Q & A Table of Contents
Measuring The Balance Of Power
From: Elena, Kiev, Ukraine
Question: Is there a way to measure the Balance of Power in negotiation? What kind of method can I use?
Response: Generally speaking we use a concept called the BATNA, the Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement, to measure the balance of power among negotiating parties. By looking at the constituent elements of the BATNA, one gets a sense of how much power each party has before negotiation begins -- and how the balance of power changes during the negotiation process.
Your BATNA can include a variety of elements:
- Those resources you control or influence that you can use to resolve the issue under negotiation without the assistance or cooperation of other parties to the negotiation.
- Choices you can make if a particular negotiation partner cannot -- or will not -- reach an agreement you find favorable. These may be his or her competitors, other people within your company who will cooperate better than your first choice, or perhaps choosing an entirely different way to resolve the issue about which you are negotiating.
- Deadlines that have an impact on your priorities -- or those of the parties with whom you negotiate.
- Information that negotiating parties have that other parties need.
- Differences in experience and skill among negotiating parties can influence the balance of power as well.
I am not aware of a methodology for calculating the balance of power scientifically; it varies in each negotiation. Negotiating parties start off with what is called their 'walking-in' BATNA; the balance of power as they perceive it before the negotiations begin. Once negotiation has started, the parties exchange information and may discover their initial calculation of the balance of power was not accurate. Thus, during negotiation, the BATNA or balance of power becomes a dynamic element that changes as each party learns information that has an impact on the elements of his or her BATNA.
The process is not scientific, but it does lend itself to analysis and imprecise calculation.
Good luck with this,
Steve
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