Nike Dealmaker Shares Negotiation PointsWhen Gary Way of Nike talked, students listened. They listened not just because the topic was interesting, or because Way was a dynamic speaker, they listened because soon they would be putting their negotiation skills to the test.
 Way, a Nike managing attorney in the Sports Law Group, shared why Nike signs athletes and what points are considered entering a negotiation. First and foremost, he said, we sign athletes because it validates a product. "When the best player in the world plays your ball and all that is in his bag is your product and he is wearing your shirt, it validates what you are selling."
Way also said that signing players helps Nike tell a story, helps in cross-promotions and helps deliver inspiration. "We inspire by showing accomplishment," said Way. "If you get off the sofa, hopefully you'll buy our product to help you accomplish your goals."
Many points are considered by both deal makers and contract negotiators when putting together a deal. Deal makers are mostly sports marketing representatives who seek, sign and service deals. The contact negotiators take care of the legal parts such as drafting the contract, negotiating standard terms and conditions and interpreting and advising on post-signing rights, Way explained.
With several sets of students acting as company representatives and several sets of students acting as an athlete's agent, teams paired up and competed to see who could get the best athlete endorsement contract.
In a case study involving signing a star athlete, company representatives had a mature, proven soccer star in hand ready to sign, and a young up and coming soccer athlete that recently became interested in looking for a better deal than his existing arrangement. Company representatives were charged with getting the best contract signed within a half hour time period.
Professor Keven Malkewitz's Personal Selling class went to work. Taking into consideration key deal and boilerplate points that Way had reviewed, teams planned, calculated and recalculated as they negotiated with each other. The room was buzzing. Teams considered terms including deal length, scope of exclusivity, number of personal appearances, compensation, personal merchandise accounts and rights of first dealing and refusal. They also reviewed wear and use requirements, injury pro-ration rights, termination provisions, moral clauses and intellectual property ownership.
Malkewitz commented that working on the negotiation "game" gave students insight into the difficult choices and persuasion contexts that exist in real-world negotiations.
Once all the results were tallied on the board, Way reviewed the results of the negotiations. One of the considerations he explored was the fact that because the company had a "bird in hand," there was a compensation bar set for the other alternative athlete.
Students also had a chance to ask some questions regarding contract terms. One student asked about Kobe Bryant in relation to the morals clause. "It is often a wait and see approach," said Way. "The American public is largely forgiving and most marketers will take the approach that the judicial system will play itself out." However, he said, you are renting good will in an athlete's name. "If something diminishes that, it diminishes the value." | 
