Project B

NEGOTIATION

SCENARIO

The Abraham Path Initiative (API) is an international NGO which plans to sponsor and co-
organize a 1,000+ mile journey on foot across the Middle East to raise publicity, money, and to
celebrate its achievements in helping to develop local walking trails across the region. Apart
from the adventure filmmaker that it sponsors, API has partnered with four local partner
organizations, each of which have their own interests at stake in the final design for the walk.
Before the walk can move forward, the parties must deal with two main issues:

1. The Route – what the route will be and which of the four national trails will be included.
2. Branding & Communication – what the brand of the thru-hike event will be and how
substance will be communicated to global and local audiences.

The negotiation takes place in two phases:

 Phase 1: the pre-meeting phase of the negotiation. In this phase, only two participants
(API and the Adventurer) may initiate contact with other participants and only bilaterally.
 Phase 2: the in-person meeting phase, where all parties negotiate at the World Trail
Conference.

Major lessons in this simulation include:

 Coalition formation and spoilers in multiparty negotiations. How do parties in negotiation

MEDIATION

JANET (JAMAL) & ANNIE (ARNIE)

General Instructions
Janet and Annie work in the same six-person office. Janet’s title is senior office assistant, and she
has been in this office seven years. She does a lot of typing and telephoning and making
appointments but also performs some of the functions of an office manager, such as ordering
supplies, arranging the annual office party, and calling the payroll service when the checks don’t
arrive on time. When there is a vacancy, Janet is the one who puts the ad in the paper and
collects applications, though her boss does the interviewing and hiring.

Annie has been here two years. She handles all the computer data entry and other record keeping.
She backs up everyone’s computer weekly and can sometimes help with problems others
experience with their machines. She also fills in for the receptionist while she is at lunch. When
Annie first came, she thought Janet was an equal, though somewhat more familiar with the
office. She now knows that Janet thinks she is loftier, and Annie resents that.

Both have complained to their boss. Annie says Janet is constantly telling her what to do,
interrupting her demanding work by insisting that she do some other task, and criticizing her in
front of others. Janet says Annie is uncooperative, is always bothering other people by stopping
at their desks to chat, and destroys the smooth operation of the office by coming back from lunch
very late, so that the receptionist is always complaining to Janet about having to go late.
Yesterday afternoon they had a very loud argument, screaming insults at each other. Their boss
threatened to fire them both unless they resolved their differences. A co-worker suggested
mediation. Annie called to request mediation, and Janet agreed.

Instructions for Janet

You aren’t really sure this mediation is a good idea. You agreed out of fear -- when your boss
told you and Annie to shut up and threatened to fire you both, you really thought you might lose
your job. On reflection now you think your boss is not going to fire you. You make this office
run. Without you it would come to a halt, and your boss knows that.

All you did yesterday was criticize Annie for being late from lunch. She was 25 minutes late!
She totally flew off the handle and started calling you ignorant and pushy and bitchy! She is the
one who should be fired. She has never worked smoothly with you (or the others, though they
don’t complain), and the office would be better off without her.

You especially resent her remarks about your grammar. She is always correcting what you say
and implying she knows so much more. She is just a computer operator, and they are a dime a
dozen. Any criticism you make of her is related to work, like her extremely messy desk and
always being late. You believe you get paid much more than she does (though you don’t actually
know how much she makes).

You expect to be in this office many years and do not want any black marks on your record
because of her.

Instructions for Annie

You know you shouldn’t have lost your temper yesterday, but Janet had been particularly nasty
the past few days, and you had had it. You often skip lunch or work late and don’t feel you have
done anything wrong by taking a few extra minutes for lunch once in a while. Where does she
get off telling you what to do anyway! You don’t work for her.

You once heard her tell someone (she makes a lot of personal phone calls) that she is the office
manager, but she isn’t. You checked with your boss. She bosses everybody around and the others
just take it. You tried to make friends with her at first, but she acted so superior that you gave up.
She is not actually very smart. Her English grammar is terrible, and she doesn’t know the first
thing about computers.

You probably won’t stay in this office very long, but you don’t want to be fired now. You want
to have time to find another good job -- there are plenty out there -- and want a good
recommendation from your boss.

ARBITRATION
Biogenics Ltd., a Biotech Company had employed Daniel, Dhruv and another 23 scientists to
work in their organization. Daniel and Dhruva were incharge of two very important units where
the research was being carried out. The contract entered into between the scientists and
Biogenics contained an Arbitration Clause wherein the parties agreed to submit their disputes for
Arbitration to a sole arbitrator. Daniel and Dhruv served for three years. Later, some difference
arose and both left Biogenics Ltd. on personal grounds including humiliation, non-payment of
salary etc. Later, they entered into an agreement with Genomics Company Ltd., a competitor and
started the manufacture of similar kind of products that Biogenics Ltd was manufacturing.
They (Daniel and Dhruv) had entered into a Non-disclosure Agreement with Biogenics Ltd.,
which stipulated that they shall not disclose the secret to any outsider. They had also entered into
a non-competing agreement. Feeling aggrieved, Biogenics wants to proceed against Daniel,
Dhruv, and Genomics Company Ltd.