Publications

Register to Read

July 2005
Article

Price Improvement in Dealership Markets

By: Matthew Rhodes-Kropf

Price improvement refers to the practice whereby dealers order executions that improve on quoted prices. Why are these improvements given? Standard thinking is that competition causes dealers to give better prices to customers with less information. This paper... View Details

Keywords: Price; Markets; Competition; Information; Customers; Negotiation; Mission and Purpose; Practice; Theory; Performance Improvement; Bids and Bidding; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms

Find at Harvard

March 1998 (Revised August 2000)
Case

Bumper Acquisition (C), A

By: James K. Sebenius and David T. Kotchen

Carries the negotiation between Thermo-Impact and Medallion Capital through October 1996. The companies began talks in 1995 when Medallion offered to buy Thermo-Impact. Students view developments from the perspective of Thermo-Impact's owners and must make decisions... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Negotiation Process; Negotiation Participants; Entrepreneurship; Acquisition; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry; Illinois

October 1999 (Revised June 2002)
Case

Case Brief: Stone Container in Honduras and Costa Rica

By: James K. Sebenius and Hannah Bowles

Summarizes contents of two full-length cases. The cases provide examples of two different approaches to managing complex multi-party negotiations with stakeholders. A rewritten version of an earlier case. View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Participants; Costa Rica; Honduras

November 1978 (Revised February 1990)
Case

Amicon Corp. (C)

Details the negotiations between Amicon and one potential licensee, Jackson. View Details

Keywords: Technology; Patents; Negotiation Process; Negotiation Participants; Health Care and Treatment; Biotechnology Industry

November 1978 (Revised October 1989)
Case

Amicon Corp. (B)

Details the negotiation between Amicon and three potential licensees, Jackson, Maynard-Smith and Behrstein. View Details

Keywords: Technology; Patents; Negotiation Process; Negotiation Participants; Health Care and Treatment; Biotechnology Industry

October 1986 (Revised November 1989)
Case

Becton Dickinson & Co.: VACUTAINER Systems Division

By: Frank V. Cespedes

Concerns negotiations between managers of Becton Dickinson's (BD) VACUTAINER division (which manufactures and sells blood collection products) and managers of a large hospital buying group. Recent changes in the health care industry are the background for the... View Details

Keywords: Distribution; Negotiation Participants; Negotiation Process; Price; Sales; Manufacturing Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Health Industry; United States

Spring 2014
Article

Ex-Ante Agreements in Standard Setting and Patent Pool Formation

By: Gaston Llanes and Joaquin Poblete

We present a model of standard setting and patent-pool formation. We study the effects of alternative standard-setting and pool-formation rules on technology choice, prices, and welfare. We find three main results. First, we show that allowing patent pools may reduce... View Details

Keywords: Standard Setting; Patent Pools; Royalty Stacking; Ex-ante Agreements; Coalition Formation; Motivation and Incentives; Patents; Agreements and Arrangements; Standards

Find at Harvard

Read Now

10 Mar 2002
Research & Ideas

Breakthrough Negotiation: Don’t Leave It On the Table

effectively. Acting as a bridge between internal decision making and external negotiating and reconciling the divergent interests of fractious constituencies demands leadership grounded in credibility and skill rather than authority.... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Watkins

March 1998
Case

Bumper Acquisition (A2), A: Confidential Information for Medallion Capital, Inc.

By: James K. Sebenius and David T. Kotchen

Located in Mundelein, IL, Thermo-Impact, Inc. is a rapidly growing, private firm that manufactures automotive bumpers. In 1995, a number of large automotive supply companies and a private equity investment firm offer to buy Thermo-Impact. The cases in this series focus... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Valuation; Negotiation Participants; Decision Making; Negotiation Process; Entrepreneurship; Negotiation Offer; Acquisition; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry; Illinois

Find at Harvard

10 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

The Negotiator’s Secret: More Than Merely Effective

You've just taken a seat at the negotiating table. No doubt you're under a little stress. In addition to the myriad complexities of the deal itself, even the best negotiators often have to contend with their... View Details

Keywords: by James K. Sebenius

January 2008 (Revised May 2009)
Case

Restructuring at Delphi Corporation (A)

By: Stuart C. Gilson and Sarah L. Abbott

Delphi Corporation, operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, has filed a plan of reorganization with the court, under which a consortium of hedge funds led by Appaloosa Management will invest up to $2.6 billion in new equity. Also participating in the plan is... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Capital Structure; Private Equity; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Investment Funds; Labor and Management Relations; Auto Industry; Service Industry

30 Jul 2014
Lessons from the Classroom

Teaching The Deal

resolve internal conflicts. In the Negotiations course, students not only analyze a number of case studies, but also participate in a series of negotiation exercises that give... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Education

2014
Working Paper

Better Deals Through Level II Strategies: Advance Your Interests by Helping to Solve Their Internal Problems

By: James K. Sebenius

Many negotiators have constituencies that must formally or informally approve an agreement. Traditionally, it is the responsibility of each negotiator to manage the internal conflicts and constituencies on his or her own side. Far less familiar are the many valuable... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Negotiation Tactics; Negotiation Participants; Negotiation Style

SSRN

Read Now

03 Mar 2003
Research & Ideas

The Ingredients of a Deal Disaster

Experienced negotiators are generally comfortable working out the terms of an economic contract: They bargain for the best price, haggle over equity splits, and iron out detailed exit clauses. But these same seasoned professionals often... View Details

Keywords: by Ron S. Fortgang, David A. Lax & James K. Sebenius

26 Oct 2010
First Look

First Look: October 26, 2010

http://sloanreview.mit.edu/the-magazine/articles/2010/fall/52111/selling-to-many-cultures-within-the-us/ Building Intercultural Trust at the Negotiating Table Authors:Sujin Jang and Roy Y.J. Chua Publication:In View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2001 (Revised November 2001)
Case

Plum Creek Timber (B)

By: Max H. Bazerman, Jack Troast, Hannah Bowles and Nicole Nasser

Plum Creek Timber Co. decides to go ahead with negotiations for a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) on its Pacific Northwest properties. HCP represents a new form of public-private-sector collaboration and innovation to improve upon command-and-control environmental... View Details

Keywords: Conflict of Interests; Negotiation Process; Negotiation Participants; Environmental Sustainability; Business and Government Relations; Forest Products Industry; United States

Mar 22 2018
Testimonial

Inside the Program for Leadership Development

October 1995 (Revised November 1997)
Case

Apex Investment Partners (A): April 1995

By: Josh Lerner

The partners of Apex Investment Partners are seeking to provide financing for Accessine Technologies, a small firm specializing in providing "One Person, One Number" telecommunication services. The negotiation of the terms-and-conditions of the deal, as well as its... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Process; Negotiation Offer; Negotiation Participants; Problems and Challenges; Financing and Loans; Communication Technology; Financial Services Industry; Telecommunications Industry

February 2001 (Revised March 2002)
Case

Korea First Bank (A)

In December 1999, Newbridge Capital, an equity investment fund based in San Francisco, successfully negotiated with the Korean government to acquire a controlling interest in Korea First Bank. It was the first time a foreign financial institution acquired a Korean... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Process; Negotiation Participants; Foreign Direct Investment; Acquisition; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Banks and Banking; Banking Industry; San Francisco; South Korea