Fargo: Negotiation Strategies Illustrated in Film
The Pace of the Negotiation "Dance"
and
the "Nibble" Technique
William H. Macy plays Lundergaard. Francis McDormand plays the pregnant sheriff in pursuit of the bungling kidnapper, played by Steve Buscemi.
Close to the time the Coen's show us Lundergaard's mounting financial problems, Lundergaard completes the sale of a car to a couple caught in a negotiation they thought had ended long before they returned to Lundergaard's office for the keys to their new car.
The scene helps me illustrate the timing and size of concessions in distributive bargaining. It also illustrates a hard bargaining technique called "the nibble."
In negotiations focused on money, the time between moves takes increasingly longer:
- 5 minutes signals: “We’re working it out.”
- 10 minutes signals: “But it is getting harder for me.”
- 20 minutes signals: “I’m running out of room.”
- 40 + minutes signals: “Careful, we are risking impasse.”
Thus, a negotiator should not respond immediately to a concession in the later stages of the negotiation. Respect the time intervals required to send the right message to both sides of the table.
With the "nibble" technique, you can get added value at the end of the negotiation (in this case the inflated cost of the TrueCoat). Late in the negotiation, the other side is unlikely to walk away when faced with a nibble demand. They are too psychologically committed to the negotiation by this time. ("Where's my checkbook!")
A smart negotiator will resist the demand, even name the game, or be prepared to go buy the car (or other subject of the negotiation) from another provider (walk to your BATNA).
Or, the negotiator can say: "Oh, I am very glad to see you would like to re-open our negotiations. We had a few additional items we wanted to discuss, as well."
Comments
Post a Comment