Grisedale Search & Selection / BG-Demo – Negotiation
Callcompleted
Grisedale Search & Selection · 27 Mar 2024 13:30
Stuart Haworth, who alone signs, wants comfort on the £26k Starter deal. Owen Tallis offered a concession on either the first term or the set-up fee, not both, if signed by 17 Apr 2024. A revised order form follows.
What was said
What this says
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Stuart Haworth, who alone signs, wants comfort on the £26k Starter deal. Owen Tallis offered a concession on either the first term or the set-up fee, not both, if signed by 17 Apr 2024. A revised order form follows.
What happened: Priya Raman framed £26k as the whole deal value, the first year's subscription plus the one-off set-up fee. It is not the annual price.
Customer view: Stuart said he does not sign without a conversation on price and that he signs alone. Lauren Pilkington backed the product and wants it live without delay.
Commercial: Owen offered room on the first term or on the set-up, not both, lapsing after 17 Apr 2024. Lauren leaned towards fixing the set-up.
Watch: Stuart asked what is in it for the consultants and judges value by fee income per head. Adoption by the consultants is untested.
Themes
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Theme
Starter price negotiation
Importance
renewal
Sentiment
mixed
Voice
decision-maker
Who was there
BG-Demo
CRMmade from
Them
CRMmade from
Follow-up
Next steps
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Priya Raman sends Stuart a short revised order form with the concession and the deadline the next day.
- Lauren Pilkington sends Priya the list of who needs access this week.
- Stuart Haworth decides whether to sign by 17 Apr 2024.
Risks
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Stuart will not sign without a price concession, and the offer lapses after 17 Apr 2024.
- Stuart sees a new tool as another login for the consultants, so adoption is unproven.
Opportunities
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- A single signer with no committee means a quick decision if the number works.
- Lauren sees the combined client, roles and complaints view saving the team hours.
Transcript
Stuart HaworthAfternoon! Can you hear me? I've got the kettle going behind me, so apologies if it screams.
Priya RamanLoud and clear, Stu. Afternoon, Lauren. Owen's just joining, I think.
Owen TallisHere. Sorry, last call overran. Afternoon, all.- Stuart HaworthRight, did anyone watch the game last night? Second half was painful. Absolutely painful.
- Owen TallisI caught the last twenty minutes. Wish I hadn't.
Lauren PilkingtonHe's been going on about it since nine o'clock this morning.- Stuart HaworthBecause it matters, Lauren. Anyway. Go on, Priya, give me the headline.
- Priya RamanHappy to. So, quick recap to keep momentum. You've seen the demo on your own data, Lauren's had the consultants poke at it, and today is the commercial conversation. It's the Starter tier, one team, so the consultants and Lauren see client accounts, open roles and client complaints in one place. The number on the table is £25,500, implementation included, and the date we've pencilled for getting this signed is 17 Apr 2024.
- Stuart HaworthWhat's that cost per year, though? Plain English.
- Priya RamanFair question, and I want to be clear on it. The twenty-five and a half is the whole deal value. That's the first year's subscription plus the one-off set-up fee, all in. It's not the annual price. The annual part is lower.
- Stuart HaworthRight. And the set-up bit is what, exactly?
- Priya RamanFixed fee, one-off. Connecting your systems, mapping the fields, getting the first refresh to land properly. Then it's just the subscription.
- Lauren PilkingtonQuick one before we get stuck into price. One of the consultants asked me this morning whether they'd see a client's complaint next to the open roles, or whether that's a different screen.
- Priya RamanSame place, Lauren. That's the view we built in the demo. Client, roles, anything that's come in from them.
- Lauren PilkingtonBrilliant. That'd save us hours. Honestly, last month a client rang to moan and the consultant hadn't seen the email. It had gone to someone else's inbox.
- Stuart HaworthYeah, yeah, I remember that one. Cost me a lunch. Look, what's in it for the consultants? That's what I keep asking. A new tool is another login to them.
- Lauren PilkingtonIt's fewer things lost, Stu. They stop asking me where stuff is. They just ask the brain.
- Stuart HaworthMm. Fine. Fee income per head is what I care about. If they place more because they're not chasing, good. Now cash. I'll be straight with you, Priya, I don't sign without a conversation on price. What can you do?
- Priya RamanUnderstood, and I'm happy to make this easy. That's why Owen's on. Owen?
- Owen TallisThanks, Priya. Stuart, first thing from me: where do we stand against the date? We've got 17 Apr 2024 pencilled. What's the next dated step on your side?
- Stuart HaworthHonest answer? I need to be comfortable on the number. Then it's me who signs. Nobody else, no committee.
- Owen TallisGood. That's what I wanted to know. Who signs, and you've told me. So, here's where I can go. There's some room on the first term. I won't be quoting anything beyond the first term, because we don't discount twice. And it comes with a deadline.
- Stuart HaworthWhat's the deadline?
- Owen TallisSigned by 17 Apr 2024. After that it lapses and we're back to the number we've just talked about.
- Stuart HaworthAnd if I sign sooner?
- Owen TallisSooner is fine. Nothing changes on the number, we just get you going earlier.
- Stuart HaworthHm. I'd want something on the set-up fee as well, mind. If I'm paying to have it plugged in...
- Owen TallisLet's not discount twice, Stuart. Either we look at the first term or we look at the set-up. I'm not doing both. Which would help you more?
- Stuart HaworthAnswering a question with a question. Cheeky.
- Owen TallisOccupational habit.
- Lauren PilkingtonCan I jump in? Stu, from where I sit the set-up is the bit I'd rather get right. It's the one-off. The subscription I can defend to the consultants.
- Stuart HaworthSo you'd take the cut on the first year?
- Lauren PilkingtonI'd take whichever gets it signed and live. I just don't want it dragging out, that's all.
- Priya RamanThat's fair, Lauren. Let me suggest this. Owen and I go away today, work out which side the concession sits on, and I send you the revised order form in writing, with the deadline on it, so nothing is ambiguous.
- Stuart HaworthBy when?
- Priya RamanTomorrow, end of the day.
- Stuart HaworthShort email, please. I don't read long ones. Give me the number, the date and where to sign.
- Priya RamanThree lines. Promise.
- Owen TallisOne more thing from me. If you are going to sign, I'd rather you did it with the full picture. Lauren, is there anything in the demo you felt was missing for the consultants? Better now than after.
- Lauren PilkingtonNot missing, no. I'd like the list of who gets access sorted before we start, so nobody is left out on day one. I can do that this week.
- Owen TallisGood. Priya will pick that up with you after the call.
- Stuart HaworthRight. Anything else I should know, or are we done? I've a candidate on the other line, well, in ten minutes.
- Priya RamanThat's everything on my side. So, to land it. I send the revised order form tomorrow with the concession and the deadline. Stu reads it, and if it works, signs by 17 Apr 2024. Lauren sends me the access list this week.
- Stuart HaworthSounds right. Don't forget what you've promised me on the price.
- Owen TallisWe won't. It'll be in the email.
- Lauren PilkingtonTa, everyone. Speak soon.
- Priya RamanThanks all. Best of luck with the match, Stu.
- Owen TallisThanks, all. Bye for now.
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