Chris Voss
Chris Voss is a negotiation expert, virtual keynote speaker, former FBI kidnapping negotiator, and co-author of the national bestseller Never Split The Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It. Chris uses examples from hostage negotiations to show audiences how they can close better deals, save money, and solve internal communication problems between senior management and employees.
Chris Voss's videos
Available for
Languages:
- English
Chris Voss's 2024 biography
About Chris Voss
Chris Voss is CEO of the Black Swan Group and author of the national best-seller Never Split The Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It, which was named one of the seven best books on negotiation. In 2008, he founded The Black Swan Group, which specializes in solving business communication problems using hostage negotiation solutions. Chris has used his many years of experience in international crisis and high stakes negotiations as an FBI agent to develop a unique program and team that applies these globally proven techniques to the business world. Chris helps companies secure and close better deals, save money, and solve internal communication problems between senior management and employees.
Prior to 2008, Chris was the lead international kidnapping negotiator for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as the FBI’s hostage negotiation representative for the National Security Council’s Hostage Working Group. Before becoming the FBI lead international kidnapping negotiator, Chris served as the lead Crisis Negotiator for the New York City Division of the FBI. Chris was a member of the New York City Joint Terrorist Task Force for 14 years. He was the case agent on such cases as TERRSTOP (the Blind Sheikh Case–Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman), the TWA Flight 800 catastrophe and negotiated the surrender of the first hostage taker to give up in the Chase Manhattan bank robbery hostage taking.
During Chris’s 24-year tenure in the FBI, he was trained in the art of negotiation by not only the FBI but also Scotland Yard and Harvard Law School. He is a recipient of the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement and the FBI Agents Association Award for Distinguished and Exemplary Service.
Chris has taught business negotiation in the MBA program as an adjunct professor at University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business and at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. He has also taught business negotiation at Harvard University, and has guest lectured at The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, The IMD Business School in Lausanne, Switzerland and The Goethe School of Business in Frankfurt, Germany.
Chris has been featured in TIME, Business Insider, Entrepreneur, Inc., Fast Company, Fortune, The Washington Post, SUCCESS Magazine, and on numerous TV programs including Squawk Box, CNN, ABC News, and more.
Chris Voss's 2024 talks & topics
Never Split the Difference.
After 24 years with the FBI, Chris Voss has assembled a toolbox of effective tactics for high-pressure negotiations. In his talk, Voss shares the specific things you can do to turn the tide of a negotiation in your favor—illustrating his points with both riveting, high-stakes stories of criminal negotiations and humorous, personal anecdotes from his trips to the mall alike. From why you always want to get your counterpart to say your name to why “yes” is the last thing you want to hear, Voss explains how to move a conversation along, how to startle people in the right way, and how to uncover what someone’s real motivation is. By the end of this talk, you’ll understand why a notorious terrorist once told Voss, “I hope they’re paying you a lot.”
FBI Negotiation Secrets for Breaking Bad Communication Habits
Good communication skills are critical in business and life. Join Chris Voss, former international kidnapping negotiator for the FBI and author of “Never Split The Difference”, as he shares counter-intuitive communication skills for success. You’ll learn why “Yes” is the last thing you want to hear and what makes “No” the path to agreement.
After 24 years with the FBI, Chris Voss, speaker, has assembled a toolbox of effective tactics for high-pressure negotiations. From using “no” to get what you want, to why “yes” is the last thing you want to hear, Voss’ counterintuitive measures culminate in nine effective principles that companies and employees can use to become more persuasive in their professional and personal lives. Hear Chris give the secrets to effective negotiating with examples from high-stakes criminal situations as well as humorous personal anecdotes.
Chris Voss's 2024 speaking fees
- United States
Specific fees fall within the ranges shown. These are presented as a guide only and are subject to change without notice.
To get an exact quote for your event, click the button below.