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BMGT20190

Academic Year 2026/2027

Introduction to Negotiations (BMGT20190)

Subject:
Business Management
College:
Business
School:
Business
Level:
2 (Intermediate)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Virginia Stewart
Trimester:
Spring
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

Negotiation is the process through which conflicts are resolved, resources are allocated, and agreements are made. The types and contexts of negotiation vary widely from minor disagreements amongst friends to complex, high-risk commercial, legal or political negotiations. In this module you will gain a broad understanding of the concepts, frameworks and theories of negotiation and the body of empirical research that supports them. You will learn to differentiate between effective and ineffective negotiation strategies and tactics and how to create and claim value when negotiating.

Throughout the module you will engage in hands-on negotiation exercises, class discussion, and reflection on your skill development. Attendance in class for the learning activities is therefore essential for success in the module.

Materials: Students are required to register and pay the copyright fees for negotiations exercise materials (estimated at 50 euros). The required textbook is free through the UCD library. Students are actively encouraged to engage critically with specific AI negotiation tools in several elements of this module.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

The objective of this module is to provide you with the tools and skills to help you become an effective negotiator and to give you experience of negotiating. On completion of this module, you will be able to:
1. Understand negotiation as a collaborative decision-making process.
2. Have a broad understanding of the central concepts in negotiation. These concepts will be the building blocks from which we can systematically understand and evaluate a negotiation process and develop a toolbox of effective negotiation principles and tactics derived from theory and empirical evidence.
3. Learn how to apply this toolbox of principles and tactics in practice to improve your negotiation skills, processes, and outcomes.
4. Become a more reflective negotiator. Adopt the habit of continually evaluating, and seeking to enhance, your knowledge and effectiveness.

Indicative Module Content:

Claiming Value
Creating Value
Strategies of Influence
Dispute Resolution
Multi-party Negotiations
Multi-round Negotiations
Team Negotiations


UNESCO highlights a set of key competencies that support individuals in their development and support society in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UCD has adapted these competencies and is combining them with others to form a general framework of learning competencies. This module will help you develop the competencies below to the levels specified. 
Learning Competency Additional Information Level

Collaboration

The ability to learn from others; to understand and respect the needs, perspectives and actions of others (empathy); to understand, relate to and be sensitive to others (empathic leadership); to deal with conflicts in a group; and to facilitate collaborative and participatory problem solving. Advanced Beginner

Critical Thinking

The ability to question norms, practices and opinions; to reflect on one’s own values, perceptions and actions. Advanced Beginner

Systems Thinking

The ability to recognize and understand relationships; to analyse complex systems; to think of how systems are embedded within different domains and different scales; and to deal with uncertainty. Not addressed

Strategic

The ability to collectively develop and implement innovative actions that further sustainability at the local level and further afield. Not addressed

Integrated Problem Solving

The overarching ability to apply different problem-solving frameworks to complex sustainability problems and develop viable, inclusive and equitable solution options that promote sustainable development, integrating the competencies in this list. Novice

Self-awareness

The ability to reflect on one’s own role in the local community and (global) society; to continually evaluate and further motivate one’s actions; and to deal with one’s feelings and desires. Novice

Normative

The ability to understand and reflect on the norms and values that underlie one’s actions; and to negotiate values, principles, goals, and targets, in a context of conflicts of interest and trade-offs, uncertain knowledge and contradictions. Advanced Beginner

Anticipatory

The ability to understand and evaluate multiple scenarios for the future – possible, probable and desirable; to create one’s own visions for the future; to apply the precautionary principle; to assess the consequences of actions; and to deal with risks and changes. Advanced Beginner

Digital Literacy and Judgement

The ability to access, evaluate, create and communicate information in digital environments; to engage critically, ethically and responsibly with digital technologies and digital information; to understand their opportunities, limitations, risks and impact on individual’s digital identities; and to exercise informed judgement in digital participation and decision-making. Novice

AI Literacy & Agency

The ability to understand, critically evaluate and responsibly engage with artificial intelligence; to recognise how AI systems are shaped by human values; to assess their ethical, social and environmental implications; and to exercise human judgement, agency and accountability in AI-related contexts. Novice

Wellbeing

Wellbeing is having the resources and skills to meet life's challenges, including attributes such as personal development skills, resilience, stress management, strengths, lifestyle skills, nutrition, physical activity, sleep, alcohol/substance use, academic skills, time management, goal setting, interpersonal skills, group work, communication. Novice

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Specified Learning Activities

48

Autonomous Student Learning

28

Lectures

24

Total

100


Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This module takes an experiential, problem-solving approach. Its aim is to help you to hone your negotiation skills through real experiences of negotiating. The success of this module depends on your engagement in class exercises and discussions. You will be required to prepare for and take part in negotiation exercises and role-plays. Therefore, attendance at all classes is mandatory.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade Component repeat (in-module) Offered
Group Work Assignment: Weekly in-class negotiation exercises (preparation, participation, reflection). Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Graded No
40
No
Assignment(Including Essay): Independent application of negotiation skills external to the classroom (coaching a friend, preparing for job negotiation, or series of trades). Week 12 Graded No
20
No
Exam (In-person): In-class midterm designed to assess mastery of core negotiation concepts and terminology. One hour, short answer and multiple choice. Week 6, Week 7 Graded No
40
No

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.


Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Online automated feedback
• Peer review activities
• Self-assessment activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Instructor will provide class-level feedback on each negotiation exercise conducted within class. Students can also study their individual negotiation performance on the simulation website. Peer feedback on negotiation strengths and areas for development will be encouraged. Individual written project will receive developmental support from the instructor and a final letter grade.

A list of academic articles can be found in Brightspace

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Spring Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, 32, 33 Fri 11:00 - 12:50