Entrepreneurial Leadership
by Samuel Dinnar
Leadership is achieved and maintained through negotiation
A lot of what an entrepreneur does involves interactions with others in their galaxy. Being able to successfully engage, influence, and reach agreements are keys to success. For entrepreneurs, the outcome of sequences of negotiations will determine whether a venture grows, stalls, or fails.
Entrepreneurial leadership IS leadership. It requires much more than just charisma, vision, and a towering presence in a command-and-control environment. Even when it comes to getting employees to act in desired ways, authority has its limits. Experienced leaders know how to motivate and influence others. True leadership requires negotiating both internally and externally.
A lot of what an entrepreneur does involves interactions with others in their galaxy. Being able to successfully engage, influence, and reach agreements are keys to success. For entrepreneurs, the outcome of sequences of negotiations will determine whether a venture grows, stalls, or fails.
Entrepreneurial leadership IS leadership. It requires much more than just charisma, vision, and a towering presence in a command-and-control environment. Even when it comes to getting employees to act in desired ways, authority has its limits. Experienced leaders know how to motivate and influence others. True leadership requires negotiating both internally and externally.
Entrepreneurial leadership IS leadership
Negotiation involves communication between two or more entities for the purpose of reaching an agreement about a plan, product, and/or relationship. A successful agreement serves the interest of both sides -- more effectively than any alternative course of action open to them. As Susskind says in Good for You, Great for Me (2014), such agreements are usually reached by exploring various options or packages, and agreeing ahead of time on the criteria that both sides will use to make final decisions. Good agreements include agreed-upon methods of ensuring that both sides will live up to their commitments. They also emphasize the importance of maintaining good working relationships, especially if there is a chance they will be dealing with each other again.
Entrepreneurial negotiation is unique in a number of ways. Emotion and complexity are part of the reason why. When someone invests in a venture, the main asset they are buying is a share in the people. In entrepreneurial deals, therefore, getting the deal done is just one concern. When the parties shake hands, they are committing to a relationship, often for an extended period. They way entrepreneurs negotiate can make it easier or harder to work together. If the parties make certain that their interests are really aligned, it will make it easier for them to deal with the uncertainties and complexities that await.
Entrepreneurial negotiation is unique in a number of ways. Emotion and complexity are part of the reason why. When someone invests in a venture, the main asset they are buying is a share in the people. In entrepreneurial deals, therefore, getting the deal done is just one concern. When the parties shake hands, they are committing to a relationship, often for an extended period. They way entrepreneurs negotiate can make it easier or harder to work together. If the parties make certain that their interests are really aligned, it will make it easier for them to deal with the uncertainties and complexities that await.
Samuel Dinnar has over 25 years of international experience as an entrepreneur, executive, board member and VC in hi-tech and aerospace. He is an instructor with the Program on Negotiation at Harvard, a research associate and instructor at MIT, and the co-author of the 2019 award-winning book Entrepreneurial Negotiation: Understanding and Managing the Relationships that Determine Your Entrepreneurial Success (Palgrave/Macmillan).
