Margaret Peake’s Office, 2 Years Earlier
Carl Ritchie is preparing to conduct some tricky negotiations. After discussions with senior management, it seems that the lowest price at which he can settle is $100, whereas the maximum price that he can reasonably quote at the start of the meeting is $110. So Carl Ritchie has quite a restricted “range.”
Margaret Peake does not beat about the bush:
Mr. Ritchie, you cannot be serious. You quote me a fantasy figure of $110, when currently the market price for such products is $98. You have a choice: Either you make me an offer very close to $98 or we are wasting our time.
Carl Ritchie is in trouble. The price quoted is below the minimum price that he agreed to with senior management. Should he give ground and accept $98? Or, despite everything, should he try to seal the deal at $100? But how? He feels that the buyer is dictating the terms and he is meekly following along.