How to ... Be a better negotiator

Sarasota attorney Jennifer Compton learned a lot about the secrets of being a stellar negotiator early in her career.

The case pitted an ID theft victim against three credit agencies. Compton's side, the credit-reporting firms, was prepared to settle for $8,000, with some wiggle room. The other side — Compton thought, based on pre-mediation posturing — wanted nothing less than $1 million. The negotiating session ended 13 hours later, Compton recalls, with two empty Kleenex boxes, a settlement agreement for $12,000, and, most significantly, a verbal apology from the agencies.

The ID theft victim, Compton learned, really only sought a voice. “She wanted the cathartic experience of telling her story,” says Compton, a partner at Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, with a specialty in labor and employment law. “She needed them to say they understood how traumatic this was.”

The lesson fits several of Compton's tips on how to be a better negotiator, including:

• Be imaginative: Even in a strict financial dispute, there can be other resolutions. “If you are open to a creative solution,” says Compton, “you can avoid hitting a brick wall.”

• Know your audience: Compton didn't know what would be a trigger for the ID theft victim. Information is now a key ally to improve a negotiating position.

• Give to get: Let the other side feel victorious. That helps in the execution of the negotiated agreement. It also helps when doing future negotiations, in credibility. “I'm not going to let them win,” says Compton. “But I want them to feel like they've won.”

Other negotiation techniques Compton endorses play off those ideals, such as doing more listening than talking; allowing the other side to speak first; and keeping an open mind.

One more: Never let the other side know what you are thinking — no matter what happens in a negotiation session. “I try not to react,” says Compton. “I never let on that I don't like something.”

— Mark Gordon