Previous finals took place in Rome, Athens and Kyoto. How special is it that the final is now in Enschede?
'Very special. Two years ago, together with Ellen Giebels, I started as coordinator for the Great Negotiators programme within the Master Honours Programme. The finals take place annually at a university that teaches and has an interest in negotiation. Teams from the UT almost always qualify for the finals and often do well. When I started as a coordinator, I immediately contacted the competition and had only one question: how can we as UT bring the final days to Enschede. That required a lot of preparation, but it's a great honour that we succeeded.'
Can you paint a picture of the next three days?
'Today (Thursday, ed.) we kick off with a conference in the Cubicus, where there are several presentations. The final is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, with keynotes in between. On Friday we will be in the Langezijds building, to show the campus to everyone. Saturday takes place at the Museumfabriek, because we also want to show the city of Enschede. Many international students think that the Netherlands is no more than Amsterdam and Rotterdam, and of course that's not the case.'
How do the finals work?
'66 teams (of three students each) from all over the world – the US, India, Singapore, Iceland and Romania, for example – registered for the preliminary rounds, which were held online. Sixteen teams made it to the final and traveled to Enschede. Three of the sixteen are UT teams. The teams negotiate against each other on the basis of cases. Jury members and (inter)national experts observe and evaluate.'
What is the added value for the UT of organizing this final?
'The most important thing for me is to show what students are capable of. In addition, it is good to show the UT, Enschede and the region to visitors. And we show the importance of internationalisation: we can't do this without international students and staff. In addition, many experts from business and industry are involved in the final. Working with these people brings a lot to the UT.'
Will the first prize stay in Enschede this weekend?
'Let's hope so. The UT is participating with a team of Great Negotiators and two teams from The Negotiation Project Twente. All three are very evenly matched. I suspect they want to show what they can do, especially in a kind of home game.'
You can read more information about The Negotiation Challenge 2024 here.
