The Adjusted Winner:
An Advanced
Communication Approach

The partnership has died; it's over. Whether it was a marriage, a business, or some other kind of venture, it's finished and the accusations and denials have begun.

And, into this bitter environment comes the need to divide up assets. In effect, to rub salt into an open wound.

Enter the 'adjusted winner' method of setting disputes. Think of it as a sophisticated version of the old 'I-cut-you-choose' method; the one parents use to settle disputes between kids about the last pieces of cake.

Bidding for the major assets

Devised by two academics, Steven Brams and Alan Taylor, the adjusted winner method allows the parties in a dispute to bid for the major assets. Each starts with 100 points, and can allocate those points (and only that many points), among the assets, through bids.

That allows the parties to factor in sentimental or emotional, as well as monetary, values. Because the parties are limited to 100 points, they must carefully consider what each asset means, and what it's worth in relation to all the assets on the table.

By the way, Brams and Taylor say their method favors the honest, and tends to penalize those who try to out-manoeuvre the other parties.

A disclaimer before we go any further: I haven't had any experience with this method, except to read about it. So while it may have communication lessons, I cannot endorse it as a negotiating tool. Professional advice is your best bet.

Turning to communication techniques, one maxim for good governance goes this way: "Justice must not only be done; it must be seen to be done." For example, having the parties go through a planned process in itself makes it more likely they will perceive the division of assets as fairer, and less likely they'll be envious.

Defusing emotions, channeling energies

Let's imagine another situation: you're the person in the middle, the one responsible for mediating a bitter dispute. One of the first things you'll do is try to defuse the emotion, and you'll try to keep it defused.

By using a method like this one, participants should be less emotional. The adjusted winner method gives the battling parties vehicles to channel their energies in a constructive way. They must think hard about the issues or assets, which should pull them into a more rational state, at least temporarily.

Other aspects of the adjusted winner method also merit a communicator's attention: the way it communicates fairness, and maybe spares us the "What if my lawyer is not as smart as their lawyer?" worrying.

Finally, the process should make the parties feel they have some control, something that's often lost in high-powered negotiations. Again, that's a valuable sense to have communicated.

Overall, even if it doesn't help in negotiations, the adjusted winner method looks like a communication winner.

In summary, the adjust winner method was developed as a technique for negotiation, but it also delivers a number of communication benefits.

Robert F. Abbott writes and publishes Abbott’s Communication Letter. Learn how you can use communication to help achieve your goals, by reading articles or subscribing to this free newsletter, an excellent resource for leaders and managers, at: http://www.communication-newsletter.com

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