This free report from the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation (PON) presents evidence‑based, actionable guidance for negotiators across business, legal, diplomatic and everyday contexts. It begins with an overview of PON and its faculty, then moves through a series of concise, research‑grounded chapters. The first chapter challenges the fixed‑pie, win‑lose mindset and introduces five value‑creation strategies: building trust and sharing information (asking questions, giving information, making multiple simultaneous offers, and seeking post‑settlement settlements). The next chapter explains how to assess one’s BATNA and reservation value, illustrated with a detailed construction‑company case and a simple four‑step BATNA worksheet. The report then examines the anchoring effect and offers a decision framework for when to make the first offer, drawing on classic Tversky‑Kahneman experiments and real‑estate studies. The following section focuses on framing, offering tactics such as presenting a limited set of choices, using multiple equivalent simultaneous offers (MESOs), and leveraging the contrast effect to shape perceptions of value. A foot‑in‑the‑door technique is illustrated with anecdotes from comedian Amy Poehler and Cialdini’s persuasion research. The report warns about agents’ potential conflicts of interest and provides four practical guidelines for managing agents, grounded in principal‑agent theory and empirical studies of real‑estate commissions. Finally, it introduces contingent contracts as a tool for handling uncertainty, defining their structure, benefits, and pitfalls, with examples ranging from home remodels to fuel‑oil supply agreements. Throughout, the authors cite leading scholars (Bazerman, Malhotra, Susskind, Subramanian, etc.) and embed concrete formulas, checklists, and case studies, making the document a compact handbook for improving negotiation outcomes.
Topics
Challenging the Fixed‑Pie Mindset and Expanding Value
Explains why the assumption of a limited, win‑lose pie is often wrong and introduces strategies for building trust, sharing information, and searching for mutually beneficial trade‑offs.
Five Proven Strategies for Value Creation (Trust, Questions, Information Sharing, Multiple Offers, Post‑Settlement Settlements)
A concrete list of tactics—building trust, asking questions, giving away information, making multiple offers simultaneously, and seeking post‑settlement settlements—to uncover hidden value.
Assessing and Leveraging Your BATNA
Step‑by‑step method (list alternatives, evaluate, establish BATNA, calculate reservation value) with a numeric example showing how to compute expected BATNA value.
When and How to Make the First Offer – Anchoring Effect
Reviews classic anchoring research (Tversky & Kahneman, Northcraft & Neale) and provides a decision framework based on knowledge of the ZOPA and the opponent’s information.
Framing Offers for Maximum Impact (Choice Overload, MESOs, Contrast Effect)
Covers three framing techniques: limiting choice sets to avoid overload, presenting multiple equivalent simultaneous offers (MESOs) to reveal priorities, and using the contrast effect by anchoring with a higher, rejectable offer.
Foot‑in‑the‑Door Technique and Consistency Principle
Illustrates the small‑request‑then‑big‑request strategy with anecdotes from Amy Poehler and explains the underlying consistency motive from Cialdini’s persuasion research.
Principal‑Agent Conflict of Interest and Management Guidelines
Explains why agents may have misaligned incentives, cites empirical findings (Levitt & Syverson), and offers four practical guidelines for investigating style, negotiating contracts, defining roles, and protecting bottom‑line information.
Designing Contingent Contracts to Allocate Future Risk
Defines contingent contracts, provides examples (bonus/penalty for on‑time completion, price‑cap for fuel‑oil, teen babysitting arrangement), and lists advantages such as risk sharing, self‑enforcement, and litigation avoidance.