Dealing with malicious deal creep
We are often asked how to deal with unscrupulous buyers or suppliers who never seem to honour a deal. Often there appears to be a culture of “beating down” the other side and wilfully ignoring key conditions & agreements made during final negotiations.
What can you do to counter such behaviours? As with most negotiation questions, there is not just one simple answer…
The two key questions to consider are – how to discourage it happening in the first place and how to respond when the other side is creeping the deal.
How to prevent or protect against deal creep?
Raise the issue up-front — For any negotiation tactic, the best counter is to raise the issue early in negotiations to let them know that you’re aware. It’s best to do so firmly, but not in a way that is confrontational or accusatory (e.g. “Last time, we had a few misunderstandings at the last minute, which has resulted in much tighter oversight at my end now, so going forward let's make sure everything we've agreed is clearly documented in writing as we go…”).
Put a price on their behaviour — Be open about your expectation that what is agreed at the table will make it into the final deal. Structure their expectation that any rowing back from previously agreed positions will re-open negotiations, delay sign-off at your end and may impact agreed timelines.
Summarise & document — To protect against deal creep, summarise frequently and be sure everything is documented at the time and unambiguous (photos of notes on flipcharts, etc.). If possible, take control of the summarising and drafting. If the other side is providing minutes and drafts, review and flag any discrepancies immediately.
Avoid using AI to summarise meetings— AI lacks subtlety, may omit key aspects, summarise conditional agreement as unqualified agreement, etc.
How to defend against deal creep?
Don't reward deal creep — If they persist to creep the deal, don't reward the tactic by waving things through. Slow the process down, raise every issue – even minor wording changes not implemented as agreed - and tell them that that is what you are doing (e.g. “Last time, we found a few words changed that had not been flagged as changes, so we have been instructed to take time to double-check everything before we pass it through for approval…”). You need to deter future bad behaviour, so be extra detail focused and DON'T wave anything through.
Trade appropriate value — If they ask for something more, ask for something of equivalent value to restore value back into the deal (i.e. put a price on their demand). Conversely, if they withdraw a concession, withdraw the offer made in exchange for that concession OR add something of equivalent value. Never just concede. You will need the skill and appropriate preparation to do so, but this is essential.
Consider escalation — Ultimately, you may need to escalate the issue. Deal creep can be malicious, but can also be the result of poor preparation, careless notetaking, lack of clarity on their objectives or a lack of authority provided by their mandate holder. Surface the problem (soft on the people, hard on the issues), highlight the challenge this causes for the relationship (delay, trust, performance concerns, etc.) and suggest that your mandate holder reach out to their mandate holder to discuss the issues to ensure that both negotiation teams are well briefed and fully empowered to negotiate terms that are acceptable to both sides.
Writen by Dr Matt Lohmeyer