The Art of Negotiation

The final agreement in a negotiation is the written contract.

Doctor Chester L. Karrass, chairman of Karrass, said, “In business, you don’t get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.” Negotiating is one of the hardest parts of business. In the filming industry, an executive producer is constantly negotiating several matters including salaries, obtaining investments, and establishing filming locations. It can be daunting to walk into the room not knowing if the person you are negotiating with is a master negotiator, a rookie, or someone in between.

Positional bargaining is a negotiation strategy that is based on fixed positions and usually results in an agreement or no agreement. In other words, the end to positional bargaining is a win/lose result. Positional bargaining is usually present in salary negotiations. For instance, the recruiter pressures the candidate to name a salary or hourly rate. Ramit Sethi, personal financer and entrepreneur, states to never name the least amount you will accept because it may be below what number the recruiter had in mind. If it is below that number, they will be happy to offer you that particular number, and nothing above the number. Instead, place the pressure back on the recruiter by asking him or her questions about the salary range.

Before you enter into any negotiation, do your homework including obtaining objective criteria. You need to know what is the value of the position that you want, and what is the value you are worth. Knowing the salary for a particular position can assist you when the recruiter is pressuring you for a number. You can tell the recruiter a range and where you fall within that range based on your previous experience and any objective criteria that may be relevant. Objective criteria include researching the business that you are negotiating with. The more prepared you are the stronger your position and the better your negotiation will be.

Changing negotiation strategies from positional bargaining into a mutual agreement provides the best results for both parties because it is a win/win outcome. You need to frame your stipulations in terms that will benefit the other negotiator. If a recruiter states that he or she cannot offer a higher salary because the economy is bad, the candidate can tell the recruiter that the increase in salary is an investment in their business. Then the candidate will explain how it is an investment in the company.

Negotiating is an essential skill that every producer must have. Additional lessons I learned from each video was that you must be confident, prepare for your negotiations, be able to read people, and never disclose your bottom line. Like everything else in life, practice applying your negotiation skills. By practicing, it will make you a stronger and better negotiator.