BUSINESS ISSUE
A leading player in the paper and forest product manufacturing industry, grappled with a critical capability gap that undermined operational alignment and execution across its plant teams. While technical proficiency remained high, teams consistently fell short in their ability to influence peers, secure commitment, and navigate negotiation conversations effectively, especially in high-stakes or cross-functional contexts.
The absence of a unified, disciplined approach to influencing and negotiating eroded collaboration, delayed critical initiatives, and strained relationships across functions. Over time, this soft-skill deficit created friction that directly impacted plant efficiency, slowed innovation adoption, and posed a risk to the organization’s ability to drive sustainable performance at scale.
SOLUTION SUMMARY
The organization partnered with Wilson Learning to implement a targeted capability-building initiative across its plant teams to address the influencing and negotiation challenges impacting operational alignment. The solution focused on equipping employees with the skills to gain commitment from others while preserving and strengthening relationships, which is critical for driving collaboration in high-stakes, cross-functional environments.
Wilson Learning introduced a structured, repeatable negotiation framework that enabled teams to prepare strategically, confidently engage, and lead conversations with clarity and discipline. This approach enhanced interpersonal effectiveness, accelerated execution, reduced friction, and empowered teams to contribute more proactively to the organization’s performance goals.
OUTCOMES
The group of participants reported sales opportunities attributed:-
BEHAVIORS THAT SHOWED THE GREATEST LEVEL OF CHANGE:-
63% of the participants attributed a
greater than 50% improvement in their
work group’s productivity to the
application of skills they learned in the
Getting To Yes program 
