No2 - The Angry Gorilla - 47 Negotiation Tactics
..and a story from the community - The Anchor
The Weekly Walkaway highlights negotiation in its ‘good’, ‘bad’ and sometimes ‘downright ugly’ forms. Issue No. 113 (30th May 2025)
This Week: When the Angry Gorilla Shows Up…
Let’s be honest Walkawayers.. not every negotiation is polite, warm and cooperative. Sometimes it’s not even civil. It’s a slug-fest!
Sometimes, tactics are all the games ‘they’ want, and even all they know how, to play and they show up chest out, nostrils flaring, steam practically pouring from their ears.. or that’s just what they want you to think.
They’re not here to dance, for mutuality. They’re here to win, to beat you. Or more accurately, intimidate you into submission.
So grab that Friday coffee, take a comfortable seat and enjoy as we meet The Angry Gorilla.. a familiar beast to anyone who's ever sat across from a client, supplier, or stakeholder who uses or mistakes aggression for authority.
But here’s the twist…
We’re also featuring a story from one of our very own Walkawayers.. someone who faced last weeks ‘The Anchor’, and learnt and lived to tell the tale. It’s raw. It's real. And it’s exactly the kind of thing I want more of from you lot, you Walkawayer’s.
Because if you’ve been in the room..
If you’ve smelled the fear..
If you’ve walked away bloody-nosed but smarter for it..
Then I want your story.
No corporate fluff. No victory parades. Just what really happened.
👉 Hit this email or drop it in the comments below.
If it’s good, we’ll feature it. If it’s great, I’ll buy you a pint..
Now… sit back, sip that coffee..
On to this week’s two tales of negotiation tactics and chaos.
The Anchor.. a Walkawayer’s story
One from the community..
Thank you ‘A’.. love your story and thank you for sharing.
Some years ago, I found myself on the receiving end of a classic anchoring move—one that still sticks with me.
We had a solid payroll services agreement in place with a client, supporting several hundred of their workers with high-quality service. Things were going well.
But then, due to internal cost pressures, their procurement team was tasked with driving savings across their supplier base.
That’s when they reached out with a firm message and Their Anchor:
“This is your new payroll factor. If you can’t meet it, we’ll find another provider.”
They claimed it was based on market benchmarks and positioned it as non-negotiable.
Now, we already had a good deal and while the new factor would cut into our margin, it still left us with a decent profit.
But instead of pushing back or exploring options, I shifted into sales mode. I started justifying, explaining, and trying to re-sell our value.
And just like that, the negotiation was over before it began.
We landed exactly where they started, on the number they anchored from the outset.
It was a valuable lesson: even when the anchor seems immovable, there’s always room to reframe, question, or counter. Next time, I’ll be ready.
Thank you ‘A’
The Angry Gorilla
And so onto Tactic 2 of 47 (and counting) The Angry Gorilla..
The Lift
The smiles started at reception.
“I’m so glad you came in,” said Edward, Director of Talent at.. well, let’s call them Lynchmorgan.
It wasn’t their real name, of course. But they ‘were’ real enough: top-tier investment bank, all glass and money and men called Hugo or Rupert and women called Henrietta or Georgiana.
My company had been working with them for three years, placing Credit Derivatives traders across London, New York and Hong Kong. We charged 25% of base and guaranteed bonus, and we got it. Because we were good. And they knew it.
But things were changing.. this was before the credit crunch.
Edward had called me in to “discuss renewal.” That’s what they always call it. Renewal. Like a massage membership. I knew what it meant. They wanted cheaper.
We walked to the lift. Smiles. Small talk. He pressed 6.
“Meeting room’s just upstairs,” he said, relaxed, like this was going to be a friendly catch-up. Then the lift dinged.. and stopped at Floor 2.
The Equity Trading floor.
The doors opened and suddenly it was noise. A wall of screens and shouting and screens shouting back. And standing dead centre, like a nightclub bouncer dressed in Brioni, was the Global Head of Credit Derivatives.
Let’s call him Rick.. [wink.. if you know what I mean..]
Rick saw me, pointed, and barked.. loudly:
“I thought I said this guy wasn’t allowed back in the building until he agrees to our 20% and standard terms!!”
Every head turned. Phones paused mid-dial. People stopped mid-shout.
I stood there, frozen, staring at the guy who controlled half of London’s CDS flow.
Edward stammered something. I didn’t hear it.
The lift doors began to close.. slowly. Too slowly. Rick stared at me the entire way, like a zoo gorilla just daring someone to throw a banana.
We reached the sixth floor in silence.
Edward smiled awkwardly. “Sorry about that. Rick can be... passionate.”
I nodded. My brain was screaming. My Lucy.. that little chimp in my head.. was smashing on the glass, shouting RUN! RUN YOU FOOL!
But I couldn’t.
I sat down. I tried to breath. I opened my notes. Hands shaking.
My heart was pounding. I was certain Edward could see my pulse throbbing on my temple. I felt sick and sweat ran an uncomfortable trickle down my spine.
Edward leaned in. “Look, we all know 25% was fine last year. But standardising on 20% makes it easier for Finance, and Rick’s under pressure to show savings across the desk. If we can agree 20%, we can lock you in.”
Classic Good Cop / Bad Cop.
Classic Angry Gorilla.
Classic Anchoring.. hit me with 20% in public, then “reasonably” offer it again in private.
I smiled. Slowly. Shook my head. Breathed out, in a sigh.
He tried again.
“It’s a directive from the top.”
I looked at the glass of water. Thought about drinking it. Didn’t. My mouth was as dry as a camels armpit.
Then I did the smartest thing I’ve ever done in a negotiation.. and said;
I’m gonna take a time out.
I stepped out. Took a walk. Let my chimp calm down. Breathed and just thought.
I opened my plan. Checked my pre-planned moves.. not just on price, but on terms as well. Reminded myself I had options.
Ten minutes later, I walked back in.
“Look, I can see you’re under a lot of pressure so if you can get to 30 days payment terms, not your crappy 60 days, then I can agree 22.5%.. No exceptions. That’s the offer.”
Edward blinked. He hadn’t expected me to hold firm. They had expected the lift ‘thing’ to have scared me into agreement.
He tapped his pen. Nodded.
“Done.”
Three weeks later, the paperwork came through. 22.5%. 30-day terms.
No more gorillas in sight.
Ironic that six months later, when they needed a new Global Head of Credit Derivatives. They called me. Very satisfying.
