Professional Development Programs - Instructor Biography

Daniel L. Shapiro is Associate Director of the Harvard Negotiation Project at Harvard Law School. He is on the faculty of Harvard Law School and the psychiatry department at Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital. Trained in clinical psychology, he has focused his research and teaching on the role of emotions in negotiation and international conflict management. Dr. Shapiro's latest book, Beyond Reason: Using Emotions as You Negotiate (with Roger Fisher, 2005) offers advice on the emotional dimension of negotiation. Dr. Shapiro consults widely to governments, businesses, and school systems, and has developed conflict management programs both domestically and internationally.

Dr. Shapiro's breakthrough research highlights five "core concerns" that lie at the heart of any conflict. In his talks, he offers straightforward, powerful advice on how to use these core concerns to turn even the toughest conflict into an opportunity for mutual gains. He draws on his vast consulting experiences, offering entertaining stories about how these ideas have been used successfully by organizations of all sizes, including world leaders resolving international conflict, disputing couples, and hostage negotiators. His talks consistently receive the highest praise from Microsoft, Starbucks, the World Economic Forum, as well as parliamentarians and governmental organizations across the globe.

Dr. Shapiro has appeared on dozens of radio and television shows and has contributed to The New York Times, O: The Oprah Magazine, and other popular and scholarly publications. He has been on the faculty at the Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is recipient of numerous awards, including the American Psychological Association's "Early Career Award" and the Cloke-Millen "Peacemaker of the Year" award. His international experience includes training Serbian Members of Parliament, Middle East negotiators, Macedonian politicians, and senior U.S. officials. He is an advisor to the International Criminal Court. During the Bosnian War, he conducted conflict management trainings in Croatia and Serbia. Through funding from the Soros Foundation, he developed a conflict management program that now reaches one million people across 30 countries.