The Role of Power in Negotiation
The word power has had a bad connotation for many
years.
It has received this reputation because most people
associate the word with one side dominating or overpowering
the other. I define power as the ability to influence people
or situations. With this definition, power is neither good
nor bad. It is the abuse of power that is bad.
Types of Power
Various types of power can influence the outcome
of a negotiation. I emphasize the word can because if
you have power but don't use it, your power is of no value.
Following are a few types of power that can be significant
in the negotiating process:
1. Position. Some measure of power is
conferred based on one’s formal position in an
organization. For example, if you are the marketing manager,
you can influence decisions that affect the marketing
department.
2. Knowledge or expertise. Knowledge in
itself is not powerful; it is the application of knowledge
that confers power. It’s important to take the time prior
to a negotiation to research facts and statistics, find out
what the other party’s goals are, and discover what areas
he or she might consider negotiable--and then use this
knowledge!
3. Character. Individuals who are seen as
trustworthy have a great deal of power in negotiations. You
are perceived as trustworthy if you have a reputation for
doing what you say you are going to do.
4. Reward and punishment. Those who are
able to bestow rewards or perceived rewards, such as raises
or job benefits, hold power. Conversely, those who have the
ability to create a negative outcome for the other party
also have power.
5. Behavior style. Most people exhibit one
or a combination of the following behavior styles:
*analytical--process oriented, methodical
*driven--task oriented, goal directed
*supportive--relationship oriented, focused on feelings
Which behavioral style is the most appropriate depends on
the situation. For example, if you were going through a
divorce and wanted to maintain a good relationship with your
spouse, you would want to use the supportive style. You gain
real power from a knowledge of behavior styles only if you
can read a situation and adapt your style to it.
Most people have more power than they think. I believe
there is a link between a person’s self-esteem and the
amount of power that person thinks he or she has. It has
been demonstrated that people with high self-esteem feel
they have more viable options--and thus more power to
act--in negotiations. I believe the reverse is also true:
People with low self-esteem feel powerless, and do not stand
a fair chance.
Rules of Power
Knowing the following rules of power comes in handy when
entering into a negotiation.
Rule #1: Seldom does one side have all the power.
Even the individual who goes to a bank to ask for a loan has
power--the power to decide which bank to apply to, the power
to decide an acceptable interest rate, and the power to
decide what to put up as collateral.
Rule #2: Power may be real or apparent. When I was
a proctor in the sociology department at San Diego State
University, I knew that cheating was a potential problem. As
I was passing out tests, I announced that I would uphold the
university’s "policy" on cheating. One bold
student asked what the policy was. My response was simple:
"If you need to ask, you don’t want to know."
This was the first time I had ever seen all sixty students
staring at their own paper! Does the university have a
policy on cheating? I don’t know. But in this situation,
whether the power was real or apparent didn’t matter. The
students perceived that I had the power.
Rule #3: Power exists only to the point at which it is
accepted. At the airport on a return trip from Europe, I
noted that all the ticketing agents for economy class had at
least a twenty-minute line to check baggage. Yet the
business and first-class agents had not one person in line.
I boldly walked up to the business class agent and got my
seat assignment. Of course, this strategy was successful
only because the ticket agent was willing to work with me.
But I never would have known if I hadn’t tried.
Rule #4: Power relationships can change over time.
This is one of the hardest lessons I have ever learned. In
my youth, I had the same girlfriend from the seventh to the
eleventh grades. In the beginning, I had the power in the
relationship. I chose which activities we would become
involved in and who our friends would be. Then something
happened that sent me into a tailspin. My girlfriend was
asked out by the student body president! Overnight, I was
sending roses and begging for a date.
Rule #5: In relationships, the side with the least
commitment generally holds the most power. If you are
negotiating to buy a car from a salesman whose boss has
warned him that he had better start making sales, and you
are not committed to buying this particular car from this
particular dealer, you are in the driver’s seat in the
negotiating process.
Testing Your Power
What is the lesson to be learned here? Power is of no
value unless you take advantage of it. (Remember, power is
not bad--the abuse of it is bad.) When negotiating, be
willing to take a chance. Try out your ability to influence
the other party and the outcome of the negotiation. You may
find out you have more power than you think!
Peter Barron Stark is president of Peter
Barron Stark & Associates. He travels
internationally training procurement specialists, sales
professionals and other leaders in the art of negotiation. www.negotiatingguide.com,
(877) 727.6468
©Peter Barron Stark & Associates,
2000
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