“Chris Voss provided me with crucial and timely advice when I was engaged in a salary negotiation. I felt a bit disenchanted with the first offer and felt my options where limited given the financial meltdown and the fierce competition in the job market. His preparation advice helped organize my strategy, anchored me with a solidly fair position, and gave me a clear vision of the direction I wanted the conversation to head in. He helped me devise critical open-ended questions to address the issues I was facing, allowing the interaction to move from a negotiation into a conversation between two people solving a problem. After my discussions with Chris I was empowered to successfully conclude a difficult conversation resulting with me receiving fair compensation and a new employer happy with the way I handled the discussions.”
Eric Perry, Director of Human Resources Organizational Development at MTA Bridges and Tunnels
“Christopher is very insightful, thoughtful and innovative on creating and executing negotiating techniques for difficult situations. He was very effective for one of my clients in a complex negotiation with a foreign based global corporation.”
Diane D. Reynolds, Of Counsel, Taft Stettinius & Hollister, LLP
“I always recommend Chris Voss, CEO of The Black Swan Group, to all my clients and have used his services personally. As a top-level negotiator he was able on three separate occasions to coach me into negotiation techniques that both closed business, and got the other party to write a check, even though the other party was closed to any agreement. Chris is an expert in business negotiation when the stakes are high. I wouldn’t want to be on the opposite side of the conference room table from him. He is a leader’s leader and a regular speaker, panelist & moderator for my monthly leadership group: Breakfast of Leaders/Capital CEO Forum. Whether you book him to speak to one of your professional organizations as an expert negotiator, or hire him to represent you at the negotiation table, Mr. Voss & The Black Swan Group is worth the investment, and is the smart choice! One you will be glad you made. “
Teresa Moraska Founder & CEO, Breakfast of Leaders/Capital CEO Forum, a CEO Leadership Forum in DC, Houston, NYC, Silicon Valley
“Christopher is state-of-the-art in terms of sharpness and guidance in negotiation workshops, real world experience speaking, not to be missed!”
Jordi Montserrat, Co-managing Director at Venture Kick
“Chris is an outstanding person who brings skills and knowledge from the real world of hostage negotiation and applies them, successfully, to the business world. I have witnessed first hand the impact that Chris has on business executives who are most impressed by the concepts and practical nature of the training and consultancy Chris offers.”
Susan Goldsworthy, Founder & CEO Goldswolf
“Chris has a unique ability to link his experience in negotiating hostage crises with business and practical situations. I saw Chris at MIT Sloan during a class on negotiation and he then organized and moderated a session with entrepreneurs that I was hosting. The exercise simulated a negotiation between venture capitalists and entrepreneurs. Chris provided advice and coaching assistance that were of immediate value to the participants. One of them found a brilliant solution to a problem with a VC that had been lingering for a long time. Thanks to Chris, I learnt a lot about strategies in negotiation and the importance of building relationships. I have used some of his ideas with success! I highly recommend Chris for any kind of assistance from individual coaching for entrepreneurs to large group discussions.”
Pascal Marmier, Director, Consul at swissnex Boston, Consulate of Switzerland
“Chris Voss offers an outstanding blend of both FBI and Harvard negotiation expertise. He is one of a small group of internationally experienced hostage negotiators who has both done it, and teaches it. His insight from his cross-cultural experiences in the world of global hostage negotiation brings to life many of the same negotiation principles that are used throughout the business world. “
“Chris knows that the business world is all negotiation – all the time. He believes that a negotiator’s currency is professionalism, credibility and that relationships matter. He is a dynamic and engaging presenter who can show that what works on a terrorist – can be more than useful in a business deal, business crisis or a conflict between business partners.”
Moty Cristal, CEO, NEST Consulting; Negotiation Strategies
“I had the pleasure of being trained by Chris Voss on the strategies involved with international negotiations. His simulated real world negotiation scenarios provided me with a strong foundation in interpersonal communication taking into consideration cultural barriers that may exist. Chris emphasizes Empathy in his training and this concept has allowed me to achieve objectives previously believed to be unattainable.”
Quincy M. Collins, Founder at Veritas Global Advisors LLC
“Chris’s insights and remarkable stories from his days in the FBI reminded us of the stakes involved in learning to be an effective negotiator. You can’t help but appreciate the tools taught when you hear about how Chris put them in practice saving the lives of hostages and kidnap victims around the globe. Through his instruction and feedback, he encourages students to go beyond simply outlining interests to discover for themselves the importance of context, voice, silence, and body language.”
Darin McKeever, Senior Program Officer at Bill & Malinda Gates Foundation
“My former FBI hostage negotiation partner and friend, Chris Voss, is not only an expert in the discipline of negotiation and communication, he is also a dynamic public speaker and articulate and influential advisor. I have seen Chris make attention-getting innovative contributions and presentations in all manner of settings, from National Security Council meetings and closed door sessions with Ambassadors and high level foreign government officials, to victim families in crisis over the kidnapping of a loved one in a far off violent place on our planet. He is always forward thinking, innovative, and reliable.”
Charles Regini, Managing Director, Crisis Response & Planning, Kroll, Inc.
“Over the course of nearly ten years, I worked with Chris on a number of very high-profile and high-pressure critical incidents in which lives could have been lost if correct decisions were not made in a timely manner. Chris consistently made the right decisions.
He also managed his subordinates and other resources well, and “stage managed” those resources to address competing concerns in a clear and correct manner.”
“Chris dealt well with people at all levels of society. He demonstrated an ability to explain action alternatives on which the highest levels of government and corporations based decisions. He was also able to explain courses of action so that subordinates could correctly implement them. Chris’ demeanor added a sense of calm and stability to chaotic situations.
Chris is an outstanding asset to any organization.”
Stephen P. Cutler, President/ CEO at OGC Corp.
“Christopher Voss is one of the sharpest FBI agents I have ever met. He’s humble but clearly knows his stuff. If I was in a desperate situation, there is no one I would rather have negotiating on my behalf than Voss-san. He is well respected in his field of expertise and diligent in everything he does. You couldn’t find a better guy to watch your back.”
Jake Adelstein, Acting Editor in Chief at Japan Subculture Research Center
“I worked directly with Chris while serving as Chairman of the Hostage Working Group (HWG) at the White House, National Security Council (NSC) from 2004 to 2006; and had many opportunities to engage on national-level strategy, policy while formulating recommendations and courses of action for the National Security Advisor (NSA) with respect to personnel recovery, hostage rescue, and negotiations. “
“His professional knowledge of PR issues, critical thinking skills in high visibility hostage cases, and strong personal leadership were vital to supporting the Executive Office of the President and National Security Presidential Directive (NSPD-12). His rich FBI experience, ability to work effectively with other members of the interagency, and his significant hostage negotiating insights allowed the HWG to implement national-level policies and offer sound recommendations to national-level leadership, including the President. “
“Chris was handpicked by the HWG to attend several international forums to represent the position of the U.S. government and present briefings to expand our Nation’s security posture working with coalition partners in high-risk areas of the world. Particularly noteworthy was his work to forge international consensus in negotiating against hostage takers, not making concessions to terrorist abductors, and in laying the groundwork for an international database of PR-related cases. “
“As HWG chairman at the White House, I enlisted Chris’s PR/hostage-rescue talents in dealing with several high-profile hostage cases — many of which were successfully resolved due to his contribution — in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Panama, Colombia, Gaza, and Haiti.”
Dane Egli, Senior Systems Engineer, Integrity Applications Incorporated