Negotiators should determine their best alternative to a negotiated agreement, or BATNA—what they’ll do if they don’t achieve their goals in the current negotiation. Your BATNA is your favoured FALLBACK option if you can’t get everything that you want. People who prepare well for a negotiation are often very effective at it, those who go into the negotiation without preparing fully will receive less of the ‘pie.’
Example BATNA:
In a recruitment situation, if an employer is setting up a new project and they do not currently have the skills and experience needed to get the project off the ground, their BATNA is that the project start is delayed whilst they seek the right people, their worst outcome is the strategy fails. A candidate who has the skills and experience the employer is looking for will be aware of their position, for them they may already have a good job and may have been headhunted, for the candidate the BATNA is they stay with their current employer. In this situation the candidate has a stronger hand and is in a stronger bargaining position.
Plenary – questions – observations – in what way do you feel more prepared for your negotiation?
What was the benefit for you thinking about a BATNA?
