships. The outline below focuses especially on conflict management and negotiation skills related to internal auditing, but all these arenas are covered in the course. ALL of the information below is directly customized to the world and experiences of internal auditors.

Note: This topic is also very popular for conference keynotes and break out sessions. It can also be modified to fit a one-day format.

The IIA has just published Joan's new book on these areas: Conflict Management and Negotiation Skills for Internal Auditors. It is available at: www.theiia.org - go to bookstore. Savings are available for IIA members, quantity buyers and those who order at her IIA events. Click: Excerpts from Joan Pastor's New Book

Introduction

Why conflict management and negotiation skills are critical in audit
What exactly is conflict management, what exactly does negotiation mean in auditing
How exactly are the two similar and different
A 7-step objective and consultative approach to auditing
Where conflict, resistance and negotiations most often occur
The win/win approach to conflict resolution and negotiations: what does “win/win” actually mean?
Is a win/win approach always desirable in auditing?
The big debate: should auditors negotiate?
The bigger question: When and where should auditors negotiate and when should they not?
The role of objectivity in conflict management and negotiation

Good Influencing and Communication Skills Reduce or Prevent Conflict

The specific influencing skills critical for auditing
How we are perceived by others and how to influence others’ perceptions from the first contact and throughout the audit
Forming alliances and networking in the corporation
Why ALL auditors need to be good at this
What happens if audit managers and executives are not good at this
How to build collaborative alliances without compromising objectivity
How to build rapport very quickly
How to get on anyone’s wavelength in 2 minutes
Building rapport in order to build support
Learn the “wiifm” principal and benefits statements, and how auditors use them
Listening powerfully: How to hear what they’re saying and show you are listening
How to use questions to draw others out and get the information you need
A word about proper interviewing skills and preventing conflict
Taking (regaining) control of a conversation and staying in control
Using time to your benefit
Mediation vs. negotiations: mediation can prevent or immediately reduce conflict
When to be brief and concise; when to elaborate

How Conflict Evolves

The good and the bad news about conflict
How conflict evolves, and how to sometimes prevent conflict
Understanding the 3 stages of conflict
The role of expectations in conflict, and why this is so powerful to know
What it means when the same conflict or problem keeps coming up again and again

Discover Conflict Management and Negotiation Styles: Yours & Theirs

Learning your own and other audit clients' specific conflict and negotiations styles
How to assess their style
Learn the in-depth psychology behind the win-win, win-lose, comprimising and avoiding styles of negotiations
Learn hundreds of strategies, tips and techniques for negotiating with different types of styles
Personal power: how to ensure you do not feel the “victim” in a negotiation
Avoiding the wrong approach
How the way you give and receive information tells others about your approach
Knowing when and how exactly to communicate forcefully while maintaining professionalism

Negotiating for Results

Creating an effective negotiation environment
Seating arrangements and presentation
Body Language
Establishing a win-win atmosphere
The basics of negotiation: the step-by-step process for collaborative negotiations
The exact preparations you need to do
How to start the meeting
How to get the actual negotiations started and begin getting the issues out on the table
Very specific listening skills to use at this point
How much information to communicate and what not to say
The power of congruence: putting the rapport building and influencing skills to use
The power of congruence: looking for areas of common ground
Numerous techniques for building common ground
Separating areas of common agreement from areas of resistance
Specific techniques for resolving differences in opinion and perception
Coming to the best solutions
What specifically to do when you cannot come to the best solution for both parties
How to use note-taking and paper as a powerful tool during the negotiations
What exactly to summarize and write out at the end of the meeting
How to caucus and leverage time, information and resources to get even better results
Closing the negotiation meeting: what to do after
How this whole process is modified depending on the phase of the audit

Managing Stress to Improve Your Performance

Specific preparations for reducing nervousness before the negotiations
Three powerful strategies for managing or eliminating your own anxiety
How to stay calm during the negotiations, or while resolving a conflict
2 key strategies for not taking it personally
The skill of detachment
What exactly to do to stay calm if the other person puts you in the “hot seat”
How to ensure you are not contributing to the problem

Special Situations in Negotiations

Avoiding negotiation pitfalls – Lack of preparation and giving away too much too soon
Negotiating on positions vs. negotiating out problems
When to give in; when not to give in on findings
What the research shows
Dealing with last-minute demands
Step-by-step process for mediating conflicts between two other people
Negotiating when win-lose is your only option
When the negotiations are not face to face

Defusing Anger and Angry Confrontations

The three steps to defusing negative emotion that suddenly arises
How to make venting a solution instead of a problem
Resolving conflict through fact-finding

How to Handle “Difficult” Audit Clients

The secret factor: What does your executive management and organizational culture allow
The relationship of organizational culture, management and audit committees to "difficult" clients
Labeling people as difficult
Why labeling people “back stabber,” “bullies,” “con artists”, etc. can be dangerous and actually reduce your effectiveness
When does it actually help to “label” people?
What actually is a difficult person, then, and understanding how “difficult” people think
The link between conflict and difficult audit clients
Need vs. want
How conflict can make “easy” audit clients “difficult”
How to identify appropriate and different types of difficult people
The step-by-step process for turning around the “difficult” person
Is there a truly manipulative person? YES!
How to recognize them
What exactly to say and do
When the auditor needs to kick the problem up to the management level

Resistance, resistance and more resistance

The psychology behind resistance and what exactly you must do
How to handle "passive resistance" and all kinds of passive-resistant behavior
Getting around the other parties’ resistance with 3 key words
How to handle a person that whines all the time
How to handle people who agree to your requests but then don’t follow through
Handling an individual that gives you too little information

Other Negotiation Situations Related to Auditors

Special projects that are not audits: Negotiating a contract to work together
Conflict management and negotiation skills when an audit supervisor or manager does not agree with the auditor(s)
When the problem is a performance issue
Conflict resolution in audit teams
Is there a lot of conflict between auditors on an audit?
The role of supervisors/in-charges in mediating problems
Techniques for negotiating with your boss
When to push and when to go around
How to maintain your integrity in conflict and negotiation situations

Close

Your action plan to improving your skills in these arenas
Working with a partner
Getting hands-on training in conflict management and negotiation skills
When it’s a good idea and why