Category: Our articles

iDeal Makers, the business bank for entrepreneurs

05.05.2022
Since its creation in 2018, iDeal Makers has revolutionized and democratized Business Banking to make it accessible to entrepreneurs, whether they are founders of startups, managers of SMEs or ETIs. Until iDeal Makers arrived on the market, entrepreneurs thought (and many still think) that investment banks are reserved for ETIs or listed companies. They were right. Who has never thought or noticed that investment banks: are only...
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Getting to KNOW

31.03.2022
(From “Getting to Yes” to “Getting to Know” via “Getting to No”) All negotiators know “Getting to Yes” from Harvard famous professors Ury, Fischer & Patton, the bible of modern negotiating approach, open-minded negotiators did appreciate the alternative “Getting to No” proposed by Chris Voss, former FBI chief negotiator, in his best seller named “Never split the difference”, seasoned negotiators should realize that,...
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"Stay (de)focused" or the experience of an "ADHD" negotiator

21.09.2021
I grew up with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) without knowing it. I realized it much later when my son was diagnosed with ADHD. In my day, if you had it, you were a failure in school and that meant you were either stupid or lazy or both. It was simple. Fortunately, science and society have evolved. Nowadays, we accompany and sometimes even treat, without however curing, children afflicted with this disease. It would even seem...
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Can negotiating in the dark improve our skills?

07.05.2020
Have you ever negotiated wearing a mask over your eyes? I have. Last week, my French partner and I had to place a video conf to a leader of an organization in order to introduce iDeal Makers and convince him to participate in a negotiation process aimed at making a deal where parties were clearly antagonized. We were acting on behalf of one of our clients. Surprisingly, even if this person did join the video conf he did not turn on his camera....
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Hardship

16.03.2020
To prepare your redeployment, turn the threat of your hardship clauses into an opportunity. Of course, there will be an afterthought, no doubt different, and you will have to restart, start over. In the meantime, you have to manage the crisis, keep your business going and prepare it to start again. The time has come for hardship clauses, those clauses often forgotten in your long-term or successively executed contracts, those that can...
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The meaning of deal making

07.01.2020
We are huge fans of Karim Duval (who is excellent for exposing with a great sense of humour the shortcomings of our society...) there is no true "happy collapse" in this world becoming more and more purposeless. In 20 20, it’s now time to bury deals making no sense. If you want to make sense of it again, please check out our new add in iDeal Makers glossary “Verified Final Objective”: If you just want to take a shot, you don’t...
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The power of the weak

17.12.2019
Have you ever experienced negotiating in weak position?  Several times over my career of deal makers I saw myself negotiating in a weak position, having to deal with strong partners on a verge of trying to impose Their deal instead of looking for a balanced outcome for both sides of the negotiation table. In short, they win, you lose. Life it is? Issue is, the strong and the weak sometimes underestimate the power of the weak. What is this,...
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I'm only responsible for what i say, not what you understand

17.06.2019
Over my career, as lawyer, I found it both fun and accurate to use that quote and state that "I’m only responsible for what I say not what you understand". From my perspective, as business lawyer, nothing could have been more true than this statement. Then, time passing over my carrer I slowly found out that, as negotiator, what does matter is to make sure you not only properly listen your counterpart and not only make your statement...
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