BENCH, ALEAH
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ANAYLSIS OF EAZY’S GARAGE USING THE HARVARD NEGOTIATION PROJECT’S SEVEN ELEMENTS OF NEGOTIATION
The conflict presented in the Eazy’s Garage exercise demonstrated similar disputes that arise every
day in the United States. The two sides of the scenario differ on multiple levels between the potential
plaintiff and defendant. Taking a deeper look into the exercise, we were given the backstory of either the
plaintiff, John Eazer who is an owner of a small vehicle maintenance shop or the defendant, Dr. Susan
Garfield, a therapist who had her 5 year old Japanese car serviced at Mr. Eazer’s place of business. The
dispute stems from an inaccurate service estimate which could escalate to criminal charges being pressed
on Dr. Garfield for conversion of the mechanic’s lien. Using the Harvard Negotiation Project’s Seven
Building Blocks of Negotiation, for the counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, negotiation can be strategized as
follows:
1. Relationships: This factor is crucial in determining how to act when negotiation with the
opposing party. Since Dr. Garfield wishes to maintain the long-standing relationship with Mr.
Eazer, an adversarial approach could damage the relationship if implemented incorrectly. As
stated in the text, “Roger Mayer and his colleges performed foundational work by developing a
model of the relationships among antecedents to trust, trust perceptions of risk, and risk taking.”
(Riskin. Westbrook. Guthrie. Reuben. Robbennolt & Welsh.) (2014.) In a problem-solving
approach, the common factor between the two parties of maintaining their relationship would
indicate to the respective counsels that “being vulnerable implies that there is something of
importance to be lost.1 The adversarial strategy would be an appropriate tactic if neither party
wished to maintain their relationship. Therefore, the tactic of, to win by gaining as much value as
possible from the other party2 could be implicated.
2. Communication: Since the counsel and parties will be interaction and communicating with one
another it may be difficult for the parties not to be overwhelmed with emotion during the
negotiation process. Since using the problem-solving strategy would be most appropriate for this
scenario, the first step in order to negotiate fairly and effectively would be to resolve the “people
problems” first. Dr. Garfield felt Mr. Eazer was short with her on day 0 and had a suspicion that
since the death of her Uncle; the initial tie of the Garfield family and Mr. Eazer, that the family’s
business did not seem as important to Mr. Eazer. She also felt that Mr. Eazer did not receive the
women in the Garfield family as equal to the men. She felt that it may be that Mr. Eazer felt
threatened by a professional woman such as herself. There are several factors that can cause
miscommunication two or more parties. Finding the root cause of what stemmed the
miscommunication in the first place could potentially set the negotiation process on the right
track. This too could lead the parties to tackles the problem together instead of fighting against
each other. To maximize the likelihood of this outcomes, being vulnerable and opening up to the
other party will demonstrate trust. Asking questions and actively listening to the other party is
also important.
Riskin, L. L., Westbrook, J. E., Guthrie, C., Reuben, R. C., Robbennolt, J. K., & Welsh, N. A. (2014). Dispute
resolution and lawyers. St. Paul, MN: West Academic Publishing.
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Riskin, L. L., Westbrook, J. E., Guthrie, C., Reuben, R. C., Robbennolt, J. K., & Welsh, N. A. (2014). Dispute
resolution and lawyers. St. Paul, MN: West Academic Publishing.
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BENCH, ALEAH
6/3/12
ANAYLSIS OF EAZY’S GARAGE USING THE HARVARD NEGOTIATION PROJECT’S SEVEN ELEMENTS OF NEGOTIATION
3. Interests: Understanding each party’s objectives, needs and concerns are important in the
negotiation process because it allows for effective communication and bargaining to occur.
Tactics can be implemented using this information to increase the odds of a mutually accepted
outcome. Dr. Susan fears that her lack of special treatment could be due to underlying gambling
debts Mr. Eazer could owe, which could explain the unreasonably high maintenance bill. Her
objective is to only pay the initial envelope estimate of $1,195 and to dismiss the potential for Mr.
Eazer to press criminal charges for conversion of the mechanic’s lien. Her desire is to maintain
the professional relationship with Mr. Eazer and to keep the conflict from going to court.
Vocalizing interests among the parties can eradicate miscommunications during the negotiation
process as well.
4. Options: The possibility of outcomes can be plentiful or scarce. In the Eazy’s Garage scenario,
there were at least three options that could have been presented to Mr. Eazer. The first was to
only pay the envelope estimate of $1,195 the second was to pay the first reduced rate for parts
and labor bill of $1,960 and the third option was to pay the second bill with zero discounts of
$2,169. Options help the parties realize the joint effort it takes in order reach a fair outcome.
5. Legitimacy: This portion is the meat and potatoes of the negotiation. It helps strengthen a party’s
stance on their objective with fact not only to back up their reasoning but to potentially weaken
the opposition’s. In the exercise, Dr. Garfield was given an envelope estimate for service to be
done on her vehicle by Billy Joe Hazzard. Since the estimate was not properly produced and
signed as well as unexpected maintenance done did not have consent by Dr, Garfield nor was a
repair authorization form completed the liable amount she is responsible arguably is the initial
envelope dollar amount of $1,195 plus an additional 20%. Because standard practices in the
industry were not adhered to, it leaves Dr. Garfield leverage to legitimize her negotiation price for
settling the dispute.
6. Alternatives: Knowing a party’s best alternatives to a negotiated agreement (BATNA) and worst
alternatives to a negotiated agreement (WATNA) is important if an agreement cannot be reached.
It helps the party have some control of the situation without any involvement from the opposing
party. If your deal isn’t better than your BATN, you might as well walk away.3 Though Dr.
Garfield is facing a potential lawsuit, if she were to walk away from attempting to settle out of
court, she may have a better opportunity to achieve her desired outcome during litigation.
7. Commitment: Deciding and agreeing upon a realistic outcome that both parties can produce or
uphold is crucial to the execution of a successful negotiation. If a portion of the promises or
conditions fall through, this could have serious outcome from a personal, financial and legal
standpoint.
Overall, this exercise was a great example to explore the different strategies, approaches and methods
to reach a fair negotiation. Many scenarios such as Eazy’s garage have many factors that cause the
conflict in the first place and understanding both party’s side of the story is an important step if taking the
Riskin, L. L., Westbrook, J. E., Guthrie, C., Reuben, R. C., Robbennolt, J. K., & Welsh, N. A. (2014). Dispute
resolution and lawyers. St. Paul, MN: West Academic Publishing.
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BENCH, ALEAH
6/3/12
ANAYLSIS OF EAZY’S GARAGE USING THE HARVARD NEGOTIATION PROJECT’S SEVEN ELEMENTS OF NEGOTIATION
problem-solver approach if a successful negotiation is to occur. Knowing the seven elements of the
Harvard Negotiation Project are useful to encourage both parties to understand each other’s objective and
to help commonalities guide the settlement to a favorable outcome for everyone involved.
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