BUSINESS
CAREERS

Men and women view and approach negotiation differently. This has been revealed by numerous studies of corporate men and women as well as business students and academics. Research has shown that two and a half times as many women as men feel “a great deal of apprehension” about negotiating and a full 20 percent say they avoid it completely. Only 14 percent of successful women say that negotiation made them feel powerful and assertive. Gender differences have also been shown in the types of negotiation approaches chosen by men and women; most men prefer competitive negotiation while most women prefer co-operative strategies.

Lawyers negotiating
professionally

So what about lawyers — does gender matter for our profession? Almost all research looking at differences between male and female lawyers when they negotiate professionally show no differences. That is, they negotiate equally well when they negotiate as agent for others. This lack of difference may be explained by a situational trigger that creates an advantage for women — when negotiating on behalf of others women get better results than men. Women say they feel empowered and energised when they negotiate for family members, colleagues and clients, and the findings support this. Female executives negotiating as a mentor for another person negotiated salaries 18 percent higher than when they negotiated for themselves, according to a 2005 article in Harvard Law School’s Negotiation newsletter. This increased performance was not shown by men. A university teaching colleague, after hearing me talk about this particular trigger to law students, told me that this information allowed him to finally figure out something that had puzzled him for years. At the large aircraft firm where he worked the only female manager was paid the least of all the managers but her team received the highest compensation of all of the teams. Now he finally knew the reason. She negotiated the highest salaries for her team but not for herself! Recent unpublished research provides support for this advantage — female family lawyers in Greece showed better results than their male counterparts when negotiating for clients.

My own experience with teaching negotiation skills to lawyers and law students for

DELEE
FROMM

over 20 years confirms that when lawyers negotiate for others there are no gender differences in approach, performance or results. For example, their preference and ability to use competitive strategy is the same. However there are some gender differences for lawyers in the arena of negotiation and the ramifications of such differences can be huge.

“ 2O

Research has shown
that two and a half
times as many women
as men feel ‘a great
deal of apprehension’
about negotiating
and a full 20 percent
say they avoid
it completely.

Gender differences

Lawyers show the same gender triggers as others when they negotiate for themselves. Most men tend to ramp up when they negotiate for themselves as well as when they self promote. This is consistent with the reported exhilaration that men report during competitive negotiation. As a result they negotiate to promote their own self-interests far more often than women do. In direct contrast most women, including female lawyers, feel uncomfortable negotiating for themselves so they do it far less often. Another consequence of this difference is that in ambiguous situations, where it is not clear what the parameters are, women set their aspirations lower. This has been suggested as a basis for the gender gap in wages and also may be one of the factors underlying the exceedingly low numbers of women executives in corporations, managing partners in professional firms, and directors on boards.

Tips for harnessing
negotiation strengths

So how does one become a better negotiator by harnessing negotiation strengths as well as mitigating the challenges?

Recognize your
gender triggers

As shown above it can be complicated and not all individuals respond the same way to situational triggers. Become aware of which situations cause you to ramp up your negotiation prowess and which ones may cause you to stumble. Awareness, experience and training can mitigate the affects of socialization.

Discover your
preferred style

By knowing what your preferred style is you can avoid responding automatically and you can instead consciously select a strategy that is most appropriate and will gain the best results. Online assessment will quickly tell you which strategies you overuse and which you underuse.

Learn how to use
collaborative strategy

This is the most sophisticated negotiation strategy and it maximizes both relationship and outcome. Using this type of strategy, the interests of the parties are explored so that the best solution for both parties can be obtained. This strategy is a natural fit for women.

Don’t be afraid to ask

To negotiate you have to be aware that the possibility exists. Even with peremptory decisions there usually is room for a bit of give and take. Before going along with imposed solutions and shutting down your options, try to discover the reasons behind the decision. To uncover them you have to get the discussion going – so don’t be afraid to ask!

Attend seminars
or take coaching

To better understand gender differences and develop negotiation skills to harness your strengths, take a negotiation seminar or some coaching sessions.

Practise, practise, practise

Use your knowledge and awareness to develop your skills. And never pass up an opportunity to negotiate! ;

Delee Fromm is both a psychologist and lawyer who practised at a large law firm for 17 years. She is now a partner with Fromm & Goodhand.

East Coast law firm
fuses fun, hard work

DONALEE MOULTON HALIFAX

ing with the firm’s expectations for itself. In June 2008, Ritch Durnford expanded the firm to include an extensive practice in the areas of labour and employment law and the firm welcomed aboard partners Eric Durnford and Nancy Barteaux, as well as legal analyst Amy Bradbury.

“That really ratcheted up our profile,” said Ritch.

It is also a beginning, not an
end in itself. “We plan to con-
tinue growing in areas where
we are strong,” said Ritch. “We
never want to be all things to all
people.”
The firm, which has been
called the leading litigation and
specialty boutique firm in Nova
Scotia, specializes in eight key
areas including insurance
defence, labour & employment
law, dispute resolution and
mediation, municipal law, and
admiralty, environmental and
marine law. Its success, howev-
er, is founded on service to cli-
ents.

Take, for example, a recent — and last-minute — request from the firm’s biggest client for an analysis of issues for a regional conference. The call came in at 3:30 p.m.; the report was needed for 8 a.m. the next morning. Ritch and three of the firm’s analysts, all lawyers, stayed until 2 a.m. to prepare the 38-page report. Ritch’s assistant came in at 6:30 a.m. to assemble the report and get it to the client.

“It looked great. We’re proud of it,” says Ritch.

Then comes
the fun. “There
is a very strong
and spontaneous
reaction to good results,” said
Eric Durnford. “There’s a desire
to celebrate the success of the
person that achieved it.
Everybody does this.”
Staff, of course, look to
senior partners to see what is
expected and acceptable. Ritch
calls the firm’s leadership style
“management by walking
around,” and, he noted, that is
much easier when the whole
team resides on the same floor.
“We run into each other.”
That helps to build the cama-
raderie and shared understand-

See Work Page 26

There is something that happens each Friday afternoon at Ritch Durnford. Lawyers and staff at the downtown Halifax firm start to move away from their desks and head for the kitchen. Soon everyone is there. Some people are enjoying a beer; others are having a bite. Everyone is having a good time.

Friday afternoon get-togethers are part of the weekly rhythm of working at Ritch Durnford — and one of the reasons the 61-year-old firm was was named in the top ten best places to work in Atlantic Canada in 2009. Ritch Durnford, claiming seventh spot, was the only law firm to break the top ten. (Cox & Palmer and McInnes Cooper also made the list, coming in at 16th and 24th, respectively.)

One reason for the break-
through: unity. “We are a team,”
senior partner Murray Ritch
told The Lawyers Weekly.
“People work well together.
They take pride.”
That’s not just wishful think-
ing. As part of the Best Places to

Work in Atlantic Canada project, a survey was sent to all staff and all lawyers at the firm, which was founded in 1948.

A report was then prepared by the project organizers.

Here’s some of what lawyers and staff had to say about working at Ritch Durnford.

“Everyone is
respectful.” “It’s
a fair and equi-
table environ-
ment that
rewards hard
work.” “They
make you feel like you’re impor-
tant to the firm.”
That high praise is not a
result of luck. It’s a result of a
sound business strategy and a
commitment to building the
best possible team. The latter
starts when lawyers are hired,
said Durnford, a graduate of
Dalhousie Law School and the
Program on Mediation at
Harvard Law School. “Fit is
very important. We expect the
lawyers not only to do well in
the law but also to create work
and to market themselves.”
That expectation is in keep-

“Friday afternoon get-togethers are part of the weekly rhythm of working at Ritch Durnford... and one of the reasons the...firm was was named in the top ten best places to work in Atlantic Canada...