George J. Siedel

Savvy managers no longer look at contracting processes and documents reactively but use them proactively to reach their business goals and minimize their risks. To succeed, these managers need a framework and A Short Guide to Contract Risk provides this. The foundation of identifying and managing contract risk is what the authors call Contract Literacy: a set of skills relevant for all who deal with contracts in their everyday business environment, ranging from general managers and CEOs to sales, procurement and project professionals and risk managers. Contracts play a major role in business success. Contracts govern companies' deals and relationships with their suppliers and customers. They impact future rights, cash flows, costs, earnings, and risks. A company's contract portfolio may be subject to greater losses than anyone realizes. Still the greatest risk in business is not taking any risks. Equipped with the concepts described in this book, business and risk managers can start to see contracts differently and to use them to find and achieve the right balance for business success and problem prevention. What makes this short guide from the authors of the acclaimed Proactive Law for Managers especially valuable, if not unique, is its down-to-earth managerial/legal approach. Using lean contracting, visualization and the tools introduced in this book, managers and lawyers can achieve legally sound contracts that function as managerial tools for well thought-out, realistic risk allocation in business deals and relationships.

Todos n s negociamos diariamente. N s negociamos com nossos c njuges, filhos, pais e amigos. Negociamos quando alugamos um apartamento, compramos um carro, uma casa e at mesmo quando nos candidatamos a um novo emprego. Sua capacidade de negociar pode at ser o fator mais importante na progress o da sua carreira. A negocia o tamb m a chave para o sucesso do neg cio. Nenhuma organiza o pode sobreviver sem contratos que geram lucros. A um n vel estrat gico, as empresas est o preocupadas com a cria o de valor e em alcan ar uma vantagem competitiva. Mas o sucesso das estrat gias de neg cios de alto n vel depende de contratos fechados com fornecedores, clientes e outras partes interessadas. A capacidade de contrata o-a capacidade de negociar e executar contratos bem sucedidos- a fun o mais importante em qualquer organiza o. Este livro foi desenvolvido para ajud -lo a alcan ar o sucesso em suas negocia es pessoais e transa es de neg cios. O livro nico em duas maneiras. Primeiro, o livro n o s abrange os conceitos de negocia o, como tamb m oferece a es pr ticas que voc pode aplicar em futuras negocia es. Isso inclui uma Lista de Verifica o de Planejamento de Negocia o e um exemplo completo da lista de verifica o para o seu uso em futuras negocia es. O livro tamb m inclui (1) uma ferramenta que voc pode usar para avaliar o seu estilo de negocia o; (2) exemplos de " rvores de decis o", que s o teis para calcular suas alternativas se sua negocia o n o for bem sucedida; (3) uma estrat gia de tr s partes para aumentar o seu poder durante as negocia es; (4) um plano pr tico para analisar suas negocia es com base no seu pre o de reserva, meta de expans o, alvo mais prov vel e zona do potencial acordo; (5) orienta es claras sobre os padr es ticos que se aplicam s negocia es; (6) os fatores que devem ser considerados ao decidir se voc deve negociar atrav s de um agente; (7) ferramentas psicol gicas que podem ser usadas durante as negocia es-e armadilhas que devem ser evitadas quando voc estiver do outro lado; (8) elementos fundamentais do direito de contratos que surgem durante as negocia es; e (9) uma lista de fatores para usar quando voc avaliar seu desempenho como negociador. Segundo, o livro nico em sua abordagem hol stica para com o processo de negocia o. Muitas vezes, outros livros se concentram apenas na negocia o ou no direito dos contratos. Al m disso, os livros de negocia o tendem a focar no que acontece na mesa de negocia o sem abordar o desempenho de um acordo. Estes livros fazem uma suposi o equivocada de que o sucesso determinado pela avalia o da negocia o, em vez de avaliar o desempenho do acordo. Da mesma forma, os livros sobre direito de contratos tendem a focar nos requisitos jur dicos para um contrato ser v lido, dando pouca aten o ao processo de negocia o que precede o contrato e ao desempenho que se segue. No mundo real, o processo de contrata o n o dividido em fases independentes. O que acontece durante uma negocia o tem um impacto grande no contrato e desempenho que se segue. O conte do jur dico do contrato deve refletir a realidade do que aconteceu na mesa de negocia o e o desempenho que vem a seguir. Este livro, diferente de outros, cobre todo o processo de negocia o em ordem cronol gica, come ando com a sua decis o de negociar e continuando atrav s da avalia o do seu desempenho como negociador.

We all negotiate on a daily basis. We negotiate with our spouses, children, parents, and friends. We negotiate when we rent an apartment, buy a car, purchase a house, and apply for a job. Your ability to negotiate might even be the most important factor in your career advancement. Negotiation is also the key to business success. No organization can survive without contracts that produce profits. At a strategic level, businesses are concerned with value creation and achieving competitive advantage. But the success of high-level business strategies depends on contracts made with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders. Contracting capability-the ability to negotiate and perform successful contracts-is the most important function in any organization. This book is designed to help you achieve success in your personal negotiations and in your business transactions. The book is unique in two ways. First, the book not only covers negotiation concepts, but also provides practical actions you can take in future negotiations. This includes a Negotiation Planning Checklist and a completed example of the checklist for your use in future negotiations. The book also includes (1) a tool you can use to assess your negotiation style; (2) examples of "decision trees," which are useful in calculating your alternatives if your negotiation is unsuccessful; (3) a three-part strategy for increasing your power during negotiations; (4) a practical plan for analyzing your negotiations based on your reservation price, stretch goal, most-likely target, and zone of potential agreement; (5) clear guidelines on ethical standards that apply to negotiations; (6) factors to consider when deciding whether you should negotiate through an agent; (7) psychological tools you can use in negotiations-and traps to avoid when the other side uses them; (8) key elements of contract law that arise during negotiations; and (9) a checklist of factors to use when you evaluate your performance as a negotiator. Second, the book is unique in its holistic approach to the negotiation process. Other books often focus narrowly either on negotiation or on contract law. Furthermore, the books on negotiation tend to focus on what happens at the bargaining table without addressing the performance of an agreement. These books make the mistaken assumption that success is determined by evaluating the negotiation rather than evaluating performance of the agreement. Similarly, the books on contract law tend to focus on the legal requirements for a contract to be valid, thus giving short shrift to the negotiation process that precedes the contract and to the performance that follows. In the real world, the contracting process is not divided into independent phases. What happens during a negotiation has a profound impact on the contract and on the performance that follows. The contract's legal content should reflect the realities of what happened at the bargaining table and the performance that is to follow. This book, in contrast to others, covers the entire negotiation process in chronological order beginning with your decision to negotiate and continuing through the evaluation of your performance as a negotiator. A business executive in one of the negotiation seminars the author teaches as a University of Michigan professor summarized negotiation as follows: "Life is negotiation " No one ever stated it better. As a mother with young children and as a company leader, the executive realized that negotiations are pervasive in our personal and business lives. With its emphasis on practical action, and with its chronological, holistic approach, this book provides a roadmap you can use when navigating through your life as a negotiator.

We all negotiate on a daily basis. We negotiate with our spouses, children, parents, and friends. We negotiate when we rent an apartment, buy a car, purchase a house, and apply for a job. Your ability to negotiate might even be the most important factor in your career advancement. Negotiation is also the key to business success. No organization can survive without contracts that produce profits. At a strategic level, businesses are concerned with value creation and achieving competitive advantage. But the success of high-level business strategies depends on contracts made with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders. Contracting capability-the ability to negotiate and perform successful contracts-is the most important function in any organization. This book is designed to help you achieve success in your personal negotiations and in your business transactions. The book is unique in two ways. First, the book not only covers negotiation concepts, but also provides practical actions you can take in future negotiations. This includes a Negotiation Planning Checklist and a completed example of the checklist for your use in future negotiations. The book also includes (1) a tool you can use to assess your negotiation style; (2) examples of "decision trees," which are useful in calculating your alternatives if your negotiation is unsuccessful; (3) a three-part strategy for increasing your power during negotiations; (4) a practical plan for analyzing your negotiations based on your reservation price, stretch goal, most-likely target, and zone of potential agreement; (5) clear guidelines on ethical standards that apply to negotiations; (6) factors to consider when deciding whether you should negotiate through an agent; (7) psychological tools you can use in negotiations-and traps to avoid when the other side uses them; (8) key elements of contract law that arise during negotiations; and (9) a checklist of factors to use when you evaluate your performance as a negotiator. Second, the book is unique in its holistic approach to the negotiation process. Other books often focus narrowly either on negotiation or on contract law. Furthermore, the books on negotiation tend to focus on what happens at the bargaining table without addressing the performance of an agreement. These books make the mistaken assumption that success is determined by evaluating the negotiation rather than evaluating performance of the agreement. Similarly, the books on contract law tend to focus on the legal requirements for a contract to be valid, thus giving short shrift to the negotiation process that precedes the contract and to the performance that follows. In the real world, the contracting process is not divided into independent phases. What happens during a negotiation has a profound impact on the contract and on the performance that follows. The contract's legal content should reflect the realities of what happened at the bargaining table and the performance that is to follow. This book, in contrast to others, covers the entire negotiation process in chronological order beginning with your decision to negotiate and continuing through the evaluation of your performance as a negotiator. A business executive in one of the negotiation seminars the author teaches as a University of Michigan professor summarized negotiation as follows: "Life is negotiation " No one ever stated it better. As a mother with young children and as a company leader, the executive realized that negotiations are pervasive in our personal and business lives. With its emphasis on practical action, and with its chronological, holistic approach, this book provides a roadmap you can use when navigating through your life as a negotiator.

Savvy managers no longer look at contracting processes and documents reactively but use them proactively to reach their business goals and minimize their risks. To succeed, these managers need a framework and A Short Guide to Contract Risk provides this. The foundation of identifying and managing contract risk is what the authors call Contract Literacy: a set of skills relevant for all who deal with contracts in their everyday business environment, ranging from general managers and CEOs to sales, procurement and project professionals and risk managers. Contracts play a major role in business success. Contracts govern companies' deals and relationships with their suppliers and customers. They impact future rights, cash flows, costs, earnings, and risks. A company's contract portfolio may be subject to greater losses than anyone realizes. Still the greatest risk in business is not taking any risks. Equipped with the concepts described in this book, business and risk managers can start to see contracts differently and to use them to find and achieve the right balance for business success and problem prevention. What makes this short guide from the authors of the acclaimed Proactive Law for Managers especially valuable, if not unique, is its down-to-earth managerial/legal approach. Using lean contracting, visualization and the tools introduced in this book, managers and lawyers can achieve legally sound contracts that function as managerial tools for well thought-out, realistic risk allocation in business deals and relationships.