The eLearning Center for Gatlin Education Services

This course will help participants understand the risk involved in a traditional “win-win” approach to project negotiations and develop a new strategy and supporting tactics that will either assure “satisfaction” on both sides or at least maintain good will if an agreement cannot be reached. They learn to analyze the nature of their satisfaction for every negotiating situation and develop tactics to achieve it.

It begins with a look at the major working styles that may be involved in negotiations and how to approach the negotiation from the viewpoint of the other side’s interests and utilize tactics appropriate for each type. Then we explore the fundamentals of negotiations to identify the skills and concepts that apply in any kind of project setting.

Finally, we identify what a successful relationship with a service or product vendor would look like and how we can establish it on any project. We include suggestions for a Request for Information (RFI), a Request for Proposal (RFP), and developing measurements for subjective “fuzzy” topics.

It does do not discuss developing or negotiating contracts, risk management, nor provide legal advice. Those topics are beyond the scope of this work.

The student must take a multiple-choice quiz consisting of sixty-five (65) questions at the end of the course to obtain PDH credits.

State Board Acceptance

This course can be used by professional engineers to fulfill PDH requirements mandated by state and provincial licensing boards. Decatur Professional Development is an approved provider of continuing education in all states that pre-approve course providers. In all other states that mandate continuing education for engineers, it is the individual engineer's responsibility to determine the suitability of activities for PDH credit. The state boards typically accept online* courses that cover technical, managerial** or ethical content and which are relevant to the practice of engineering. The course must have a clear purpose or objective with a content that will maintain, improve or expand the skills and knowledge of the licensee's field of practice. For questions about your mandatory PDH requirements, visit the website of your state licensing board.

*Online courses are accepted by all state licensing boards that mandate continuing education. Other than New York (which limits online courses to 18 PDH) and Iowa (which limits online courses to 6 PDH), there are no limits placed by other states on the number of hours that can be earned through online continuing education. Consult with your state licensing board if you have any questions about the acceptability of online courses.

**The New York State Board of Engineers does not accept general office management courses, but will accept project management courses that are offered by an approved provider and that are technical in nature and contribute to the engineer's professional practice.

Please Note: Continuing Education credits for this course are awarded as PDH (Professional Development Hour Credits).