Effective Leadership: "Behind the Table" in Negotiation

Negotiation group dynamics research has focused on negotiators at the bargaining table, while largely ignoring the negotiators’ managers who do not attend negotiations (‘external leaders’). This study used an inductive exploratory approach to investigate the behaviors and functions of effective external leaders in a commercial negotiation setting. Thirty experienced negotiators and external leaders from large multinational organizations were interviewed to identify behaviors and then derive functions. Negotiator-focused behavior (strategizing, empowering, developing), intra-organizational behavior (championing), and inter-organizational behaviors (scene-setting and intervening) were all identified. This finding is significant because previous research in a manufacturing setting did not identify inter-organizational behaviors. Implications for practitioners at the negotiator and external leader level are also presented, and this study highlights the importance for organizations to consider the external leaders contribution in a negotiation as part of an expanded team.