Scenario #1

Dana and Lisa and the Car Deal

It's a hot August day, and Dana kicks the rear bumper of her car as she pushes it into the used car lot. She's sweating profusely, large stains spreading out from under each of her arms.

Lisa, the car dealer, comes out to greet her. "Having a little car trouble?" she asks. "You bet. I've had it with this piece of junk. I've got a meeting tomorrow seventy miles away that my job depends on. What kind of cars to you have?"

"Well," says Lisa, taking off her jacket, "we're a little short in the inventory department here. Now we have this little blue one here, for about $6,000." "I can spend $6,000. Tell me about the car," says Dana.

"It's been driven about, oh, 256,000 miles. On good days, it runs all right. No air-conditioning, of course. But we could install it. That'd take about, say, four days." "I don't know..." "Or, we have this green model, in excellent condition, only 17,000 miles on it." "I'll take it." "Well," Lisa runs her hand through her hair, "it happens that I just sold it this morning. This woman from Rubeville bought it for $11,000. She's picking it up in an hour. It is a beauty, though."

"I'll give you $12,000." Lisa winces. "I've got my reputation to think of. I don't want to be known as the girl who backed out of a deal." The sun beats down on Dana's shoulders. "I'll give you $14,000 for it." Lisa thinks about it. "Let me give her a call, see if she'd be willing to part with it.

" Lisa strolls into her air-conditioned office and takes a drink of water. She picks up the phone and dials. Dana can see Lisa through the window talking on the phone. Lisa strolls out.

 "Dana, this is the best deal I can do for you. Now you know I'd love to give you the car - but I'm going to have to pay Mrs. Carruthers off if I want her to give up the car. The best, the absolute best I can do, Dana - and it's only because you're in such a bind that I'm willing to go back on my deal with Mrs. Carruthers - is if you give me $15,000. I'm not really even making a profit at those rates. As a bonus, I'll take your old car off your hands. You won't have to pay any towing fees or demolition costs.

"Dana rings her hands together as the sun heats her shoulders and forearms. Lisa points toward the cool, air-conditioned office. "If you want to sign the papers, we could go inside." Dana can see the water cooler through the window. Dana sticks out her hand. "You've got yourself a deal." Lisa takes her hand and shakes it. "You've got yourself one heck of a car."

Source: Negotiate Smart, by Nicholas Reid Schaffzin

1. Is this a distributive or integrative situation? Why?

2. Who do you think has the most power in this situation? Why?

3. What is Dana's BATNA?

4. What does Lisa know that gives her the advantage?

5. What tactics is Lisa using to get Dana to buy the car?

6. Do you think what Lisa is doing is ethical? Why or why not?

7. Do you think this outcome is a win-win? Why or why not?

Scenario #2

You are Mel, and you have been going out with Flo for three years now. You are discussing taking a vacation and the two of you disagree where to go. You want to go to the Bahamas and Flo wants to go to Berumda. You don't see much difference between the places, except that the Bahamas are cheaper and allow gambling. Other than that, they are sunny islands with nothing to differentiate them.

This conflict happened the last time you two decided to go on a vacation. You wanted to go to Las Vegas and she wanted to go to Sedona, Arizona. You gave in and went hiking, horseback riding, visited local museums and dusty, old restaurants that wouldn't have passed a single board of health inspection. You were miserable and so was she.

You've been to the Bahamas before and know what to expect. The food is a little bit expensive and Americanized, the music is pure pop from the States, and the beaches are small and rocky but clean. The weather is good and you could expect a few relaxing days. The Bahamas is also cheaper by about $30 per person per day, although once food is included, that difference is eliminated.

You know more about what you don't want than what you want. You don't want anything with "flavor." You don't want anything with "local crafts." You don't want anything with the word "quaint" attached. You want to go to the Bahamas.

1. Is the negotiation between Flo and Mel distributive or integrative? Why do you think so?

2. What does Mel (you) want out of this negotiation?

3. What is Mel's BATNA?

4. How can Mel convince Flo to go to the Bahamas? List strategies (this can include questions, facts, etc) that Mel can use to persuade Flo to go to the Bahamas.