Negotiation Skills

Adapted from “How to Build Trust at the Bargaining Table,” first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

Carol’s longtime doctor diagnoses her with a serious illness and recommends immediate, aggressive treatment. Carol would like to seek a second opinion, but she doesn’t want to offend her doctor—who, after all, has always provided her with excellent care. Carol … Read Change the Trust Default

Soap Box: Negotiating the Gulf Disaster
Tuesday, September 26, 2010

Speaker: Larry Susskind

Time: 6:00p–7:30p

Location: N52, MIT Museum

Soap Box: The Gulf Oil Spill & Its Consequences

The MIT Museum sponsors a series of salon-style, early-evening  conversations with cutting-edge scientists and engineers who are making the news that really matters.

Larry Susskind, MIT’s Ford Professor of Urban Studies and Planning, and … Read Negotiating the Gulf Disaster with Larry Susskind

Adapted from “The Dangers of Compromise,” by Max H. Bazerman (professor, Harvard Business School), first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

In July 2000, Arthur Levitt, then chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), held hearings on the question of auditor independence. Believing that auditors’ close ties to their clients posed a conflict of interest … Read When Compromise Fails

Adapted from “Want to Pull Ahead of the Competition?” by Michael Wheeler (professor, Harvard Business School), first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

Lots of people have great ideas for new products and services, but most lack the imagination and doggedness to actually get them launched. Darren Rovell is a notable exception. As a college student, he … Read To Get Ahead, Grab Their Coattails

Adapted from “Taking an Outside View,” first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

Cognitive biases such as overconfidence affect even smart and highly educated negotiators. Unfortunately, awareness of our biases is not enough to prevent their having a negative impact on our next negotiation.

Why is it so hard to keep our biases in check? Researchers Dan Lovallo … Read Consult Your “Inner Outsider”

Jeswald W. Salacuse (Henry J. Baker Professor of Law; former Dean, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University; author of The Global Negotiator and Seven Secrets for Negotiating with Government

Most of us see negotiation as a one-on-one encounter, but bringing in outside help can make your negotiations more effective. In this article, Jeswald Salacuse … Learn More About This Program

Adapted from “Learning to Learn,” first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

Learning about a concept or technique is one thing. Actually putting new knowledge to work is quite another. The gap between “knowing” and “doing” is a challenge for managers who want to hone their effectiveness, whether through formal training or private reflection on their experience.

Recent … Read Learn More From Your Deals

The Clearinghouse now offers three, multi-party role play simulations focused on helping cities manage climate change risks. These were prepared by the Science Impact Collaborative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology under the direction of Professor Larry Susskind. The purpose of these exercises is to engage the public in a mixture of political and technical … Learn More About This Program

Adapted from “Negotiators: Guard Against Ethical Lapses,” first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

During the past couple of years, a number of scandalous stories involving unethical behavior made headlines: Countrywide’s and AIG’s risky business practices, trader Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, and former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich’s alleged attempt to sell a U.S. Senate seat. As instances … Read Honor Your Fellow Negotiator

Adapted from “Do the Numbers Get in Your Way?” by Brian J. Hall (professor, Harvard Business School) and P. Trent Staats (vice president, Verenium Corp.), first published in the Negotiation newsletter.

Consider the customer support center that sought to increase the number of calls it could process per hour without increasing its capacity. When the call … Read Don’t Just Do the Math