Negotiations Rules You Can’t
Resist Loving and Using
Learning Topics
• Learn why having negotiations rules can be a
game changer when negotiating.
• Learn common negotiations tactics that will build
trust - not bust trust - in your negotiations.
• Get hands of skills in learning how to write your
own negotiations rules with a supplier for an
upcoming negotiation.
2
Learning Topics
• Learn why having negotiations rules can be a
game changer when negotiating.
• Learn common negotiations tactics that will build
trust - not bust trust - in your negotiations.
• Get hands of skills in learning how to write your
own negotiations rules with a supplier for an
upcoming negotiation.
3
Three Negotiation Styles
1. Muscular – One party holds all
(or most) of the power and
does not hesitate to use it.
2. Benign – Both parties assume
they will cooperate. Because
of opportunism, this is a naïve
and—often—misguided
negotiation style.
3. Credible – Both parties are
hardheaded and wise.
– Hardheaded negotiators strive
for results and accountability
– Wise negotiators understand that
Oliver Williamson contracts are incomplete and
cooperation is required to
Professor sustain results
UC Berkeley
4
The Trust Factor
Haggling for the cheapest price is
not negotiation
To get the best results, you should:
1. Operate from a position of trust,
committed to the discovery of
mutual gain
2. Bargain constructively, using
transparent, two-way
communication
3. Leverage the differences
between the parties
4. Cooperate to reduce risk and
improve the utilization of
resources
5
Negotiating as We
• The first negotiation is to agree on the
mechanisms, strategies and tactics - the
“negotiation rules” - that the parties will and will
not use
• Once the parties have agreed on the “rules” they
will use them to gain consensus on the specifics
of their agreement such as scope of work,
pricing, risk allocation, terms and conditions
6
Learning Topics
• Learn why having negotiations rules can be a
game changer when negotiating.
• Learn common negotiations tactics that will
build trust - not bust trust - in your
negotiations.
• Get hands of skills in learning how to write your
own negotiations rules with a supplier for an
upcoming negotiation.
7
“The Negotiating Game”
Traditional negotiating courses teach destructive
tactics.
Karrass’s website has a comprehensive glossary of negotiations tactics at
[Link]
8
Trust Busting – Not Trust Building Tactics
As you think through your negotiation rules, ask
yourself if the tactics you have used in the past are
trust building vs. trust busting. Commit to only use
trust building tactics.
Examples of trust busting tactics:
• Bluffing, puffery, and exaggeration
• Intentional ambiguity and vagueness
• Good cop/bad cop
• Pressure to close the deal
• Stonewalling
• Lowball/Highball
• Profiling
….and dozens of others
9
We Tactic – Information Is Power
• People who bargain often say that information is power;
what they really mean is that they think withholding
information is powerful
• Sharing information aligns to the guiding principles of
autonomy, honesty and integrity
• There is exponential power in sharing information
• One way that companies share information is to
document pricing assumptions in the agreement
10
We Tactic – Reveal Your Alternatives
• A Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (BATNA) is
an ace up your sleeve
• Sharing your BATNA is one important way that parties
are more transparent, which is part of the foundation for
a “We” relationship
• At least one study noted that negotiators who shared
their true BATNA took less extreme positions, made
better trade-offs and increased the size of the pie as
compared to those who did not
11
We Tactic – Leverage Guiding Principles
• In traditional negotiation theory there are three kinds of
leverage: positive, negative and normative
• Normative leverage means using shared norms or the
guiding principles to promote agreements
• A WIIFWe mindset demands that partners abide by a set
of guiding principles to drive highly collaborative
behaviors.
12
We Tactic – Leverage Guiding Principles
Strictly following the six guiding principles will help prevent
the parties from falling into opportunistic and competitive tit-
for-tat moves
1. Reciprocity
2. Autonomy
3. Honesty
4. Equity
5. Loyalty
6. Integrity
13
We Tactic – Honesty
• Honesty is also a guiding principle
– As a principle, parties agree to tell the truth about
facts and their experiences of those facts
– The parties also agreed to have accurate and
authentic conversations
• It is imperative that people not tell little white lies
– or withhold information purposely - because
dishonesty can easily become the relationship’s
new social norm!
14
We Tactic – Leave Money on the Table
• Most negotiators want to learn tactics that get more
money from the “other guy” without giving up too much
• Applying a WIIFWe mindset depends on reciprocity and
reciprocity demands that cooperative acts be returned in
kind
• With a WIIFWe mindset, partners should genuinely want
the other side to go out of their way to meet the shared
vision and Desired Outcomes and may mean that
sometimes you are “leaving some money on table” when
you do the right thing
15
We Tactic – Shared Vision, Shared Agenda
• Since parties will be working toward a shared vision
(completed as part of Module 3), that vision continues to
provide guidance – even to the point of setting agendas
for meetings
• The guiding principle of Loyalty means that the parties
put the shared vision above their own set of interests,
and therefore their own agenda items
• This means creating agendas built by contributions from
all stakeholders
16
We Tactic – Avoid Opportunism
• In a WIIFMe world, negotiators listen to take advantage
first and then seek mutual gain second
• The WIIFMe mentality feeds opportunism – taking
advantage of your partner -- because you can
• Since the parties want to form a highly collaborative
relationship, the parties must seek to avoid opportunism
– Make decisions that consistently consider not only their own
interests, but the interests of the partner
– When in doubt – the guiding principles should be the reference
point for making decisions as they are universally applied social
norms that promote sound ethics
17
Learning Topics
• Learn why having negotiations rules can be a
game changer when negotiating.
• Learn common negotiations tactics that will build
trust - not bust trust - in your negotiations.
• Get hands of skills in learning how to write
your own negotiations rules with a supplier
for an upcoming negotiation.
18
Let’s Work on Negotiations Rules!
Use the RealPlay®
toolkit as a
discussion guide
for creating your
own negotiations
rules!
