Featured Article

When Negotiators Strive to Appear Unpredictable

During the height of the Vietnam War, U.S. president Richard Nixon confided in his chief of staff, H. R. Haldeman, that he had devised a special strategy to end the war: He was trying to convince his Communist Bloc enemies, the Soviet Union and the North Vietnamese, that he was insane. In his book The
Read the full article →

If At First You Don’t Succeed…

In negotiation, it’s nice to get the deal right the first time. But if carefully laid plans fall apart, you may still be able to recover. That’s what the government of Colombia and the rebel group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or the FARC, did after their peace agreement was narrowly defeated in a national
Read the full article →

A Dealmaking President’s Opening Moves

As a lifelong dealmaker, Donald J. Trump will enter the Oval Office with considerable bargaining experience in the business world. But his blank slate as an elected official combined with his fluctuating positions on key issues such as immigration and tax policy throughout the presidential race have left many wondering what kind of negotiator he
Read the full article →

In Group Negotiations, Make Sure Your Voice is Heard

When President Barack Obama first took office, in 2008, two-thirds of his top aides were men. Moreover, some of those men were known for their brash, dominant personalities, including then chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and economic adviser Lawrence Summers. Consequently, “the West Wing was a well-documented bastion of testosterone,” reports Juliet Eilperin in the
Read the full article →

Pull Off a Successful Negotiation Campaign

Sometimes our negotiations to achieve a desired dream take months. Sometimes they take years. The dream of building a museum of African American history on Washington, D.C.’s, National Mall endured over 100 years, ramped up in the past 15, and culminated with the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture on
Read the full article →

When Breaking Up is Hard to Do

After parties have invested considerable time and money in a negotiation, agreement can come to seem like an inevitable end point. But because negotiations can be difficult to undo, we’d be wise to examine very closely the pros and cons of signing a deal. That’s the lesson health-care company Abbott Laboratories is learning the hard
Read the full article →

Manage Your Power at the Bargaining Table

Avoid the common traps that come with having high power or low power. In early August, employees of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), New York University (NYU), and Yale University sued their employers for allowing investment companies to charge excessive fees on their retirement plans, the New York Times reports. The universities were accused
Read the full article →