Keynote Session | Wednesday, June 27 | 8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

Negotiation, the process through which two or more people “give and take” in a relationship, is an unavoidable part of organizational life, and thus negotiation skills are an essential part of any leader’s toolkit. Negotiations occur when responsibilities are assigned, people are managed, or deals are struck. Yet, the concept of “negotiating” strikes fear in the hearts of many. For this reason, negotiation is one of the topics organizations most frequently request of Alison when she delivers leadership training to senior leaders in both the military and private sector.

Learning and development (L&D) professionals need to manage – and thus negotiate with – many stakeholders, from educators and facilitators to participants and supervisors. Further, they are often charged with developing and providing negotiation training for their members. In this keynote, Alison discusses what the best (and worst) negotiators do, and the top strategies that enable leaders to solve everyday challenges, both big and small, through negotiation. She will also discuss the educational philosophy and methods of negotiation training – how better negotiation skills can be taught and how L&D professionals can integrate negotiation training into their programs. Drawing on research, both her own and others, Alison provides actionable, science-based advice on how organizations can build their employees’ relationship management skills through negotiations.

Speaker

Alison Fragale, President of Echelon Executive Leadership and Professor of Organizational Behavior, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Alison Fragale educates and entertains audiences by bringing the science of psychology and organizational behavior to audiences in a relaxed, relatable way. Alison is the founder of Echelon Executive Leadership, which provides negotiation and leadership development services to organizations and their leaders. She is also the Mary Farley Ames Lee Fellow and associate professor of organizational behavior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, joining the faculty in 2004. An award-winning teacher, Alison teaches and mentors leaders and executives through her roles as teacher, coach and facilitator. For over a decade, Alison has served as a speaker, instructor, or consultant on leadership, psychology and negotiation for executives in numerous organizations, and has spoken before more than 200 executive groups over the course of her career. Her clients include Lowe’s Home Improvement, ExxonMobil, Schneider Electric, Eastman Chemical, the National Multi-Housing Council, AvalonBay, Post Properties, Navy Federal Credit Union, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and the U.S. Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy. Her instruction on the psychology of power and leadership is part of the required general officer curriculum in both the U.S. Army and Air Force.