Throughout his five-decade career, Cal West Apartments’ President David Malcolm has learned a thing or two about negotiating. He has negotiated real estate sales, acquisitions and loans totaling more than $4 billion and identified what truly makes or breaks a deal.
When the recent WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes dragged on for months, Malcolm couldn’t help but notice several areas in which negotiating skills might have served both parties. In a recent article penned for The Business Journals, Malcolm explained how others can learn from these strikes and apply those lessons to their next round of negotiations.
Below are three key principles he touched on.
Aim to learn everything about the situation
To Malcolm, the first core tenet of negotiating is that one must do extensive due diligence before negotiations start.
“When approaching the negotiating table, I aim to learn everything I can about the situation and whomever I am negotiating with,” Malcolm said. “I want to know the other side’s priorities. I want to know their business and financial history. I want to know about people’s families and any other personal details I might be able to gather.”
According to Malcolm, if you can identify the core principles, values and needs of the party you’re dealing with, you’ll bring yourself one step closer to reaching the finish line.
Find common ground
Next up: finding common ground with your counterpart. Negotiations can often be incredibly difficult and antagonistic, but at the end of the day, you still have to meet somewhere in the middle. And you still need to go back to work afterward. Just look at the Hollywood strikes as proof as a classic example.
“Once these strikes ended, all the executives, actors, writers and producers had to return to work,” said Malcolm. “They had jobs to complete, contracts to fulfill and grand-scale entertainment to create. And so, they did find common ground. They looked around and realized that all parties were unsure of what AI’s massive leap forward meant for the future. … In the end, the parties were able to carve out solutions to overcome these issues.”
Without finding common ground, the likelihood of agreeing to a good and fair deal becomes next to impossible.
The conversation must go on
Finally, Malcolm acknowledges in his Business Journals article that things don’t simply end once a deal has been struck. An agreement is just the beginning of ongoing communication between two sides. Again, he looks to Hollywood as an example.
“How will the North American entertainment industry compete against other countries and markets that choose to fully unleash AI?” Malcolm says. “What happens when those entities are not concerned about royalties or intellectual property? If the two sides cannot continue the conversation and keep working together, they will fail to answer these questions.”
Malcolm also mentions that while the above principles certainly do not make up the entirety of negotiation skills, they do serve as a great jumping-off point.
“Get to know whomever you’re dealing with,” he says. “Then work to find common ground. And finally, continue to communicate after the immediate issues are resolved to maintain a working relationship.”
About David Malcolm
With a five-decade track record of achievement in the San Diego real estate industry, David Malcolm is the President of Cal West Apartments, a trusted provider of quality rental housing in San Diego and South Riverside counties. . Malcolm has also served in numerous civic and community leadership positions and is a generous contributor to many nonprofit organizations.
Jesse Pitts has been with the Global Banking & Finance Review since 2016, serving in various capacities, including Graphic Designer, Content Publisher, and Editorial Assistant. As the sole graphic designer for the company, Jesse plays a crucial role in shaping the visual identity of Global Banking & Finance Review. Additionally, Jesse manages the publishing of content across multiple platforms, including Global Banking & Finance Review, Asset Digest, Biz Dispatch, Blockchain Tribune, Business Express, Brands Journal, Companies Digest, Economy Standard, Entrepreneur Tribune, Finance Digest, Fintech Herald, Global Islamic Finance Magazine, International Releases, Online World News, Luxury Adviser, Palmbay Herald, Startup Observer, Technology Dispatch, Trading Herald, and Wealth Tribune.