PON Live! A Tale of Two Cities: Amazon HQ2 Negotiations in New York and Virginia
The Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School is pleased to present:
PON Live!
A Tale of Two Cities: Amazon HQ2 Negotiations in New York and Virginia
James Sebenius
Gordon Donaldson Professor of Business Administration
Harvard Business School
Alex Green
Lecturer in Public Policy
Harvard Kennedy School
Wednesday, February 18, 2026
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET (US and Canada)
Free and open to the public.
Register for the webinar here.
About the Talk:
Amazon’s 2018 search for a second headquarters became one of the most competitive economic development negotiations in North American history, attracting 238 bids from cities across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In a surprise move, Amazon selected two locations—Long Island City in New York City and National Landing in Virginia. Despite pursuing the same target deal with similar stakeholders, the outcomes diverged sharply: New York City’s selection ultimately failed, while Virginia’s succeeded.
In this webinar, Jim Sebenius and Alex Green present a rare, side-by-side case study of these illustrative negotiations, featured in a recently published article in Negotiation Journal. They highlight the differences in how each region considered the tangible and intangible interests of their counterparts, approached the need for political and genuine stakeholder engagement, and decided whether or not to employ a “Decide-Announce-Defend Approach.” Sebenius and Green emphasize the lesser-known National Landing negotiation and its implications for negotiators.
About the Speakers:
James K. Sebenius is the Vice Chair for Practice-Focused Research at the Program on Negotiation, the Gordon Donaldson Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, director of the Harvard Negotiation Project, Chair of the Great Negotiator Award Committee, Co-director of the American Secretaries of State Project, and editor of Negotiation Journal. An authority on complex negotiations, James Sebenius has advanced the field in the academic realm, in the public and diplomatic sectors, and the business world; outside Harvard, he has worked full-time in the U.S. Commerce and State Departments as well as at the Blackstone Group. At the Harvard Business School, Sebenius spearheaded the effort to make negotiation a required course in the M.B.A. program, and he created the negotiation department, which he led for several years. As a co-founder of Lax Sebenius LLC, he provides negotiation advisory services to corporations and governments worldwide.
Alex Green is an adjunct lecturer in public policy at Harvard Kennedy School and a senior
fellow of the Harvard Negotiation Project. is an adjunct lecturer in public policy at Harvard Kennedy School and a senior fellow of the Harvard Negotiation Project. Alex Green teaches op-ed writing and writing for politics and policy. His writing has appeared in numerous publications including The Boston Globe, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and (with his students) The New York Times. He was awarded the 2021-22 Manuel C. Carballo Award for Excellence in Teaching at the Kennedy School. He is the author of A Perfect Turmoil: Walter E. Fernald and the Struggle to Care for America’s Disabled. For more than a decade, Green has worked with the Harvard Negotiation Project, based at the Program on Negotiation, where he is currently a Senior Fellow. His research in support of the Great Negotiator project has focused on how negotiators successfully resolve global conflicts. In conjunction with that work, he is the senior research associate for the American Secretaries of State Project at the Kennedy School. He is the author of numerous case studies, working papers, and curricular materials relating to negotiation and conflict resolution.
Accommodation Statement:
The Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School (PON) is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation(s) for persons with disabilities in connection with its programs and activities. Accommodations must not fundamentally alter applicable PON programming and are not retroactive.
Event participants should request accommodations at least two weeks prior to the start date of a program or event, as accommodations may take time to implement. Please note that PON will make every effort to secure services, but these are subject to availability.
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