Q & A Table of Contents
International Negotiations Where There Is a Power Imbalance
From: Jorge Uruguay
Question: How can I reduce the asymmetry of Power in a Negotiation betweencountries like Brasil vs. Uruguay or between a small or weaker enterprisevs. a big and strong company. For me it is very important to know thedifferent strategic choices and tactics to negotiate for Uruguay (weaker)inside Mercosur; against Brazil (strong country).
Response: The balance of power between negotiating parties, be theycountries, companies, or cousins can best be measured by looking at theBATNAs of each party. BATNA stands for Best Alternative To a NegotiatedAgreement.
There are many ways to assess a party's BATNA:
1. Can they meet their objectives using resources they already control? What other party or parties have resources needed to achieve their objectives?
2. Do they have attractive competing alternative other parties who can help them reach their objectives?
3. Is there a deadline they face -- and does the party with whom they are negotiating know about that deadline?
4. Are there external reasons that say 'these two parties must reach agreement with each other'? In your example, does the common market agreement require members of Mercosur to attempt to complete deals with other member countries before they can negotiate outside of Mercosur?
5. Does a party risk losing face, money, or other assets if they fail to reach agreement with specific other parties?
If you take a look at the many elements contained in this short list, itshould be possible to see where the apparently more powerful party may havespecific interests that can best be served by dealing with the 'weaker'party. While each of the individual contributions the 'weaker' party mayhave to offer may not seem so significant, it may be that the total packageis crucial.
It is also possible that what does not seem extremely valuable to one partyis quite important to the other. Thus, it is crucial not to make an offersaying, "This item is highly valuable because . . ." or "We can give youthis item because it is not very valuable to us. . ." Instead, when aparticular issue is brought into the discussion, you need to find out howvaluable it is to the 'other side'. What is worthless to you may beextremely important to them. And the opposite is true as well; they may behappy to give away something you really care about because to them, it haslittle value.
With this background information in your head, it is important to remember some crucial strategic elements:
1. Prepare, Prepare, Prepare. Learn as much as you can about the interestsof other parties. Find out what you can from public records, newspaperreports, and other parties who have had dealings with them. If one partyactually represents several constituencies, try to have separateconversations with these other constituencies to see if there are particularissues that are important -- or unimportant -- to them.
2. DO NOT ASSUME THAT THE 'BIGGER GUY' IS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE 'LITTLEGUY'. It all depends on the situation, the resources available to eachparty, and the parties' priorities.
3. Make sure you have taken a close look at your BATNA, your interests, yourresources. Many people can be coldly analytical about other parties; thechallenge is to be equally analytical about yourself, your motivations, yourexpectations.
4. Try to keep your expectations high. If you expect very little, that'sthe most you can expect to receive. If you expect a lot, you'll probablyget more than a little.
5. Even when the power imbalance is significant, sometimes the motivationsof the parties are imbalanced in the opposite direction. What is moreimportant to whom, and why?
6. Ask a lot of questions, and then listen carefully. The negotiationprocess is the exchange of information. And what you are listening for isinformation that can modify your BATNA.
Good luck in improving the balance of power.
Steve
| 
