Split the Pie: A Radical New Way to Negotiate

by Barry Nalebuff

Overview

Axiom Award Gold Medalist for Sales

From a leading Yale expert and serial entrepreneur, a radical, principled, and field-tested approach that identifies what’s really at stake in any negotiation and ensures you get your half—so you can focus on growing the pie. 

Negotiations are incredibly stressful and can bring out the worst in people. Wouldn’t it be better if there were a principled way to negotiate? Wouldn’t it be even better if there were a way to treat people fairly and get treated fairly in a negotiation?

Split the Pie offers a new approach that does both—a field-tested method that reframes how negotiations play out. Barry Nalebuff, a professor at Yale School of Management, helps identify what’s really at stake in a negotiation: the “pie.” The negotiation pie is the additional value created through an agreement to work together. Seeing the relevant pie will change how you think about fairness and power in negotiation. You’ll learn how to get half the value you create, no matter your size. 

Filled with examples and in-depth case studies, Split the Pie is a practical and theory-based approach to negotiation. You’ll see how it helped reframe a high-stakes negotiation when Coca-Cola purchased Honest Tea, a company Barry cofounded with his former student Seth Goldman. The pie framework also works for everyday negotiations. You’ll learn how to deploy logic to determine truly equitable solutions and employ empathy to expand the pie and sell your solution. Split the Pie allows both sides to focus their energy on making the biggest possible pie—to have your pie and eat it too.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063135482
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/08/2022
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	1,054,521
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Barry Nalebuff is the Milton Steinbach Professor at the Yale School of Management, where he has taught for over thirty years. An expert on game theory, he has written extensively on its application to business strategy. His bestsellers include Thinking Strategically, The Art of Strategy, and Mission in a Bottle. This is his seventh book. He has advised the NBA in their negotiations with the Players Association and several firms in major M&A transactions. Nalebuff has been teaching the Split the Pie method to MBAs and executives at Yale and online at Coursera. His Introduction to Negotiation course has over 350,000 enrolled students and a 4.9/5.0 rating. He is also a serial entrepreneur; his ventures include Honest Tea, Kombrewcha, and Real Made Foods. A graduate of MIT, a Rhodes Scholar, and a Junior Fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows, Nalebuff earned his doctorate at Oxford University.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part I The Pie

Chapter 1 A Pizza 7

Chapter 2 Negotiating with a Troll 13

Chapter 3 The Pie 19

Chapter 4 Two Negotiation Myths 29

Chapter 5 An Honest Pie 41

Chapter 6 A Legal Pie 47

Chapter 7 Do You Have to Split the Pie? 59

Chapter 8 Will the Other Side Buy In? 63

Part II Splitting the Cost

Chapter 9 A Talmudic Solution 75

Chapter 10 Who Pays? 85

Part III Complex Negotiations

Chapter 11 What If You Care More? 109

Chapter 12 What if the Pie Is Uncertain? 117

Chapter 13 Rules and Reputations 131

Chapter 14 Multi-Party Negotiations 139

Chapter 15 What If You Are Being Used as a Pawn? 155

Part IV How to Grow the Pie

Chapter 16 Give the Other Side What They Want 165

Chapter 17 What If the Parties See Different Pies? 181

Chapter 18 Making the Other Side's Case 201

Chapter 19 Selling Your Solutions 207

Part V Negotiation Mechanics

Chapter 20 Preparing for a Negotiation 221

Chapter 21 What to Reveal (and What to Keep Hidden) 237

Chapter 22 Opening Moves 245

45 Takeaways 257

Author's Note 265

Acknowledgments 267

Notes 271

Index 277

Editorial Reviews

02/28/2022

“The challenge in negotiation is to frame the problem correctly,” writes Yale management professor Nalebuff (Why Not?) in this thoughtful if uneven guide. The author’s approach is based on his concept of “the pie,” which he defines as “the additional value created through an agreement to work together.” In every negotiation, the author writes, the most important thing is what both parties can “jointly create”; from this perspective, he explains, “neither side is more powerful” and thus “the pie should always be split 50:50.” Nalebuff offers case studies—when his company Honest Tea was in negotiations with Coca-Cola, for example, he put the concept of the pie into action and struck a deal wherein “the two companies would split the pie, where the pie is the value of the extra sales made possible by this deal”—as well as negotiation tactics (“Let’s agree to split evenly what we can create together” is a good go-to phrase). But things get bogged down by some dry math, and much of his argument rests on his belief that “the other side will come around as they realize you have taken a principled stand.” It’s a big claim, but not one that’s amply supported. This is best taken as a handy addition to the negotiation toolkit rather than a universal truth. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

At last, a way to negotiate with a higher purpose, something I have benefitted from over the years. With this book, you, too, can learn this ingenious new way to negotiate.” — Indra Nooyi, former chairman and CEO, PepsiCo, and author of My Life in Full

“Barry Nalebuff literally wrote the book on negotiating (this one!). Through his use of real-world examples, Barry shares his tried-and-true strategies that will prepare you for your next negotiation, regardless of the stakes.” — Adam Silver, NBA commissioner

“In Split the Pie, Barry Nalebuff shows that what makes someone a highly skilled listener also makes them a good negotiator. I’ll be recommending this book to every couple that sits on my couch.” — Lori Gottlieb, psychotherapist and author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone

“Dispelling misconceptions about power and fairness, Barry Nalebuff lays out a framework for changing the way people approach and facilitate negotiation—in business, politics, and personal relationships. It’s a novel, logical method to dividing the pie that shifts the focus to working together to build a larger pie.” — Ken Chenault, chairman and managing director, General Catalyst, and former chairman and CEO, American Express

“A remarkable, two-thousand-year-old yet entirely new approach to negotiation. Read this book and share it with the other side.” — Herb Cohen, author of You Can Negotiate Anything

From the Publisher

At last, a way to negotiate with a higher purpose, something I have benefitted from over the years. With this book, you, too, can learn this ingenious new way to negotiate.

Indra Nooyi

Dispelling misconceptions about power and fairness, Barry Nalebuff lays out a framework for changing the way people approach and facilitate negotiation—in business, politics, and personal relationships. It’s a novel, logical method to dividing the pie that shifts the focus to working together to build a larger pie.

Ken Chenault

A remarkable, two-thousand-year-old yet entirely new approach to negotiation. Read this book and share it with the other side.

Herb Cohen

In Split the Pie, Barry Nalebuff shows that what makes someone a highly skilled listener also makes them a good negotiator. I’ll be recommending this book to every couple that sits on my couch.

Lori Gottlieb

Barry Nalebuff literally wrote the book on negotiating (this one!). Through his use of real-world examples, Barry shares his tried-and-true strategies that will prepare you for your next negotiation, regardless of the stakes.

Adam Silver