In one scene in the classic film, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” George Bailey, the bright-eyed do-gooder of Bedford Falls, meets with the town’s miserly business titan, Mr. Potter. As George lowers himself into a chair in front of Mr. Potter’s desk, he sinks way down in the seat, now having to look up at Mr. Potter, who towers on the other side of the desk. George now appears to be smaller than Mr. Potter as they begin their negotiation.
Anyone who sees the movie laughs at this scene because the tactic Mr. Potter uses is so blatant as he tries to establish some form of “dominance” in the negotiation. There are, however, many other tactics parties will utilize that are less obvious. To experienced negotiators, these tactics create an urge to yell out a warning, like when watching a horror movie and the teenagers decide to go into the basement: “Watch out! It’s a trap!”
Here are three that are most often experienced. Maybe the other side does it intentionally, or maybe it is just their “process.” Either way, we need to be mindful of these tactics as they can have serious consequences on the quality of the deal: The Empty Chair, The Salami Slicer and The Difficult Negotiator.
The Empty Chair is an authority tactic, where your counterpart claims to have the ability to get a deal done. However, when the time comes to make substantive decisions, they reference someone who has to sign off on the issue.
Now, it is not unusual for a negotiator to tentatively agree to something and say they need “management” or “leadership” approval, especially if the agreement is a material deviation from where the discussion started. Where the Empty Chair is an issue is when the other party returns from that meeting with leadership and you are given a counterproposal that is inconsistent with the previous agreement, and you’re told “take it or leave it” or that’s what “they” want. You are now negotiating with “they” and “they” are not in the room. This is when we have to challenge the authority of the other negotiator and suggest that “they” need to come to the table, or give the power to the negotiator to make these decisions.
The Salami Slicer is a variation of the Empty Chair, but more subtle and difficult to manage. This is when we’ve reached agreement on the terms of the deal, and the other party says, “OK, now the VP of operations needs to sign off.” The deal is presented to this shadowy executive, who then asks for several more concessions. Then the chief risk officer has to review, and she wants a bunch of changes. And then another executive… and another. Before you know it, you feel like a salami at the delicatessen in the slicer, getting pieces cut off the deal little by little by little.
To address the Salami Slicer, you need to act as soon as the first one shows up. Tell your counterpart that it would be best if they circulated the deal through management first, and then we can deal with all the requested changes at once. That way, we save time, address the project holistically and make changes that work for both sides.
The Difficult Negotiator is not the other party being difficult, it’s about you! This tactic arises when the other party says, “Your company is so difficult to do business with!” as a way to soften you up for a concession. That is a label used for companies that don’t just say “yes” to everything the other party asks for.
The best response is, “That is obviously not the reputation we want to establish with you! What about the way we are working together do you find difficult?” One of two things will happen: you will either diffuse the comment by testing its legitimacy, or you will discover that, in fact, you are being difficult in the process and there is something you need to address.
The mantra in negotiations regarding tactics is: If you see something, say something. Whether it is intentional or not, you can often deflect the tactic by calling it out so the other party knows you are aware of it. Ask about its purpose, and then suggest a different approach that might produce a more collaborative outcome.
(Please share your own negotiation experiences below so, together, we can improve our negotiation mastery.)
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