Negotiation Columns & Blogs

President-elect Barack Obama's job interview with the American public is over. And now the pundits are analyzing how and why he won. As they do so, let's take their conclusions about some of his negotiation-related qualities and consider how he might use them in his...

Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, recently settled a case in which Sheik Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the second son of the king of Bahrain, had sued him for breach of contract. Al Khalifa alleged he advanced millions to Jackson in a joint venture that Jackson failed...

Nine days ago, Citigroup announced it would pay $1 per share for Wachovia's banking operations in a deal brokered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Four days later, Wells Fargo announced it planned to buy Wachovia for approximately $7 per share in a deal...

Do you want a fairly sure way to save money if you're selling your house? According to a survey in Consumer Reports' September issue, 71 percent of sellers who attempted to negotiate a lower commission with their real estate broker received a discount. The problem?...

Arizona Cardinals' wide receiver Anquan Boldin and his agent Drew Rosenhaus want to tear up his $22.75 million contract (now in its 2nd year and legally valid through 2010) and renegotiate. Why? They feel the market for wide receivers has changed for the better (for...

Ever since the race between my law school colleague Barack Obama and my former boss' wife Hillary Clinton got nasty (I did advance work for the Clinton White House), many have speculated about the Obama-Clinton relationship and their negotiations leading up to and...

Republican nominee Sen. John McCain wanted his former competitor Rep. Ron Paul to endorse him and give him the names of Paul's supporters at the Republican Convention and elsewhere. Paul, according to The Washington Times, resisted and continues to say "no." Their...

Last week I discussed what Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer did effectively in his negotiations to take control of Yahoo! Today I discuss a strategy that Ballmer used ineffectively. On April 5 Ballmer sent a letter to Yahoo! stating ""If we have not concluded an agreement...

A Monet painting recently sold at auction for $80.4 million, a record for a Monet. Interestingly, experts had pegged its value and expected sale price at $36 million to $47 million. What happened? And how can you, as a possible auction participant and buyer, keep from...

In my last post, I reviewed the first two of my Five Golden Rules. Let's now take a closer look at the remaining three: Golden Rule Three: Employ "Fair" Objective Criteria “I just want what’s fair and reasonable,” a friend said in the midst of his divorce. “That’s not...

According to The New York Times this week, Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG is currently negotiating with India-based Reliance Entertainment to sell it an equity stake for $500-600 million. DreamWorks has the right to do this as it can opt out of its current contract...

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer in his negotiations with Yahoo! earlier this year effectively used one negotiation technique and ineffectively used another. Let’s start with what he did effectively. Ballmer apparently set a very specific goal regarding what he wanted to...

My Five Golden Rules of Negotiation provide the essential building blocks for every negotiation. They are: 1. Information Is Power—So Get It 2. Maximize Your Leverage 3. Employ “Fair” Objective Criteria 4. Design an Offer-Concession Strategy 5. Control the Agenda...

To wrap up the month, let’s consider the last two guiding principles of successful negotiating – protecting your reputation and learning by doing. Here are my thoughts on both: Jealously protect your reputation. Sounds simple and straightforward, right? Of course. But...