A Labour and Mediation Consultant, Mr. Austin .A. Gamey has expressed the need for a national platform to change the perception of students that negotiations with school authorities have to be adversarial and acrimonious.
He said there was a whole paradigm shift in negotiations in the 21st Century, which is manifested in a conversational process where parties talk about issues gently, honestly and openly.
Mr. Gamey expressed the view in Accra, during a lecture on Effective Negotiation Skills for students of the Ashesi University College.
Mr. Gamey who is the Chief Executive Officer of Pulse Institute, Africa, training, mediation and coaching firm, reiterated that any negotiation that was not properly concluded to the mutual satisfaction of all parties will keep recurring and this would not augur well for the progress of any organization or society.
"We do not massage conflict we solve them, emphasizing that, "If conflicts are partially massaged by people in authorities or the parties involved, they will keep recurring".
He cited age-old crises around the world such as the Middle East, conflicts in parts of Africa and trouble spots in Ghana like Bawku, Peki-Tsito and Dagbon as recurring because they were not properly resolved through negotiation where the parties act in good faith.
Mr Gamey said one cardinal principle in negotiation was for the parties to bear in mind that they are the best people with the onerous responsibility to address all issues raised.
The parties need to be encouraged to be honest, sincere and open to the facilitator to help in the mediation process.
Mr. Gamey said what was critical in negotiation was a trusted facilitator selected by the parties themselves.
He said when a facilitator was imposed on parties in negotiation, it had the tendency to create mistrust and ultimately undermine the whole process.
Mr. Gamey said the perception that most problems cannot be resolved must give way to a new thinking, where people especially the youth could be encouraged to know that a facilitated negotiation and mediation process could in fact resolve any issue whether at work, Church or home. It also demands that people engaged in negotiations adopt constructive conversation, open mind and heart during the dialogue and final decision stages.
He said in situations where the parties resort to unnecessary argument and unhealthy debates, it only cloud good reasoning on issues and this invariably affect social harmony which was vital for progress.
Mr. Gamey advised students to take advantage of negotiation and mediation training programmes, to acquire the requisite skills which will place them in better positions to face any challenge in the world of work.
"As people who aspire for high office in future, our students need to have at their finger tips applicable negotiation and mediation techniques to ensure harmonious relationship in whatever field they find themselves."
The Labour Consultant challenged heads of educational institutions not to hesitate to liaise with professional mediators to organize training programmes, to equip students with practical negotiation and mediation skills to prevent fire fighting and unresolved problems in schools.
A Lecturer in Negotiations and an Assistant Professor at the Ashesi University College, Dr. Esi Ansah said the focus of all programmes at the College was to develop future leaders who were creative in problem solving.
Dr. Ansah said to enable students to have first hand information in problem solving, they enact role -play, where experts from industry were on hand to offer them practical tit-bits or practical ideas in confronting challenges at the work place, the home and other social gatherings.
Dr. Ansah urged students to always work towards negotiation and creative problem solving, in the African Context which should also fit into the wider global scheme.