In a series of practical skills seminars, Ron Ton, Director of the Clingendael Academy delivered a seminar on dealing with resistance and conflict and negotiations to Nexia member KroezeWevers. The seminar was attended by consultants of various locations in the eastern part of the Netherlands, such as Enschede, Doetinchem and Emmen. Nexia, the global network of Accounting and Consulting Firms, ranks among the top 10 of the biggest international networks worldwide within the financial services sector.

Accountants and fiscalists have to deal with many parties and stakeholders. Diplomatic behaviour and knowing how to handle resistance and conflict in negotiations contributes enormously to the effectiveness of consultants working at KroezeWevers. Clingendael Academy designed a training program consisting of methods to be better equipped in:

• handling escalation and de-escalation
• recognizing deadlocks and how to get out of them
• understanding conflict-handling modes
• key concepts in negotiating strategies
• skills related to analyzing positions, interests and needs and active listening

The seminar’s final exercise was meant to apply learned insights in a “difficult conversation negotiation” on managing conflicting positions in a project management development case