An unpublished novel by Dave Eggers, written just before he started A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. More commonly, it's a term in negotiation theory.
When you're trying to strike a deal with someone, you have to have a BATNA in mind. The "Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement" is basically what will happen to you if you can't reach a deal. It represents your fallback option if negotiations break down completely.
Having your BATNA in mind informs your decision-making as you get to the point where people start saying "Okay, this is my final offer" or "this offer is good for the next 10 minutes" or "I'm not out of order! The whole system is out of order!"
There are other fun acronyms related to negotiation theory. For instance, there's WATNA, which is the "worst alternative to a negotiated agreement" and there's ZOPA, which stands for "zone of possible agreement."
