Sicherlich kennst du die Situation: Du verhandelst mit jemandem. Du willst den erfolgreichen Abschluss. Doch trotz aller Bemühungen und gutem Willen, scheitern die Verhandlungen. Die Forderungen der Gegenseite sind überzogen. Du musst sie ablehnen. Was nun?
Microsoft und Yahoo Ich weiss noch genau, wie perplex ich war, als ich davon las, dass der Versuch von Microsoft, Yahoo zu übernehmen, scheiterte. Während der Verhandlungen hatten beide sehr viel Geld an der Börse verbrannt, während sie um den Preis pro Aktie feilschten.
Microsoft wollte Yahoo aber nicht um jeden Preis übernehmen und entschied sich schließlich, sein Angebot zurückzuziehen. Besser spät als nie hat sich Microsoft dafür entschieden, alleine weiter zu gehen. Es folgt seiner Alternative.
Erst nachdem Jerry Yang, der Mitbegründer von Yahoo, auf Grund des Drucks der Aktionäre zurückgetreten war, konzentrierte sich seine Nachfolgerin, Carol Bartz, wieder auf das gemeinsame Interesse beider Unternehmen: Ein Gegengewicht zu Google zu bilden. So konnte doch noch der Weg für eine gewinnbringende Partnerschaft geebnet werden.
Apple und facebook 18 Monate sollen beide vergeblich versucht haben, eine Vereinbarung miteinander zu treffen, damit Ping an facebook angebunden werden darf. Das Scheitern muss frustrierend sein, sehr frustrierend - sicherlich für Apple, vielleicht auch für facebook.
Auch hier hat sich Apple schließlich dafür entschieden, alleine weiter zu gehen und Ping zu starten. Noch bevor ein größerer Schaden entstanden ist, hat sich Apple für seine Alternative entschieden.
Was heißt das für uns? Besser du hast einen Plan B, einen attraktiven, und den Mut ihn rechtzeitig einzusetzen.
I am sure you know the situation: You’re negotiating. But, despite your efforts and good will, the negotiation fails. The demands of your counterpart are simply exaggerated. You must reject them. What next?
Microsoft and Yahoo I remember very well, how perplexed I was, when I read, that the hostile takeover of Yahoo by Microsoft failed. Both companies burned a hell lot of money at Wall Street during the negotiation, while bargaining the price per share.
Yet, Microsoft didn’t want Yahoo at any price and decided finally to withdraw their offer. Better late than never Microsoft decided to walk on on its own. They went on with their alternative.
Only after Jerry Yang, the co-founder of Yahoo, resigned due to the pressure of the stakeholders, could his successor, Carol Bartz, refocus on the joint interests of both companies: To counterbalance Google. That opened the path for cooperation.
Apple and facebook It is said, the tried for eighteen month to come up with an agreement that allowed Apple’s Ping to connect with facebook’s social network. It must be frustrating, very frustrating, for Apple, maybe for facebook, too.
Again, finally Apple decided to walk on and start Ping without facebook. Right before greater damage unfolded, Apple decided to go with its alternative.
What’s in it for us? Better you have a plan B, an attractive one, and the courage to walk it.
In the mid 1970’s William Ury met Roger Fisher. Together (with Bruce Patton) they developed their negotiation concepts of GETTING TO YES. In 1978 they proofed its value during the Camp David peace talks between Sadat, Begin and Charter, that lead to a lasting peace agreement between Egypt and Israel. In 1981 they made their experience publicly available by publishing GETTING TO YES. It was not a fast-seller, but a long-seller. They had to talk to some publishers until Houghton Mifflin finally agreed to publish it. Today, more than five million copies are sold and it has been translated into numerous languages.
Since then, the Authors mediated in numerous conflicts ranging from labor talks and acquisitions to civil war prevention. Together they taught thousands of people on how to get to yes in a humane way.
Why not go on the old school of bargaining?
We live in the negotiation age. Nobody knows everything and everybody needs others to reach his or her goal. Neither does a single person has the power to act successfully unilateral in the long run. Remember, you always meet twice in life.
Thus, you have to negotiate with others to get them to help you reach your goals. Hardball bargaining might lead to short term success and definitely to long term defeat (and only, if the other side has no alternatives).
It is possible to reach agreements where both sides win and no party feels deceived. Preparing a negotiation and the very next meeting is the discipline of a professional.
You find more information in Getting To Yes by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton.
Prepare your next negotiation and talk. Make up your mind what your interests are. What interests your counterpart has. Imagine options that satisfy both sides. Think about alternative for you and your counterpart to satisfy interests.
Preparation is a sign of the professional and it causes better results.
You find more information in Getting To Yes by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton.
You might think that you don’t have an alternative to your current negotiation. You have always an alternative! It might just be less attractive, but you have one. Invest time and energy to strengthen your alternatives as much as possible. Develop your BATNA (Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement) early and actively.
With at least one attractive alternative, you are powerful enough to walk away, if you cannot reach an agreement where both sides win. Just imagine: How would it feel to negotiate and know, that you could walk away. You would have the option to negotiate with an alternative party on how to satisfy your interests. I bet, you feel relaxed and powerful.
You find more information in Getting To Yes by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton.
Here comes the tough part: Seek to broaden the pie.
We were taught that in negotiations their gain is our loose, because the pie is fixed (Ask a merchandiser in your company). Every goal in a negotiation seams to look like a fixed amount of money. Sorry, this is wrong. But getting a different perspective is tough (AND worth the extra work).
For example: You are negotiating with a communication agency how much it will cost you to run an advertising campaign. Even if the proposed price is reasonable and within your budget (You know this because you prepared for the meeting!), you normally do not accept the price. You start to bargain for a lower price: It might take four hours and you got a five percent reduction. Congratulation, you lost: Why? Because they will not do you a favor and charge you on any extra minute!
What you did not know: The head of the agency wanted to do you a favor in case you accept the fair price. She wanted to bring you in touch with someone very important people for your business. For her, it would have been just one phone call with an old friend. She was willing to help you at no extra costs, if you did not squeeze the last penny out of them. And they would have been much more motivated, because your acceptance would signal appreciation of their work.
Thus, don’t just focus on the money. Take the time needed to brainstorm what else can be done to satisfy both sides interests.
If possible, separate inventing options from deciding which options become part of a commitment. This allows creative minds to create valuable ideas, that might not cost you a penny, just one phone call with an old friend.
You find more information in Getting To Yes by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton.
