Business Negotiation When the Rules Suddenly Change

How can you negotiate when the rules suddenly change, and no one knows whether your particular market is headed up or down?

Either strategy carries risks. You wouldn't want to blow your budget on a few marquee players and have little left to round out the team. Then again, there's no point in holding lots of cash with no one worthwhile to spend it on.

Conventional negotiation theory doesn't say much about how to craft and execute strategy in such dynamic markets. Assessing your walkaway point is useful in stable situations but less helpful if you don't know whether your options will get better or worse.

It pays to look for strategic insight from contexts where uncertainty, risk, and change are the only constants.