The U.S. Negotiator

The USA is a multi-ethnic, multiracial, multi-cultural society. Despite this diversity, there is a mainstream U.S. business culture. For example, you can expect most American negotiators to be reasonably time-conscious (“Time is money”), deal-focused (“Let’s get down to business”), and informal (“What’s your first name?”).

The language of business is American English. Very few Americans speak a foreign language well enough to handle a complex business negotiation. If your English is not adequate, consider hiring an interpreter or asking your U.S. counterpart to do so.

•      Making Contact

Most urban Americans are used to doing business with strangers. If you can’t easily obtain a referral or introduction, you can usually approach your prospective counterpart directly, without going through an intermediary. The more well-known is your company or organization, the easier it is to make direct contact.

Send a letter, fax or email in English with basic information about your company and your product, stating that you will be in touch regarding an appointment. Follow this with a phone call requesting a meeting two or three weeks hence. Your counterpart will suggest a time and place.

•      Deal Focus

American are usually ready to “get down to brass tacks” shortly after meeting a potential business partner for the first time. It’s not that U.S. negotiators are unaware of the importance of getting to know their counterpart, of building a relationship. It’s just that task-focused Yanks prefer to build trust and rapport while business discussions are proceeding.

•      Orientation to Time

Coming from a monochronic culture, Americans treat time as a tangible asset which can be saved, spent, lost, found, invested and wasted.

•      Informality

Because a key U.S. value is egalitarianism, Americans tend to feel uncomfortable in the face of overt status distinctions except those based on individual achievement. However, formality does vary by corporate culture.

The relative lack of status distinctions is reflected in the breezy informality for which Americans are famous. They want to get on a first-name basis quickly, even with people they have just met. Informality is meant to show friendliness and warmth. Business visitors from more formal cultures should realize that easy familiarity is not intended to show disrespect.

Communication Style

Depending on ethnic and regional background as well as individual personality, U.S. negotiators vary in the way they communicate.

•      Verbal Communication

Most Americans speak much more directly than Arabs or people from East and Southeast Asia, but less directly than Germans and German-Swiss. They tend to be suspicious of negotiators who prefer indirect, ambiguous communication. On the other hand, Americans may also be offended by the direct, blunt language favored by Germans and Dutch.

•      Paraverbal Communication

Many U.S. negotiators speak louder at the bargaining table  than people from more reserved cultures. Uncomfortable with silence, they may also feel compelled to quickly fill in any gaps in the conversation–behavior which Japanese for example find offensive. Americans know it is rude to interrupt others in mid-sentence; if they do this anyway in the course of a lively discussion, no offense in intended.

Nonverbal Communication

Meeting and Greeting. Expect a firm handshake and direct eye contact. Some Americans believe a soft handshake reflects weakness and that lack of a direct gaze indicates unreliability or dishonesty. In the U.S. people shake hands less often than most Europeans. Their handshake are quite brief compared to those of Latin Americans but firmer than East and Southeast Asians.

The normal interpersonal distance in a business context is about an arm’s length, similar to the norm in northern Europe.

Touch behavior varies from moderate to relatively high-contact : Less physical contact than is the case with Latins and Mediterranean cultures but more than East and Southeast Asians. American business men may slap each other on the back and grab one another by the elbow or upper arm to express friendliness.

Business Protocol

•      Dress Code

While the proper attire varies according to location and type of business, visitors are well advised to wear a suit and tie to the first meeting with most new contacts.

•      Meeting and Greeting

Expect a firm handshake and a direct gaze. Americans sometimes offer their card at the end of the meeting rather than at the beginning.

•      Forms of Address

A general rule is to start out with Mr, Mrs., Miss or Ms. but to be prepared for your counterpart to switch immediately to first names. If such informality makes you uncomfortable, make it quite clear how you wish to be addressed. Titles are likely to be ignored except in formal meetings unless you are a medical doctor or high government official. With those exceptions, most Americans are uncomfortable with honorifics and titles.  

•      Gift Giving

The U.S. business world is not a give-giving culture. Many  American negotiators feel uncomfortable if presented with an expensive gift.  If you do wish to bring something small, choose a tasteful logo gift or an item your country or region is famous for. A hostess gift of flowers, candy or wine is appreciated, but not expected, when invited to someone’s home for dinner.

•      Winning and Dining

If  invited to that American specialty, the coocktail party, expect to mix informally with a large number of complete strangers, often without introductions by host or hostess. It is appropriate to approach individuals and groups with a smile and introduce yourself.

Negotiating Style

•      Your Presentation

Americans respond best to brisk, factual presentations delivered by a competent speaker of English and enlivened by visual aids where appropriate. They may interrupt with questions rather than hold their questions until the end.

•      Bargaining Range

U.S negotiators experienced in international business are used to a wide variation in bargaining ranges. Expect them to test your opening offer for flexibility. They may respond better to realistic quotations than to the overused high-low tactic. Build a safety margin into your opening bid to cover unexpected developments, but avoid over-inflating your offer.

•      Concession Behavior

Take care to make each concession with great reluctant, and then only on a strict “if … then,” conditional basis. Always demand something of equivalent value in return.

•      Ploys and Counter-ploys

A favorite American bargaining tactic is time pressure: “Next week our prices are going up seven percent …” The best way to counter this ploy is to simply ignore it.

Another favorite ploy is to ask for quotations on a sliding scale by quantity.

You may also encounter the Trial Order gambit in which your potential customer demands your lowest price even for a small ‘test’ order.

·                      •      Decision-Making

American negotiators are probably the fastest decision makers in the world, and proud of it. Some U.S. executives live by the motto, “Right or wrong, but never in doubt.”

•                        •      The Contract

Expect heavy emphasis on the legal aspects and the fine points of the written agreement. Many U.S. negotiators include lawyers in the discussions from the start until the signing ceremony. They often bring a draft agreement to the bargaining table and proceed to negotiate clause by clause. Should a dispute or disagreement arise later, the American side may rely strictly on the terms of the contract and become suspicious if their counterpart invokes noncontract issues such as the importance of the long-term relationship.

Source: Gesteland, R Richard. 2002. Cross-Cultural Business Behavior. Denmark.