Sue Williams is one of the world’s most experienced hostage and kidnap negotiators. A former senior detective at New Scotland Yard, she led both the Kidnap Unit and the Hostage Crisis Negotiation Unit, advising UK Prime Ministers and international governments during some of the most complex and sensitive abduction cases of the last three decades.

Her work spans war‑zone kidnaps, maritime piracy, cyber‑extortion, and covert negotiations for high‑profile families.

Today, she teaches negotiation and crisis leadership at Oxford Saïd Business School, and crisis management at Harvard University, and continues to advise global organizations on high‑stakes decision‑making under pressure.

We talk to Sue about her journey into becoming a hostage negotiator, and some of the communication tools she uses to effect successful negotiations: things we can all use in our daily lives.

Active Listening Tool: "MOREPIES"

Minimal encouragers

Open ended questions

Reflecting

Emotion labels

Paraphrasing

"I" messages

Effective pauses

Summary

Pip Decks: "Negotiation Tactics" https://pipdecks.com/products/negotiation-tactics?srsltid=AfmBOooQh5DLM45QlzlsR19IhiSeSuCmc97oXBae0Ub7r5ncXUP727dP

(photograph of Suzanne Williams used with permission by Suzanne Williams)

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