CBI Business Case Studies

WPP Group, a company made up of over 300 marketing media and marketing agencies, found itself under increasing pressures from clients and their procurement consultants. Based on confidential interviews with top executives, CBI initially provided a careful assessment current practices and opportunities for improvement. We then created a two-day tailored workshop that was given a dozen times globally to over 500 top executives from across the agencies. In addition, we helped an internal coaching team inside WPP to develop its own training and coaching capabilities, reaching more than a thousand additional managers. Thanks to CBI’s intervention, WPP negotiators have reported not only increased confidence and satisfaction with the negotiation process but also increased ROI:  from five cases alone, savings of close to a million dollars were attributed to new learning.

Each year since 2004, CBI has provided training in the Mutual Gains Approach to Negotiation (MGA) to leaders across McDonald’s U.S. Regions. Although corporate and franchisee interests are often well aligned, in some cases their interests differ, and conflicts sometimes arise in implementing new operational initiatives.

CBI has undertaken a negotiations audit for business development leaders in a global manufacturing firm.  The audit will provide a basis for tailoring future workshops and for identifying steps the organization might take to build its negotiation capabilities.

CBI helped the organization to build capacity across its business groups on a global scale, setting the stage for improved knowledge management systems that will help negotiators to achieve consistently better results in mission-critical business negotiations.

An initial one-day course catalyzed an organization-wide commitment to build the negotiation skills of all American Cancer Society staff and volunteers. With training and ongoing support from CBI, a team of ACS trainers is now providing their own negotiation skills workshops throughout the organization and around the country.

CBI has developed a customized 3-day “Negotiation & Influence Skills” curriculum for Capital One’s senior executives and middle management.