© 2005 Sandia Corp.
• Site Contact
• Privacy & Security
• Webmaster

Differences in Approach to Negotiating

• The importance Russians attach to knowing their partners cannot be overstated. Americans who are new to a negotiation can expect to be tested by Russian counterpart. Avoid making changes to the negotiating team as much as possible.
  
• Russians won't be ready to get down to brass tacks unless they determine US side is ready to be a serious negotiating partner.
  
• Russians probe for weakness and assess how strong or determined you are. Russians understand and respect strength, firmness, resolve. An effective US negotiator will demonstrate these qualities.
  
• Russians are more patient than Americans; Americans are often more anxious to get an agreement, so will give in earlier than Russians will.
  
• The whole context of the negotiation is important to the Russian, while Americans pay little attention to context. Russians emphasize form, while US is much more concerned with substance and downplays the importance of form.
  
• Americans like to get down to concrete business; Russians like to agree on general principles first. They like to look at the overall picture of what this project means for US-Russian relations.
  
• Russians see these principles as the most important elements of negotiations; Americans focus on details, schedules, and deadlines.
  
• Often it is impossible for a Russian to give you a specific date by which a deliverable will be ready—this does not mean he thinks it's unimportant or he is not prepared to deliver. He is bound by constraints beyond his control.
  
• Russians do not like surprises. If you put a new idea or proposal on the table, do not put Russians on the spot by asking what they think of it or expecting an immediate answer to it. Try floating new ideas informally first.
  
• Russians may negotiate to agreement and then turn to superiors at home for approval; they may come back later with new demands.
  
• Russian negotiators do not take a US "no" to be a final position. They keep probing for more give. When they meet strong resistance, they'll back off.
  
• When a Russian negotiator says "no," it can mean "we're not comfortable with this now but that may change later" or "we can't give a yes or no answer right now." It does not necessarily mean a categorical no.
  
• Face-saving is important to Russians, so choose your battles wisely. Decide which issues are worth making a fuss over.
  
• If Russians make a point or explain a principle, they wll take silence on the US side to mean agreement. If you don't agree, make that clear. They do not apply this principle to themselves.