How to Negotiate Anything with Anyone Anywhere Around the World Third Edition Also by Frank Acuff Shake Hands with the Devil: How to Master Life’s Negotiations from Hell How to Negotiate Anything with Anyone Anywhere Around the World Third Edition Frank L. Acuff American Management Association New York • Atlanta • Brussels • Chicago • Mexico City • San Francisco Shanghai • Tokyo • Toronto • Washington, D.C. Special discounts on bulk quantities of AMACOM books are available to corporations, professional associations, and other organizations. For details, contact Special Sales Department, AMACOM, a division of American Management Association, 1601 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Tel: 212-903-8316. Fax: 212-903-8083. E-mail: [email protected] Web site: www.amacombooks.org/go/specialsales To view all AMACOM titles go to: www.amacombooks.org This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Acuff, Frank L. How to negotiate anything with anyone anywhere around the world / Frank L. Acuff.—3rd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0-8144–8066–3 (pbk.) 1. Negotiation in business. 2. International business enterprises—Management. I. Title. II. Title: Negotiate anything with anyone anywhere around the world. HD58.6.A27 2008 302.3—dc22 2007052599 ᭧ 2008 Frank L. Acuff All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. 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Printing number 10987654321 To my children, Kristin and Ryan, both tough negotiators This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface ix Acknowledgments xi ONE: GLOBAL NEGOTIATING 1 1 Negotiating in Any Language: How Negotiations Work 5 TWO: HOW GLOBAL NEGOTIATIONS WORK 17 2 What Makes Global Negotiations Different? 21 3 Ten Powerful Strategies for Negotiating Around the World 39 4 The Four Most Difficult Challenges Faced by Global Negotiators (and How to Deal with Them) 61 THREE: NEGOTIATING AROUND THE WORLD 71 5 Negotiating in Western Europe 77 Negotiating Primers for Austria (80); Belgium (83); Denmark (85); Finland (88); France (91); Germany (94); Greece (97); Ireland (100); Italy (102); the Netherlands (105); Norway (108); Portugal (111); Spain (114); Sweden (117); Switzerland (120); and the United Kingdom (123) vii viii Contents 6 Negotiating in Eastern Europe 127 Negotiating Primers for the Czech Republic (130); Hungary (132); Kazakhstan (135); Poland (138); Romania (140); Russia (143); Turkey (146); and Ukraine (149) 7 Negotiating in Latin America 153 Negotiating Primers for Argentina (157); Brazil (159); Chile (163); Colombia (165); Costa Rica (168); Cuba (171); Ecuador (174); Guatemala (177); Mexico (180); Peru (183); and Venezuela (186) 8 Negotiating in North America 190 Negotiating Primers for Canada (196) and the United States (199) 9 Negotiating in the Middle East and North Africa 203 Negotiating Primers for Algeria (207); Egypt (210); Israel (213); Kuwait (215); Morocco (219); Saudi Arabia (222); and the United Arab Emirates (226) 10 Negotiating in Asia and the Pacific Rim 231 Negotiating Primers for Australia (236); China (239); Hong Kong, China (243); India (246); Indonesia (250); Japan (252); Malaysia (256); New Zealand (259); Pakistan (261); Philippines (264); Singapore (266); South Korea (269); Sri Lanka (272); Taiwan (275); Thailand (279); and Vietnam (281) 11 Negotiating in Sub-Saharan Africa 285 Negotiating Primers for Nigeria (287); South Africa (290); and Zimbabwe (293) References 297 Index 299 About the Author 307 Preface This book is for the person in the trenches, who needs practical guidelines to get the very best deal possible with people and organizations that have very different backgrounds and experiences. This book is for the practitioner—for the person who faces an international negotiating challenge and who perhaps should have done his or her homework earlier, but didn’t. I wrote this book largely from a ‘‘lessons-learned’’ perspective: These are the kinds of things I wish someone had told me before I entered into global negotiations. If you will be interacting with people from different cultures in either busi- ness or travel, this book is for you. If you find that you are uncomfortable in dealing with people from different cultures and want to understand why, this book is for you. Or, if you are an experienced negotiator who is getting less- than-excellent results from your international negotiations, this book is for you. This book is for anyone who works or travels abroad, and for those who must deal with people in their own country who have recently come from other coun- tries. It is for managers, sales representatives, marketers, traders, diplomats, military personnel, attorneys, entrepreneurs, and other professionals whose suc- cess will depend on their ability to influence others. Objectives This book has four main objectives: 1. To help you to avoid the typical mistakes and pitfalls of international negotiating ix x Preface 2. To enable you to build on your current negotiating strengths 3. To help you to understand the process of international negotiations 4. To lead you to strengthen your cultural awareness and skills This book will help protect you from making an agreement you should re- ject, and it will help you make the most of your assets. In years past, it was typical to court our negotiating counterparts in one’s own country. We now must ask, ‘‘Your place or mine?’’ Regardless of our per- sonal knowledge of international business, many negotiating parties have, in fact, moved overseas. We can sit outside and wonder what’s going on inside the dance hall, or we can join the party. This book will help you not only to show up, but also to dance every dance. Overall Approach We will briefly review negotiations in any language, an overview of the negotia- tions process as a whole, regardless of culture. Global negotiations will then be examined: what to look for in other cultures; how these cultural factors affect negotiations; challenges faced by global negotiators; how to deal with your boss; and how to be prepared for the phases of international adjustment. The term TOS refers to ‘‘The Other Side’’ in the negotiation. This book is divided into three parts. Part One explores key aspects of the negotiating process. Part Two addresses the unique aspects of global negotia- tions and explores practical strategies to help you on your global journey. Part Two also examines the most difficult negotiating problems that you are likely to experience internationally and offers solutions that you can use on the job. Part Three takes you on an intercultural journey to sixty-three countries. Specific guidelines, called ‘‘Negotiating Primers,’’ are given for virtually any- where in the world you are likely to do business. A profile of typical negotiators and specific negotiating strategies will be presented for seven regions of the world: Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Latin America, North America, the Mid- dle East and North Africa, Asia and Pacific Rim, and Sub-Saharan Africa. For each of these regions, you will learn such critical factors as pace of the negotia- tion, negotiating style, emphasis on personal relationships, decision making, and contractual and administrative issues. You will strengthen your negotiating skills for these regions, learning the dos and don’ts of global negotiating that will most affect you on a day-to-day basis. Let’s get busy on putting you on the international map! Acknowledgments Distilling the many extraordinary aspects of global negotiating into an under- standable and practical form is indeed challenging and, thankfully, stimulating and fun. This undertaking could not have happened, however, without the help of many people. It is impossible to acknowledge appropriately all the many indi- viduals whose experiences, insights, and support influenced the development and writing of this book. But there are specific people to whom I especially owe a great deal of thanks. Although these individuals share in the quality of the book, any errors or limitations are mine alone. My thanks to: Kristin Acuff and Ryan Acuff, who were very helpful in sourc- ing information and reviewers; Salvador Avila of Exxon Company, U.S.A.; Desi Bakalis of the American Management Association; Adelaide Bannon; Miriam Ben-Yoseph; Catherine Boudes of Axcan Pharma; Susan Cherion of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association; Edward Cline; Robert Coshland of Tribol; Moira E. Crean of MasterCard International, Inc.; Ken Ellis and Alex Neyin of Chevron U.S.A.; Viktor Gorbach of FactSet Research; Ron Hansek of McDonald’s Corporation; Robert Hentzen of Baxter Healthcare Corporation; Hein Huyghe; Rajika Jayatilake of the Embassy of Sri Lanka, Washington, D.C.; Zhang Jian; Douglas Kincade of P & H Mining Co.; Mohammad Shoaib Khan; Muge Kilinc; Rochelle Kopp of Japan Intercultural Consulting; Susan Koscis; Isa Laurinsilta of Genencor; Wilbert Law; Ursula E. Lentz of TAP Pharmaceutical Products; Foster Lin of the Far East Trade Service; Fiona Lorenz; Mamdough Mahfouz of Agiba Petroleum; Mike McMahon; Derek Mills of the U.S. Navy Defense Institute xi xii Acknowledgments of International Legal Studies; Aigul Moldadekova of the Embassy of Kazakh- stan, Washington, D.C.; Ali Mounadi; Andrea S. Mounadi; Lee Meader; Louis Mitra of TAP Pharmaceutical Products; Isobel Morgan; Maggie Neale of Stanford University; Ken Nelson of Yokohama Academy USA; Bruce Peer of the Canadian Management Centre; Elaine Re; Lois Toolan; Bill Usner of Pennzoil; Paul Uzu- reau; Tom Wilson; Beryl York; and Jian Zhang of the School of Economics and Management, Beijing.