Dr. Chester Karrass
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Dr. Chester L. Karrass brings extensive experience, advanced academic credentials in negotiation techniques, and over 35 years experience in seminar delivery no other negotiator in the country can match. After earning an Engineering degree from the University of Colorado and a Masters in Business from Columbia University, Dr. Karrass became a negotiator for the Hughes organization. There he won the first Howard Hughes Doctoral Fellowship Award, and spent three years conducting advanced research and experimentation in negotiation techniques before earning his Doctorate from the University of Southern California.
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The negotiation suggestions below are based on research findings in human psychology. Like all research, experiments in negotiation persuasion are not exact models of the real world. Good business judgment is the only way to fill in the large gaps left by research.
Quick negotiations are generally foolish negotiations. However, if one party is well prepared for the "quickie" and the other party is not, the advantage lies with the person who is prepared.
Questions are mind-openers and can lead both parties in a negotiation to a more active involvement with each other. This greater involvement is the key element to more satisfactory negotiations.
Let me provide you an example that illustrates a powerful negotiating tool — Legitimacy.
Many people approach negotiating much like a Ping-Pong game. One side serves, then the other. A few quick slashes (concessions) and it's done. Then on to something else. Most of us are too impatient when it comes to negotiating.
Negotiation is one of the most difficult jobs a person can do. It requires a combination of diverse traits and skills. The process of negotiating demands not only good business judgment but also a keen understanding of human nature. I know of no other area in business where the alchemy of power, persuasion, economics, motivation, and organizational pressure come together in so concentrated a fashion and so narrow a time frame. Nowhere is the return on investment potential so high!
A negotiator should approach their negotiating like an investor approaches the stock market.
In most negotiations, both sides move from their original positions. Each side compromises by making some concessions to reach an agreement. Careful concessions help guide you towards a mutually satisfying agreement. Here are a few things I try to keep in mind when making concessions:
How a person responds to a concession can be affected by the concession itself. For example, if one party makes a large concession, instead of being satisfied, the other party often reacts by making greater demands.
Some people get their way by deliberately yelling and screaming. It’s a negotiating tactic.
