In this keynote, Savvas discusses the MIT and Harvard proven tactics that help professionals generate value through their negotiations. Specifically, the talk focuses on protecting and increasing the value of arguments, building trust to improve outcomes and reducing uncertainty, and recognizing the power of emotion in conversation. Finally, the dark and the invisible sides of negotiation are introduced through an interactive paradigm to present the mechanics of contemporary negotiation.

Key elements of the talk:

• An open mind is not an empty one.
• The concept of tactical empathy: Figuring why people feel how they feel as the key to getting to “yes” in work and in life.
• The reactive devaluation phenomenon: Emotion makes it hard to hear what the other person is really saying.
• Pre-game: how exactly are you negotiating? It’s all about ground rules.
• The floor agreement technique.
• The post-settlement settlement.
• Figuring out how disagreements are going to be handled.
• Normalizing the processes, Harvard style.
• Long-term relationships are always at stake.
• Companies do not negotiate, people negotiate.
• Mapping out the negotiation space.
• Pay attention to more than the financial issues.
• It’s not just splitting the difference on money.
• The most famous orange in the world of negotiation.
• The immense power of back tables.
• Preparing contingent agreements to test the negotiation space: Different forecasts of the future.
• Assessing the edges of the trading zone.
• Inventing more value by making trades.
• Why your offer is better than anything they could have in their pocket?
• Benefits vs financial limitations.