UK's first-ever negotiation course
Kennedys Advancing Negotiation Skills (KANS) Programme distills over five decades of behavioral insight into one powerful, field-tested experience.
Legacy to Future
It began in 1972—not as a lecture, but as a live negotiation lab at Brunel University. Far from a conventional seminar, it was a pressure-tested environment where role-playing met real-world complexity. The method was sharpened further with senior teams at Shell and Scottish & Newcastle Breweries, marking the origin of the 8-Step, 4-Phase model—a structured, behavioral approach that transformed how negotiation is taught and practiced..
Evidence-based
Based on 50-plus years of observation, research and practical application —the Kennedy 8-Step / Four-Phase system codifies the real behaviors of high-performing negotiators: how they think, adapt, and escalate when the stakes are real. Refined in partnership with Edinburgh Business School, it is now embedded in top FT-ranked business schools worldwide—including IESE, Yale, ESADE, and others—across MBA, DBA, and executive education programmes
Our Research Methodology
Billions of pounds
Our flagship negotiation skills training and development programme
Kennedys Advancing Negotiation Skills (KANS)
K.A.N.S. builds competence and confidence where it counts across the table, under pressure, and when the odds are against you. The result: fewer mistakes, smarter decisions, and stronger deals.
Mastering Strategic Negotiations
(MSN)
It gives more experienced negotiators the skills to tackle complex, multi-party negotiations
Professional Negotiation Coaching (PNC)
Provides managers with a number of tools to reinforce effective use of skills taught in KANS for lasting behavior change.
No matter whom you negotiate with, what’s at stake, or which cultures your counterparts come from whether interests align or conflict your edge lies in situational awareness, readiness, and negotiation acumen. It comes from understanding how people negotiate across the world, recognizing the common phases that underpin all negotiations, and applying strategic behaviors proven to work most effectively when used in the right phase.
Who Is This For?
It’s for those accountable for what happens when it counts. when terms are on the table, stakeholders are watching, and the outcome defines value, trust, or risk.
What Does KANS Teach?
- There is a behavioural process underpinning every negotiation. We call it the 8 Step/Four Phase Approach®
- Recognise the structure behind all negotiations and manage them as a phased process
- Our negotek® preparation method defines clear tradables, negotiable ranges, and priority-led outcomes, so you never enter a deal without leverage
- Develop strategic control by managing movement, holding discipline, and trading only on condition
- Kennedy’s 8 Step/Four Phase helps you identify which phase you are in and everyone one in the room and apply behaviours appropriate for the effective and successful execution of that phase
The result: faster, more profitable, and more resilient relationships, deals, and outcomes with customers, suppliers, and internal stakeholders.
50 years of experience
Grounded in behavioural science. Proven in real-world outcomes.
Kennedys Advancing Negotiation Skills (KANS) Programme distills over five decades of behavioural research into one integrated, field-tested system.
It has delivered billions in negotiated value across sectors, industries, and deal types, shaping negotiators to secure the best deal, every time.
Extensive portfolio
Direct, strategic, and scalable
Build a deep, practical, and commercially proven negotiation methodology to plan and execute complex deals, influence key stakeholders, and deliver measurable outcomes across pricing, M&A, strategic change, dealmaking, and organisational alignment.
Practice to Performance
Great Negotiators Aren’t Born.
They’re Built. This programme drives a continuous improvement journey—recalibrating behaviours through simulation, feedback, and reinforcement.
Until composure under pressure, phase control, and conditional trade become instinct.
Advancing Negotiation Skills for All Leader Levels
Grounded in more than 50 years of research and experience, our programmes help leaders make better decisions, build stronger alignment, and execute strategic priorities more effectively.ent, and execution under pressure.
Negotiation Masterclass
Build negotiation acumen to prepare, position, and execute your strategic imperatives
Negotiating with Regulators
Negotiating with Regulators
Board & Investor Negotiation
Negotiating with Boards & Executive Stakeholders
Re-Negotiation Strategy
Mid-cycle resets, long-term contract realignment
JVs & M&A Alliance Success
Ensuring that the negotiation of joint ventures, and strategic alliances deliver optimal outcomes and profitable financial results.
Private Equity Negotiations Dynamics
coming soon
Negotiation Governance for Boards
(Cross-functional / Operational Alignment)
Negotiating Internally
(Cross-functional / Operational Alignment)
Stakeholder Management for Executives
(Cross-functional / Operational Alignment)
Constructive Feedback, Debate and Negotiation
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The 4 Phases Framework for Negotiation and Leadership
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Sales-Focused Negotiation Performance
Helping sales teams maximize the value they create as they sell, avoid costly concessions in the sales process, and manage price pressure from customers.
Negotiating with Government Procurement
Negotiating with Regulators
Sales-Focused Negotiation Performance
Relationships built through effective negotiation pays dividends long into the future.
Channel
Channels built through effective negotiation pays dividends long into the future.
Supplier Relationship Profitability
Building profitability by managing costs while improving the quality of supplier relationships.
Stakeholder Management for Executives
(Cross-functional / Operational Alignment)
Re-Negotiation Strategy
Mid-cycle resets, long-term contract realignment
Negotiating with Regulators
Negotiating with Regulators
Re-Negotiation Strategy
Mid-cycle resets, long-term contract realignment
Negotiating with Government Procurement
JVs & M&A Alliance Success
Ensuring that the negotiation of joint ventures, and strategic alliances deliver optimal outcomes and profitable financial results.
JVs & M&A Alliance Success
Ensuring that the negotiation of joint ventures, and strategic alliances deliver optimal outcomes and profitable financial results.
Re-Negotiation Strategy
Mid-cycle resets, long-term contract realignment
Stakeholder Management for Executives
(Cross-functional / Operational Alignment)
Negotiating with Regulators
Negotiating with Regulators
Healing Customer
Handling Difficult Situations, Providing a framework for managing challenging conversations
Negotiation in Policy Development
Policy Development & Stakeholder Alignment Negotiation Strategic Negotiation in Policy Design
Negotiating Women Workshop
Key Elements of the Kennedys Advancing Negotiation Skills Programme
The programme is built around three core disciplines: Situational awareness, disciplined movement management, and execution under pressure.
Together, these sharpen how negotiators read the room, govern the deal, and deliver outcomes when the stakes are high
Recognise which phase they’re in—and which one you’re in. Negotiation is never linear
Manage the right movement for each phase
Adapt skillfully—balancing flexibility, conditionality, and control
