Top 10 Negotiation Skills You Must Learn to Succeed

Posted September 30th, 2019 by Katie Shonk & filed under Negotiation Skills.

Increasingly, business negotiators recognize that the most effective bargainers are skilled at both creating value and claiming value—that is, they both collaborate and compete. The following 10 negotiation skills will help you succeed at integrative negotiation. … Read More 

Business Negotiation Strategies: How to Negotiate Better Business Deals

Posted April 19th, 2015 by PON Staff & filed under Free Report.

New Free Report – Business Negotiation Strategies: How to Negotiate Better Business Deals … Read More 

Try a Contingent Contract if You Can’t Agree on What Will Happen

Posted September 17th, 2019 by Katie Shonk & filed under Dealmaking.

In negotiation, all the goodwill, trust, and cooperation you create can seem useless if you and your negotiating counterpart disagree about how future events may play out. In such cases, a contingent contract can be a highly useful, though widely overlooked, tool for creating value in negotiation. … Read More 

Dealmaking: Secrets of Successful Dealmaking in Business Negotiations

Posted April 19th, 2015 by PON Staff & filed under Free Report.

Discover how to boost your power at the bargaining table in this free special report, Dealmaking: Secrets of Successful Dealmaking in Business Negotiations, from Harvard Law School. … Read More 

Negotiation Techniques To Get New Business Partnerships Off on the Right Foot

Posted August 15th, 2019 by Katie Shonk & filed under Negotiation Skills.

“A huge mistake.” “A shot in the dark.” “An audacious move.” Those are a few of the media’s characterizations of wireless carrier AT&T’s acquisition of media and entertainment firm Time Warner, announced on October 22, 2016, for $85.4 billion. … Read More 

Contingency Contracts in Business Negotiations

Posted July 2nd, 2019 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations.

Question: Lately I have been hearing a lot—both in the news and on the job—about companies using contingencies in contracts. Given that I sometimes negotiate deals that entail a lot of risk regarding how future events will play out, I am interested to know how contingencies work and how I might use them. … Read More 

7 Tips for Closing the Deal in Negotiations

Posted June 27th, 2019 by Katie Shonk & filed under Dealmaking.

“ABC: Always Be Closing.” That’s the sales strategy that actor Alec Baldwin’s character Blake shared in the 1992 film Glengarry Glen Ross as he tried to motivate a group of real estate salesmen. In his verbally abusive, profanity-laced speech, Blake presented a ruthless model of closing a business deal that ignores customers’ needs and cuts … Read More 

Using Integrative Negotiation Techniques to Close the Deal

Posted June 13th, 2019 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

Like a contingency, a condition to a deal is a related though far less common deal-structuring technique. A condition is an ‘if’ statement like a contingency, but, whereas a contingency depends on unknown future events, a condition is entirely within the control of the parties involved. … Read More 

Top 10 Notable Negotiations

Posted April 23rd, 2019 by PON Staff & filed under Negotiation Skills.

In 2017, all eyes were on Washington as a president with a reputation as a dealmaker entered the White House. The following negotiations from the past year, both inside and outside of politics, caught our eye due to the broader lessons they offer business negotiators. … Read More 

A Contingent Agreement Can Allow Negotiators to Agree to Disagree

Posted September 3rd, 2018 by Katie Shonk & filed under Negotiation Skills.

Negotiators often try to overcome their differences of opinion about how future events will unfold through persuasion techniques. A more fruitful approach might be to “bet” on your differing views with a contingent agreement. By adding incentives or penalties based on future performance to your contract, you protect both parties against risk. … Read More 

In Contract Negotiation, Wise Business Negotiators Sweat the Small Stuff

Posted January 15th, 2018 by Katie Shonk & filed under Business Negotiations.

What are business negotiators responsible for in contract negotiation? Many would say they’re in charge of building relationships and new business, crafting creative solutions, and fighting for the best deal possible. Few, however, would say they’re responsible for ensuring that the deal holds up well over time. … Read More 

Notable Negotiations of 2017

Posted January 1st, 2018 by PON Staff & filed under Negotiation Skills.

Our notable negotiations of 2017 includes hits and misses from entertainment, sports, business, and especially politics, due to a new rough-and-tumble era in Washington. … Read More 

Steelers Find Mutual Gains In “Non-Negotiation” with Antonio Brown

Posted September 12th, 2017 by Katie Shonk & filed under Negotiation Skills.

The National Football League’s Pittsburgh Steelers faced a dilemma. Mid-contract, the team’s star wide receiver, Antonio Brown, asked the team to improve upon the six-year, $42.5 million deal they negotiated back in 2012. Brown had risen to become the best receiver in football and believed he was underpaid. … Read More 

Dear Negotiation Coach: Negotiating Upgrades

Posted April 12th, 2017 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

Q: My company, a large multinational, contracts with an outside vendor for some of our software infrastructure. Due to new regulatory requirements, we have asked the vendor’s team to upgrade certain features of the software. We think that we should get these upgrades for free because these enhanced features may be needed by their other clients … Read More 

Tired of Liars? Promote More Ethical Behavior in Negotiation

Posted April 12th, 2017 by PON Staff & filed under Negotiation Skills.

To hear many people tell it, deception is on an upswing in society. In 2005, responding to what he saw as a growing disregard for facts in the public sphere, talk-show host Stephen Colbert used the term “truthiness” to refer to popular beliefs that feel true but actually are not. During the 2016 U.S. presidential … Read More 

Promoting Fair Outcomes in Negotiation

Posted January 9th, 2017 by Katie Shonk & filed under Negotiation Skills.

So, you believe you’ve done everything you can do create value in your negotiation. You engaged in logrolling, making trades based on your and the other party’s different preferences on particular issues. You brainstormed new issues to add to the discussion, added a contingent contract, and proposed multiple offers simultaneously to identify which your counterpart … Read More 

Taking the Plunge: How a Controversial Partnership was Born

Posted January 6th, 2017 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations.

“A huge mistake.” “A shot in the dark.” “An audacious move.” Those are just a few of the media’s characterizations of wireless carrier AT&T’s acquisition of media and entertainment firm Time Warner, announced on October 22 of last year. As of November, it was the biggest merger of 2016, with $85.4 billion in cash and … Read More 

Contract Negotiations: Before You Sign on the Dotted Line

Posted October 25th, 2016 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

When times are tight, contracts are often broken. These days, parties on both sides of sales agreements are struggling to fulfill their promises, and contract workers are having trouble getting paid by their employers. … Read More 

Entrepreneurs: Prepare to overcome key negotiation challenges

Posted March 15th, 2016 by PON Staff & filed under Negotiation Briefings Articles, Negotiation Skills.

Start-ups and individual entrepreneurs often encounter roadblocks when negotiating with potential partners and investors. When you are trying to sell others on your big idea or venture, you face the daunting challenge of convincing them that it’s worth their time, money, and effort. And even as you’re drawing on all your powers of persuasion to … Read More 

How to Prepare for Changing Conditions at the Negotiation Table: Bargaining Strategies for Integrative Negotiations and Dispute Resolution

Posted January 28th, 2016 by PON Staff & filed under Dispute Resolution.

These article offers some negotiation tips for negotiators attempting to reconcile two disparate estimations of future events during the course of a negotiated agreement. … Read More 

To Reduce Post-Deal Regret, Take an Analytical Approach

Posted December 9th, 2015 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

Dissatisfied with her first book contract, comedian Amy Schumer canceled it and negotiated a different one. A better strategy? Lessen your odds of disappointment from the start. In 2012, David Hirshey, senior vice president and executive editor of publisher HarperCollins, saw Amy Schumer’s stand-up comedy act and was so impressed by the rising star that he offered … Read More 

Dear Negotiation Coach: Negotiations Stalled Over Price

Posted February 12th, 2015 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

I am trying to buy a smaller company in my industry, but the negotiations have stalled over price. It probably won’t surprise you to hear the seller thinks his company is worth a lot more than I think it is. So far we have been talking about doing a straight cash deal, but now I’m contemplating … Read More 

Negotiation Skills: Should Put Off What You Could Negotiate Today?

Posted December 12th, 2014 by PON Staff & filed under Negotiation Skills.

To reach agreement, negotiators sometimes postpone the resolution of certain issues until a later date. We look at how this practice plays out in the real world. Remember the federal debt ceiling talks? In mid-2011, congressional Republicans insisted on significant spending reductions from their Democratic counterparts in exchange for voting to raise the nation’s debt … Read More 

Dealmaking: Help Your Agreement Go the Distance

Posted November 20th, 2014 by PON Staff & filed under Dealmaking.

Help your agreement go the distance If your deal doesn’t work in the real world, it’s not worth the paper it’s printed on. Here’s expert advice on increasing the odds of successful implementation. … Read More 

Learning from the deficit-reduction talks

Posted March 15th, 2013 by PON Staff & filed under BATNA.

Does anyone down there know how to cut a deal?” Senate Republican Mitch McConnell said to Vice President Joe Biden. It was Sunday, December 30, 2012, the day before the “fiscal cliff ” deadline, and the minority leader had phoned Biden out of a sense of desperation, report Patrick O’Connor and Peter Nicholas in the … Read More 

Negotiator toolbox: Capitalize on differences

Posted December 14th, 2011 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations.

The problem: You and your negotiating counterpart express differing opinions about the future success, performance, or timeliness of an item or service. A homeowner might be skeptical of a contractor’s promise to complete an extensive remodeling project within six months, for instance. Differing forecasts can breed suspicion and stand in the way of agreement. The tool: … Read More 

Don’t rush into a flawed contract

Posted July 11th, 2011 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations, Daily.

Adapted from “A Contingent Contract? Weigh the Costs and Benefits of Making a ‘Bet’,” by Guhan Subramanian (professor, Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School), first published in the Negotiation newsletter, August 2006. Contracts in professional sports are often chock-full of contingencies -“bets” that parties place on their different expectations of future outcomes – and former … Read More 

Get the Kinks Out

Posted August 16th, 2010 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations, Daily.

Adapted from “Should You Get the Kinks Out?” by Ian Larkin (professor, Harvard Business School), first published in the Negotiation newsletter. You may have heard about the power of contingent contracts in negotiation. As an example, imagine that a supplier has proposed you pay a bonus of 10% if the fault rate for its products is … Read More 

The negotiating QB

Posted June 21st, 2010 by PON Staff & filed under Business Negotiations, Daily.

Adapted from “The Brett Favre Trade: A Win-win Deal in a Win-lose Game,” first published in the Negotiation newsletter. In the middle of the National Football League’s off-season, as legendary quarterback Brett Favre weighs for the third year in a row whether to return to football or accept retirement, it’s worth revisiting the negotiations behind his … Read More