Seven Secrets for Negotiating with Government

You Can’t Always Get What You Want

All governments rely on some form of negotiation to get things done. Since governments control society’s power, they define negotiations based on how they want to deal with private citizens or companies. Government officials rarely see themselves as being on an equal footing with another negotiating party. Instead, their governments “direct” and “authorize” agreements to maintain the power imbalance that gives them authority. Four parties drive government negotiations:

1. The governmental unit’s representatives – These officials have the legislative, judicial or executive authority to act on behalf of the government. In 2005, the U.S. had 88,000 federal, state and local governmental units, employing 19 million people. Worldwide, you can negotiate with 192 sovereign governments.
2. Individuals and groups – People, companies and constituent groups constantly come in contact with government either to seek permission to undertake an initiative, or to reduce or eliminate some penalty. For example, when individuals negotiate with the IRS, taxes are at stake. Public colleges and hospitals interact...