Negotiating At and Away from the Table

“At the table moves”—including establishing rapport, connection, and relationships—include Hillary Clinton dealing with Vladimir Putin, artist Jeanne-Claude, who with her husband Christo, won over countless stakeholders to build their massive outdoor art installations, as well as former Secretary of State James Baker, and Disney CEO Bob Iger.  Protagonists whose “away from the table” moves to shape the underlying situation in their favor include former Colombian President Juan Santos dealing with a guerrilla group, Christiana Figueres quietly building powerful external support prior to the Paris climate negotiations, former Goldman Sachs managing partner Steve Friedman, and music industry super-lawyer John Branca hit with a surprise buy-sell demand from Sony—that held all the financial and legal cards.

Production Details:

I am deeply grateful to Harvard for giving me permission to use audio excerpts from interviews I’ve conducted over the years with various Great Negotiator honorees and U.S. Secretaries of State, often with colleagues and friends such as Robert Mnookin of Harvard Law School and R. Nicholas Burns, formerly of Harvard’s Kennedy School.

Materials courtesy of the Great Negotiator Award Program at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. Copyright © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Materials courtesy of the American Secretaries of State Program, a joint effort of the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School, the Program on the Future of Diplomacy at Harvard Kennedy School, and Harvard Business School. Copyright © President and Fellows of Harvard College.