Gaming Ethics and Negotiations

The question of "gaming ethics" is a difficult one.

We acknowledge that there are certain circumstances in which the usual ethical standards are lowered. When playing cards, you may bluff. When playing racquetball or tennis, you may hit the ball to your opponent's weak spot.

And in negotiations, you may adopt a number of practices that you'd normally avoid.

To simply say, "That's okay and we don't need to worry about it" is to be indifferent to a potentially huge loophole that can be used to justify some very ugly practices. I recommend that clients carefully monitor and discuss any exceptions. Some good questions: Does the other side understand the ground rules? If the general public knew of the practice, would it yawn or be outraged?

In this interview, Michael Wheeler of the Harvard Business School discusses some additional points on how to become an ethical negotiator.