We've partnered with HSF Kramer to launch an enterprise bargaining negotiation program

The industrial relations negotiation course in partnership with the leading global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, is designed for senior executives, human resources and industrial relations practitioners.

Melbourne Business School has partnered with leading global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer (HSF Kramer) to launch its inaugural industrial relations negotiation course for senior executives, human resources and industrial relations practitioners.

The Industrial Relations Negotiations Program, developed by lead facilitator and Melbourne Business School Professor of Management Jen Overbeck, alongside HSF Kramer industrial relations partner Rohan Doyle, is designed to equip senior executives and IR practitioners with the practical tools to navigate today’s increasingly complex enterprise bargaining environment.

Run over three days, the program uniquely combines evidence-based research in organisational behaviour, negotiation and influence with real-world industrial relations insight.

Professor Overbeck, who specialises in organisational behaviour and negotiations, said the program offers a practical and highly engaging learning experience, designed around the realities of contemporary workplace and enterprise bargaining challenges.

"Negotiations, like all of business, are becoming more complex and dealing with more long-term, uncertain, and multiparty challenges.To be effective, negotiators need skill in managing multiple issues, multiple parties, tough emotions, and situations they can't fully control. Our program is designed to build those skills.”

HSF Kramer partner Rohan Doyle said the program comes at a critical time, as ongoing geopolitical instability and economic uncertainty has placed significant pressure on employers and employees both within and outside of a bargaining context.

Rohan said the industrial relations reforms introduced more than three years ago under the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022 have also added further complexity to enterprise bargaining, increasing constraints on employers and heightening the importance of strategic, well-executed negotiations.

“The enterprise bargaining environment is particularly challenging for employers.Recent industrial relations reforms have shifted bargaining power away from employers, and it is more important than ever to plan and execute your negotiation carefully.”

“This course is designed to help employers increase their odds of negotiating sustainable deals, supporting better long-term outcomes for all parties through research-backed negotiating methods.”

The program will take place from 9 -11 November 2026 at Melbourne Business School. The program facilitators include Professor Jen Overbeck and Rohan Doyle, alongside the School’s Assistant Professor of Management Daisung Jang, Associate Professor of Economics Sven Feldmann and Associate Professor of Strategy David Keith.

For more information, visit the program website at mbs.edu/hsfkramer.