Questions re: Sally Soprano Negotiation

Q: What results?

NOTE:If these questions have already been posed in another debriefing, consider posing them again as further practice, but shorten the discussion

Leverage

Q: To Opera: What was Sally's alternative to agreement?

To Sally reps: What was Opera's alternative?

Q: Did you try to find out other's alternative? Why or why not?

Q: In real life, what could you do?

Opera: check with other agents, ask Sally's agent?

Sally: check on other singers; prior bookings for singers

Q: Why not check BATNAs?

  • too much time
  • pushy/impolite
  • make other side look bad?
  • they might ask you Qs in return

SLIDE: NEGOTIATING RANGE

Note: One option is to change your BATNA What could be done in real life?

Sally?look for other bookings or other jobs

Opera? line up other singers; change show

Q: Here, You had lousy alternatives What did you do?Mention them at all?

  • Bluff? Lie?
  • Argue them?
  • Disparage other side's?
  • Change the subject? eg: possible role for Sally elsewhere; likely [?] TV show

NOTE: Lousy BATNA for both sides does not equal bad results in negotiation, if you have good aspirations, and a strategy to get there.

Q: What was your aspiration going in? Satisfaction level?

Q: What walkaway point?

______

PRINCIPLED NEGOTIATION:

Q: How did you argue for a good result?

Opera:

  • Generalities: non-profit status, Sally's seniority.
  • Identify principles favorable to you:

Sally's last salary [for a secondary role in Norma]: 12.5

Sally’s last salary times 2 (for lead): 25

Current secondary times 2: 28

Sally:

  • Generalities: very popular, high salaries recently, reliable
  • Principled criteria:

Her last title role times 2 (for inflation): 44

Best recent secondary times 2, plus adj: 36

What Lyric would have paid other singer: 30

Current secondary times 2: 28

SLIDE: Principled options for salaries

Q: Other side: Which arguments were most effective?

Why? Advocacy

SLIDE: Impact of principles

Q: Did they influence you at all?

______

INTERESTSAn escape from both leverage and arguments

Q: What is Sally most interested in?

  • Career: showcase for her career
  • Ego: feeling of star status; privacy if low salary
  • Economics: continuing employment in some capacity

Q: What is Opera most interested in?

  • decent bookings
  • not laying out money if there is no audience
  • reliability
  • avoid precedent if high salary

Q: What creative options?

  • Sally: Superstar perks: limo, roses, dressing room, terrific make up artist
  • Opera: Percentage of the gate to Sally
  • Both: Advertising to feature Sally Master classes, gala tribute; Swansong Fund for education; Sally sings for free in charity performance for opera

SHOW Creative bargaining results in other class

SLIDES on interests,

Q: So, why didn't people do this in practice?

SLIDES: Obstacles to creative bargaining

SLIDE: Lessons of Sally Soprano