Negotiation Skills & Strategies | Kellogg School | Northwestern

More than 80 percent of CEOs and other executives leave money on the table when negotiating, according to J. Jay Gerber Professor of Dispute Resolution & Organizations Leigh Thompson. They settle for too little. They walk away from the table unnecessarily. They act tough, damaging the long-term relationships their businesses need to thrive.

What negotiation skills do you need? What strategies should you employ? From developing the latest research to grounding students and practitioners in the fundamentals, Kellogg's world-renowned faculty have earned a top-notch reputation for helping you reach agreements on your biggest deals.

Know your BATNA and use it to inform your offer. Figure out when to make the first move, and understand what you and the other party want out of the arrangement.

Negotiation is a lifelong practice, and Kellogg helps you to be your best at the table.

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Masters of Negotiation: Born This Way?

Great negotiators don't step up to the table with genetically encoded skills. They learn the deal-making craft through study, trial and experience.

Negotiation: Know Your Interests

Professor Jeanne Brett explains how buying pumpkins turned into a lesson in knowing one's interests and crafting a win-win solution in a negotiation.

Negotiate, Differentiate: Highlight Your Advantage by Building It Into the Deal

Professor Vicki Medvec explains how differentiating your organization at the negotiation table will give you a greater advantage.

Closing the Negotiation Gap: How Women Can Get What They Want

Professor Leigh Thompson explains how women can close the negotiation gap that prevents them from reaching their highest earning potential.

Is Your Negotiation Strategy Wrong?

Negotiation requires planning, strategy, and discipline. Learning how to pick and choose your tactics ensures that you get more of what you want.

Write Your Own Script

Women are afraid to negotiate because of potential backlash. They can fight it by writing their own story and framing how their colleagues see them.

How Brainwriting Can Neutralize the Loudmouths

Video: How do you stop your team's dominant personalities from shutting down your brainstorming session? Hand out pens and try brainwriting.

High-Performance Negotiation Skills for Women

Among elite business-school grads, women earn just 93 percent of what men make. Leigh Thompson offers five steps to even the score.

Women's Leadership Workshop

The pay gap between male and female graduates of elite business schools is widening. How do women address that when negotiating salary?

Negotiation Tips: Who’s on first?

Should you be the one to make it? Everyone insists you should always go second or risk revealing too much. But what if everyone is wrong?

Negotiation Tips: Lies, Damned Lies and Negotiations

Calling an offer "final" when you know it's not isn't tough negotiating—it's a lie. And lying will cost you at the negotiation table in the long run.

Don't Take One for the Team

When negotiating, making heavy concessions in order to preserve a relationship seems like a good idea. In practice, however, it's all sacrifice and no payoff.

Negotiation Tactics 101

Learn effective negotiation skills in under an hour with four videos covering topics such as the most common mistakes to avoid, your BATNA and more.

Negotiation Strategies for Women

Professor Leigh Thompson shares how women can arm themselves with the tools to close the pay gap and increase their long-term earning potential.

Negotiation and culture, teams, and decisions

Jeanne Brett, Leigh Thompson and Victoria Medvec on the interplay of negotiation with cultural differences, team dynamics, and decision-making

Doing Business in the Middle East

The Middle East is underserved by negotiation scholars. Prof. Jeanne Brett set out to fix that.

The Fine Art of Negotiating in Different Cultures

How to make sure nothing's lost in translation when going global and negotiating overseas business

When and How To Let a Conflict Go

Sometimes it's best to walk away; this is when and how you should

Women Negotiate Forum

Should you tell potential employers who else you're talking to? Do outside offers give you leverage? Our experts answer those questions and more.

Women Negotiate Forum: Getting What You Need

Advice on negotiating personal issues, pregnancy, mid-career promotions and other employment issues facing professional women.

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