In-House Counsel

The Road Not Taken: Going Back To The Basics Of Negotiation

Sometimes in-house counsel need to go back to the basics, especially when they become frustrated with how their negotiations are progressing.

By Celeste Harrison Forst on September 13, 2016

Successful negotiationsI’ve had a few weeks off from the column (and will have a few more off after this week), but the grind of my day job continues. We just finished up a busy time of year at my work, and for me, “busy” means interacting with several different people and long days of negotiation.

One of the things that fascinates me about the job I do is how various professionals interact with me and my colleagues. Unlike litigation, I am not in an adversarial relationship with my professional counterparts, but my professional counterparts and I sometimes have differing strategies on how to move the relationship forward. I deal with both legal professionals and business professionals in my daily work and it is always interesting to see how these strategies actually work.

I support colleagues who work in what could diplomatically be called “dominant” or “dictatorial” industries. To some extent, it makes sense; there are a few huge players in a heavily regulated universe. They get to make most of the rules and anyone who isn’t as big has to play by those rules or not play at all. The room for negotiation is minimal. Alternatively, I also work with customers that are small and are finding their way from a tiny pond to a lake and I’ve got all the knowledge and leverage.

In my day, I meet quiet, studious professionals, bombastic bullies, quiet bullies, and bombastic professionals. I’ve found the bullies are the easiest to deal with because they are the easiest to walk away from. If you are working on a negotiation and you aren’t quite comfortable with a position, if the other party starts bullying you to take the position, it is a fairly reliable sign you should do the opposite — or at least stop and think for a moment. Additionally, because my role supports the business team that lives with the relationship, if it appears our counterpart is difficult to deal with during negotiations, my business team and I are more likely to rethink our positions and take a more conservative approach. In other words, the bully is less likely to get the deal she wants (unless she has something we really can’t get anywhere else).

The negotiations I find the most difficult are the ones where I believe the other side is working with me. It’s the ideal situation — they give a little and I give a little. It’s these negotiations where I start to trust my counterparts. My business team has a relationship with their colleagues on the other side and can’t wait to start working together. It’s these situations where I’m more likely to cave, where I’m more likely to miss something because I subconsciously trust the people I’ve been working with. I’m more likely to work harder to find a creative solution because I want this relationship to work. Despite my best efforts, I have become emotionally invested.

Of course, this is nothing new. We’re all aware of the tools for negotiation and most people who negotiate regularly are familiar with the elements of “Getting to Yes” and “Getting Past No.” We all know about asking questions of the people across the table, finding your best alternatives, and listening more than talking. We know this, but it helps to be reminded: these tools work.

I don’t have anything new to add to the great library of negotiation strategy, but I appreciated the reminder to go back to basics, especially when I become frustrated with how my negotiations progress. For those of us who have a few years of practice behind us, the basics become second nature. Every once in a while, it helps to go back to nature.  

Celeste Harrison Forst has practiced in small and mid-sized firms and is now in-house at a large manufacturing and technology company where she receives daily hugs from her colleagues. You can reach Celeste directly at [email protected].