Book recommendation for negotiating?

Submitted by Brian Robinson
in
Our (and Your) Favorite Books
Hey everyone, I'm about to start a course on negotiating as part of my MBA program this fall, and I want to do some reading in advance. Does anyone have any recommendations for good books on the subject? I've seen and heard of 'Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In'. Has anyone read it? Is it any good? Are there better books on the subject?
Submitted by Chuck Tomasi on Wednesday July 5th, 2006 7:41 pm

I would also recommend:

In Business As in Life, You Don't Get What You Deserve, You Get What You Negotiate by Chester L. Karrass

I took an in-house class based on this a few years ago and use a lot of it regularly.

Submitted by Mark Horstman on Sunday July 9th, 2006 2:53 am

I HIGHLY recommend "Getting to Yes", by Fisher. I have taught on Negotiation using these techniques, which are known as the Harvard Negotiation Project. It is exceptionally good, and teaches a model that fits with the Manager Tools relationship approach.

Submitted by Piergiorgio Grossi on Tuesday July 11th, 2006 11:54 am

I reccomend: 'Influence: science and practice' by Prof.Robert Cialdini.

It's more about persuasion and it's a very good book.

There is also a good and cheap speech (not very good sound quality but good in content) on audible.com.

Ciao,

PierG

Submitted by Mike King on Wednesday July 19th, 2006 1:41 am

I'll also recommend Winning em over by Conger since I just recently finished it. Its not exactly a book for negotiating but I think it will help to set the mindset of how to convince/influence others which can be an important part of the communication for negotiation. It was an excellent book and the manager tools recommendation was definitely accurate.

I learned a lot from it and am planning to follow through with Cialdini's influence book soon as well.

Submitted by Craig Harris on Tuesday March 17th, 2009 10:00 pm

Do you have any recomendations for podcasts on sales and/or negotiating for a high 'C' (3157) looking to develop in those areas?

Submitted by Douglas Elmes on Tuesday March 24th, 2009 11:56 pm

I went to a course by a compnay (CMA) based on Getting to Yes.  I was blown away.  I have even applied techniques from it to some email/memos I have written with great success.
Regards
Douglas.

Submitted by Andrew Vickers on Wednesday March 25th, 2009 10:17 am

I really like "Start with No" by Jim Camp.  His basic premise is that you should not trick your "adversary" into saying yes.  You should give him every opportunity to reject you, whilst helping him to see the value of your offering *to him*.  Once he sees the full value he will pay your full price and no-one need haggle.
This approach sounds counter-intuitive, but it works very well as long as:
1) Your offering has value to your adversary
2) Your price is no more than that value
If either of these statements is false, you WANT your adversary to tell you as early as possible so that you can qualify out and devote your energy to a negotiation that is more likely to succeed.

Submitted by BJ Marshall on Thursday March 26th, 2009 6:42 am

In addition to the books listed on this web site, I strongly recommend checking out the Best Business Books section of the Personal MBA web site : personalmba.com/best-business-books .
There are sections for communication, influence, and negotiation. I just finished "How to Win Friends and Influence People," and I think that book might help you out here.
- BJ

Submitted by Mark Horstman on Thursday March 26th, 2009 8:56 am

I have read Getting To Yes and actually coached Mike's organization years ago in negotiating.  Getting to Yes is the best book I know on the subject. It is outstanding.
Mark

Submitted by Jorge Avila on Thursday March 26th, 2009 11:52 am

Ever hear of a company that discounted intself into bankrupcy?
Sometimes you should not negotiate especially on the price of your product.  I would recommend " How to Sell at Margins Higher Than Your Competitors" Winning Every Sale at Full Price, Rate or Fee. by Steinmetz/Brooks.  It is incredible at helping you understand what lowering your price really does to your bottom line.  The math is very simple but very powerful and goes against the "I will make it up in volume" line which tends to be false. 
Before you negotiate any sale or terms you would need to understand where you can give and where you should not and the effect it has on your (company's) bottom line.
 Regards,
Jorge from China, Mexico

Submitted by Tom Doepker on Tuesday April 7th, 2009 3:11 pm

I actually just finished "Getting to Yes" and would agree with all the recommendations here. It promotes fair and pragmatic negotiating and helps to ensure an agreeable outcome for yourself.

Submitted by Kenneth Dallmier on Wednesday September 23rd, 2009 7:20 pm

I took a crash course in negotiation with Getting to Yes...ok, it was listening to the audiobook on my iPod while driving and flying to the meeting.  I found the concepts easy to understand and immediately actionable.  It really helped me be confident in the meeting and lead the discussion.
Thanks for the recommendation.
Ken (dad2jnk)

Submitted by Richard Judd on Wednesday November 24th, 2010 10:55 pm

I'm very late to this conversation; however, I would also recommend "Getting Past No."  It is a book written by William Ury (the co-writer of "Getting To Yes").
This book expands on the principles of the original book and is an excellent read IMHO.

Submitted by Talinge Noxtort on Thursday November 25th, 2010 8:15 am

I have read Getting to Yes. I read their second book on emotions. I have also read Dummies guide to negotiating. I finally read Roger Dawson's book on negotiating. I liked Roger Dawson's the best, but it helps to understand the concepts of Getting to Yes.