The Colonel Saito and Colonel Nicholson - Negotiating Style - Essay Example

The stages of this evolution could be viewed from the perspective of Intentions and described as follows:

Competing stage
This was the initial stage of the two leaders at the beginning of the story, where both colonels were seeking “to satisfy their interests regardless of the impact on their parties in the conflict” (219). The most prominent scenes were the episodes when Colonel Nicholson was ready to die and scarify the lives of the British officers to state his position about the Geneva Convention, article 27 which stated that the officers shall not be forced to work. Even after he has been sent to the punishment cell, Colonel Nicholson was sure that only one person can win and he should not go for comprise even though the officers and soldiers would have better conditions.

Avoiding stage
Colonel Saito managed to avoid a conflict when Colonel Nicholson offered a new plan for the bridge construction. By saying that the commands have been already given in response to Nicholson’s’ new plan, Saito has shown an intention to “ignore a conflict” (219).

Compromising stage
The first bit of this stage took place when Colonel Saito invited Nicholson for dinner to negotiate the way of cooperation so that he could achieve the goal set. This stage implies that “there is no clear winner or loser” (219). When both colonels understood that building the bridge did have certain benefits for both parties, they accepted the solution that “provided incomplete satisfaction of both parties’ concerns” (219). Both parties have lost something: Colonel Nicolson – his ideology and officer’s duty, whereas Colonel Seito – his leadership, authority, and control over the bridge construction process.

Collaborating stage
The collaborating stage took place at the moment when construction of the bridge was over and Colonel Nicholson found a mine around the bridge. Both parties were interested in the final result – a railroad path through the bridge as lots of effort have been put in to achieve this goal. Both Nicholson and Seito went together down to the river to find the problem and secure the bridge. Based on the film scenes it is possible to state that both leaders Saito and Nicholson have different leadership and negotiation styles. While Saito had absolutely dictatorship style at the beginning of the story, due to his Japanese nationality and culture it has been revealed that his personality was different and weaker than the personality of Nicholson.  

He managed to motivate soldiers to work very hard and set the goal of building a railroad bridge not as a parricide, but as the honor of the British officers, their knowledge, and their skills.

Read More