In the concluding episode of our Business English Podcast series on negotiating in English, vamos a ver cerrar el trato.

Success! The hard work of negotiation has paid off. You’ve reached agreement. Now it’s time to close the deal. En este episodio, we’ll study skills and language for the final stage of the discussion. En particular, we’ll focus on summarizing details, tying up loose ends, reinforcing the relationship and adopting a positive style. We’ll see that the end of talks presents a great opportunity to build stronger partnerships.

En este espectáculo, we will look at two short dialogs that demonstrate different styles of negotiation. En el primero, a construction materials supplier, Tony, calls his customer, Pablo, to agree to the terms of a deal. En el segundo, a general manager, Maxine, calls the owner of another company, Pedro, to tell him that her board of directors has agreed to buy his company.

Preguntas de escucha

1. In the first dialog, what does the supplier, Tony, want to confirm with his customer, Pablo?
2. What kind of positive language do Tony and Paul use at the end of the dialog to reinforce the relationship?
3. En el segundo diálogo, does Maxine say that the board has agreed to Peter’s suggested price?
4. From the conversation, does it sound as though Peter will continue to work at his company through the merger?

Download: Podcast MP3

In this episode of our ongoing Business English Podcast series on business negotiations in English, we will discuss how to overcome blockage in a negotiation.

Usually we think of blockage in terms of stumbling blocks, or obstacles, to agreement. But blockage can also be any impediment to creating maximum value. En otras palabras, we’re not only interested in removing obstacles to a deal but also in removing obstacles to a better deal. Doing this successfully often requires thinking outside the box, es decir, thinking creatively.

Entonces en este episodio, we’ll study overcoming barriers. En particular, we’ll focus on identifying stumbling blocks, exploring alternatives, and moving towards agreement.

Recall that Peter, owner of Textacular, has been trying to buy Maxine’s company, Gamester, as part of his strategy to roll up other small businesses. His ultimate goal is to increase the value of his own operation so he can sell it to a larger company for a handsome profit. In previous episodes, Peter had tried to acquire Maxine’s company, but talks reached an impasse when Maxine wouldn’t climb down from or reduce her price of 15 millón.

In today’s listening, Peter calls Maxine back to restart talks. A medida que escucha, focus on the language they use to remove obstacles to agreement.

Preguntas de escucha

1. How does Peter suggest restarting talks with Maxine?
2. What does Peter identifying as the main stumbling block to a deal?
3. What does Peter mean when he says, “It’s not a question of growth for us, it’s a question of survival.”
4. What is Peter’s key insight that enables Maxine and him to overcome their blockage?

Download: Podcast MP3