Piero Borrelli

𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲.

Most commercial teams treat negotiation as an isolated event rather than a repeatable competitive advantage. This often leads to value leakage, conceded margins, and missed opportunities. I help sales and procurement teams consistently achieve stronger, higher-value deal outcomes.

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐈 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩: As a Negotiation Strategist and Co-Founder of Impact Negotiation Group, I blend firsthand commercial insight with a structured methodology to help businesses turn negotiation into a core strength. Whether providing direct consulting for high-stakes tenders or building long-lasting team capabilities, my goal is to ensure you never leave value on the table.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬:
• €1.93 Billion+: Personally supported negotiations influencing over €1.77B in commercial deals.
• 1,350+ Professionals: Trained across industries including FMCG, Pharma, IT Services, Oil & Gas, and Private Equity.

𝐌𝐲 𝐉𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲: My approach is built on over 15 years of experience in high-pressure commercial roles at Royal Dutch Shell, The Gap Partnership, and NPM Capital, at both sides of the table (Sales & Procurement). Born in Eindhoven and raised globally (from São Paulo to Taipei), I have a deep appreciation for cross-cultural nuance and human connection.

I believe negotiation is more than just a business skill; it is a mindset for collaboration, confidence, and continuous improvement.

𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭: If you want to move from routine "complacency" to best in class deal-making, I’m happy to share insights or discuss how we can support your next high-stakes negotiation.

📩 Send me a message or reach out at contact@impactnegotiationgroup.com to start a conversation.

Marc Saris

𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 "𝘄𝗼𝗻" $𝟭𝟭𝟭 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘁.

Yesterday Netflix walked away from the Warner Bros. Discovery deal. Paramount swooped in with $111 billion. The headlines say Paramount "won."

I'm not so sure.

Netflix's statement said something that caught my attention: "This was always a nice to have at the right price, not a must have at any price."
That's negotiation discipline in one sentence. And it's rare.

I've seen this pattern play out dozens of times in competitive deal processes. Two bidders get locked in. Emotions take over. The price climbs past what the numbers justify. One side steps back. The other "wins."

Then the winner's curse kicks in. 🫤 

Netflix stock jumped 15% the moment they walked away. The market literally rewarded them for losing. Meanwhile Paramount is taking on $54 billion in debt financing backed by sovereign wealth funds from three Middle Eastern countries to close this deal. Buyer remorse? Likely within 12 months...

Here's what people forget: history is full of "winners" who wished they hadn't won.

In 2000, the UK government auctioned off 3G spectrum licences. What was expected to raise £1-3 billion turned into a 36-day, 150-round bidding war. Five telecom companies together paid £22.5 billion. The fear of missing out was so intense that nobody wanted to be the one to stop bidding.

The result? BT ended up with £30 billion in debt. Its share price dropped 60% in sixteen months. The entire European telecom sector nearly collapsed. Economists later called it a textbook case of the "winner's curse" where companies win only because they overestimate the expected value and overbid.

The real winners of the UK 3G auction? The government. The seller.
The real winners of yesterday's bidding war? Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders. The seller.

See the pattern?

In every competitive bidding process I've been involved in, the side with the discipline to walk away holds the power. Netflix understood something Paramount may learn the hard way: the worst deal you’ll ever make is the one you overpay for.

The next 12 months will tell us whether Paramount's $111 billion bet was visionary or whether David Ellison just bought the most expensive case of buyer's remorse in entertainment history.

What do you think: smart move by Paramount, or will they regret this?

#negotiation #M&A #dealmaking #netflix #commercialstrategy

I help commercial teams walk into every negotiation with a plan, not hope.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗮 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗴𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗠𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗻𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮.

Recently I coached a senior sales director heading into a critical contract renewal.

The buyer replied to every proposal by email. Short messages. Long delays. Always on their schedule.

My client was getting frustrated. "They're not taking this seriously."

I asked: "Who decided this negotiation happens over email?"

Silence.

The buyer did. Nobody challenged it.

Email gave them complete control: time to align internally, consult procurement, stay comfortable. My client was reacting. The buyer was steering.

We didn't change the offer. We forced a change to the channel.

"I need to walk you through something on our last proposal. When do you have 30 minutes this week?"

The dynamic shifted almost immediately.

Most people don't think twice about how they communicate. They fall back on habit. 

Proactive negotiators think differently. They know the right channel, at the right moment, for the right purpose is itself a move.

Each medium does something different:

📧  Email slows the pace, creates a paper trail, buys thinking time. Use it to anchor a position, document what was agreed, or avoid being pushed into a reaction you're not ready for.

☎️  A call creates momentum. Objections surface. Use it when something's been stuck in writing too long, or when you need to hear how the other side actually feels.

🤝  Face-to-face changes the human dynamic entirely. Harder to say no. Easier to read what's really going on. Use it when the relationship matters as much as the deal.

The mistake most people make isn't their response. It's delivering that response through the wrong channel.

A bold counter-proposal in an email lands flat. The same words said in a room land completely differently.

Before you hit send, ask yourself: is this the right medium for what I'm trying to achieve right now?

We have observed a growing trend in asynchronous negotiations and automatic default to written communications in negotiations. Our conclusion is this is not leading to better outcomes. 

What about you?

#negotiation #sales #procurement #influence

Great post Martin Pilch  and love the picture 🤣

Negotiation Expert | FMCG Sales & Pharma Market Access | Partner @ IMPACT Negotiation Group

Stop debating who has more power in your negotiations.

That's the wrong question.
If one side truly had more power, there would be no negotiation. They'd set the terms. The other side would accept or walk.

The fact that you're at the table means both sides need something.
The real question is who can actually use their leverage.

A buyer with five alternatives but no internal mandate to switch? Stuck. 
A seller who threatens to walk but can't miss the quarter? Bluffing.

Power you can't exercise isn't power.

Outcomes are decided before you sit down:
- Is your walk-away defined and credible?
- Is your organization aligned?
- Do you understand their real constraints, not just their position?
- Do you have alternatives you'd actually take?

Preparation converts theoretical power into leverage that works. Most people show up hoping the dynamic favors them. The ones who win show up having already decided what they'll do if it doesn't.

Negotiations have changed. Had your organizations approach to them as well?

Strategic Advisor | Negotiatior | Deal Structuring & Commercial Excellence | Equity Partner

Welcome to the new reality: we are negotiating naked.
AI killed information asymmetry. Data is no longer power. It is a public infrastructure. Costs, price gaps, margin logic, everything can be benchmarked, scraped, modelled... the room is now transparent.
And yet many still negotiate like it is 1985. Dominate. Intimidate. Anchor hard. Pound the table. Declare victory.
That strongman playbook is running out of oxygen. It depended on opacity. On mystique. On fear.
Transparency exposes ego fast.
Now add Millennials and Gen Z. Raised on data. Conditioned to question authority. Allergic to theatrical dominance. They do not confuse volume with competence.
Negotiation is no longer theatre. It has become architecture under full visibility.
If your edge was information or intimidation, you are already behind.
Stop training gladiators. Start building deal architects. The old world is not coming back.

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