The stories range from negotiations in the media industry to the recent concern regarding America falling off the fiscal cliff. In addition to being an interesting read, the article also considers what key lessons can be learned from each of these significant negotiations.
The key lessons that I took from the article were:
- In the flush of hammering out a deal that appears to create synergy for everyone involved, negotiators sometimes neglect to consider how their agreement could affect outsiders, an oversight with ethical and legal implications.
- When a conflict looms, it can be tempting to try to make unilateral decisions on key issues for fear that negotiation with the other side will be a dead end. This strategy may pay off in the short term, but it’s important to factor in the long-term cost of a backlash.
- Don't underestimate the potential value of adapting to your counterpart’s negotiating style in international negotiations.
- When dealing with untrustworthy counterparts, it can be worthwhile to negotiate a “test” agreement within which you make only a few concessions, but be sure the consequences of reneging are explicit to the other party. Prepare for the potential consequences of a broken deal, including damage to your reputation.
- Examine factors such as your interests, the other side’s interests, your alternatives to the negotiation, the shape of a potential deal, the various costs you might incur, and the likelihood that you can successfully follow through on a deal.
- Establish ground rules and policies before a crisis hits to make sure that you are playing on a level, fair field.
- In their most important negotiations, business negotiators would be wise to spend a great deal of time thinking about what would happen in the event of impasse in the current negotiation—and looking for ways to make their BATNA better.
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