Business Diplomat: Interests, Common Ground and Relationships
EUREFLECT conducted an exclusive interview with diplomat Lana Jalagonia on diplomacy, international business, and professional communication.
Introduction
When negotiation is mentioned, most people picture a contest of strength: two sides at a table and, at the end, a winner and a loser. The diplomatic tradition defines negotiation differently. In this part of its interview series, Business Diplomat presents three principles that carry this tradition into business. Together they sum up how a good business diplomat thinks at the table.
Three principles
"A Business Diplomat, like a traditional diplomat, must understand the interests and priorities of the other side while protecting the interests of the party they represent.
A successful negotiation is not only about winning, but about finding common ground and producing outcomes that allow cooperation to continue.
Building relationships is equally important, because professional disagreements should not damage long-term trust, reputation and cooperation."
Business Diplomat commentary
The three sentences describe three moments of a negotiation: the preparation before sitting down, the goal at the table, and what remains after leaving it.
Protecting and understanding at once. The first principle sets two verbs side by side: protecting one's own side's interests and understanding the other side's. These do not conflict. Understanding the other side is not yielding to it; on the contrary, it is the most effective way of protecting one's own interest. A negotiator who knows what the counterpart really needs can build an offer that is valuable to them yet not costly to give. The distinction between "interests and priorities" also matters. The other side may have many demands, but they do not all weigh the same. Seeing which are essential and which are open to bargaining is the heart of preparation.
Beyond winning. The second principle is carefully worded: negotiation is "not only" about winning. Gain is not excluded; it simply stops being the sole measure. Two others are put in its place. The first is finding common ground: the areas where the parties' interests overlap are usually wider than assumed. The second is outcomes that allow cooperation to continue. An agreement that leaves one side under a heavy burden looks like a victory on paper but causes trouble in practice: it is carried out reluctantly, reopened at the first chance or never renewed. A balanced agreement is owned by both parties and lasts.
Disagreement should not spoil the relationship. The third principle starts by accepting that disagreement is natural. Differences of view are unavoidable in professional life. The question is what they are allowed to damage. The sentence names three things to protect: trust, reputation and cooperation. All three build up over years and can be harmed by one harsh exchange. The answer is to be firm on the issue and respectful to the person. When two sides who cannot agree on price, timing or terms manage to disagree without questioning each other's honesty, they can meet again at the next table.
The three together. The principles complete one another. Someone who does not understand the other side cannot find common ground. Someone who cannot find common ground plays only to win. And someone who plays only to win uses up the relationship. The sequence also reads in reverse: a person who values the relationship looks for a sustainable outcome and, to reach it, tries to understand the other side.
The role of Business Diplomat. The platform's mission is to give young people experience, bring a diplomatic order to the business world, and benefit states by revitalising the economy. These three principles are what that order means at the negotiating table. Business Diplomat aims to give young professionals this outlook before any bargaining technique: seeing the other side not as an opponent but as a future partner. Long-lasting commercial relationships are also the firmest basis for economic ties between countries.
Conclusion
A good business diplomat protects their own side's interests, understands the other side's priorities, looks for common ground and safeguards the relationship even in moments of disagreement. Success is measured not by the gain at a single table but by the cooperation that continues after it. Business Diplomat aims to raise a generation that sees negotiation not as a contest but as a process in which lasting partnerships are built.
Olha Pashchenko
Contributing writer at EUReflect.
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