communication

The process by which parties discuss and deal with the elements of a negotiation. (Michael L. Moffitt and Robert C. Bordone, eds., Handbook of Dispute Resolution [Program on Negotiation/Jossey-Bass, 2005], 284)

The following items are tagged communication.

Not-So-Privileged Information

Posted by & filed under Dispute Resolution.

The law of attorney-client privilege protects certain communications on the assumption that clients will reveal critical information to their attorneys only if they know such disclosures will not harm them in court. Despite the inadmissibility of such evidence, judges can have difficulty disregarding privileged information that sheds light on a case.

How Much Exclusivity is Enough?

Posted by & filed under Business Negotiations.

On February 14, 2005, telecommunications giant Verizon announced that it would buy MCI for $6.75 billion in cash and Verizon stock. The announcement followed closely on the heels of two other announcements of big telecom mergers: first Sprint and Nextel, then AT&T and SBC Communications. In light of this rapid industry consolidation, only one player would be stranded without a partner: tiny Qwest Communications, whose market capitalization was less than one-fifth that of any of its soon-to-be-merged competitors.

January 2013

Posted by & filed under Negotiation Monthly Archives.

- From “You’re Fired!” to “Let’s Talk it Out”
- High Anxiety, Poor Decisions? How Bad Advice Can Hurt You
- Dear Negotiation Coach: Exercising Your Options

Negotiation Skills Tips: Be a Relationship Negotiator

Posted by & filed under Negotiation Skills.

During talks, effective relationship negotiators focus on a variety of noncontractual issues, including:

Getting to know the other side well
Establishing a positive personal chemistry between the leadership of the companies involved
Understanding and respecting each other’s cultures, expectations, and goals
Putting mechanisms in place to foster communication after the contract is signed
Ensuring that the proposed deal is balanced and advantageous for both sides
Identifying and planning for potential obstacles to implementation

Teaching Negotiation Online: Lessons from Teaching in the Simmons College School of Management MBA and MHA Degree Programs

Posted by & filed under Pedagogy at the Program on Negotiation (Pedagogy @ PON).

Simmons College believes that it is important for people in a leadership position, in almost any profession, to have a basic understanding of, and competency in, the negotiation process. Therefore, negotiation is a required course for the Simmons School of Management Master in Business Administration (MBA) and Master in Health Administration (MHA) degrees. The author designed and teaches the negotiation course for the Simmons online MHA program. In this program, the negotiation course is the lead course in the curriculum, and serves as a foundation course. The students are mid-career, health-systems professionals, many of whom have terminal degrees in their clinical areas of expertise. The author also teaches negotiation in the MBA program, where she designed the course as a “blended” experience, with some lessons taught online between face-to-face class sessions.

In Deal Making, Broaden Your Focus

Posted by & filed under Business Negotiations.

Imagine that you are in charge of renting a new location for a branch of your company in a nearby city. After researching the reputations of a number of local real estate agents, you meet with several and choose the one who seems most knowledgable and responsive.

Roger D. Fisher, 1922-2012

Choosing to Help

Posted by & filed under Negotiation Skills.

It is the spring of 1997 and I am sitting in Pound 107 while Roger Fisher ’48, Williston Professor of Law, Emeritus, is telling a story about his serving as a weather reconnaissance pilot in World War II. As a teaching assistant for the Negotiation Workshop, I have heard the story at least a dozen times by now and feel my mind wandering. And yet, against my will, as the story reaches its crescendo and the combination punch line/negotiation issue flows from Roger’s lips, I find myself involuntarily leaning forward and, a second later, helplessly bursting into laughter. The note I jot down to myself is: “All of life is about who tells better stories.”