by Gary Cohen  Suit-able Leadership Your wife says your wardrobe is handicapping you professionally. You respond by finding a wardrobe consultant. He eyes your wide-lapel suit and room-for-two pleated pants and says, “Listen, Italian would be perfect!” What does that mean? It means he loves Italian. But do you–or could you? If you prefer to wear socks […]The post Suit-able Leadership appeared first on Elements of Leadership.

On June 18, the board of retailer American Apparel informed the company’s controversial founder, Dov Charney, that it was ousting him from his roles as chairman and CEO. For years, Charney had fended off sexual-harrassment lawsuits and rumors of inappropriate behavior. But only when the company’s creditors grew anxious about its long-term liability did the board decide to take action, citing new and damning revelations, as reported by Elizabeth A. Harris in the New York Times.

Whether you're purchasing a new home or car, or negotiating a discount on an inventory purchase for your firm, the art of haggling enables negotiators to make a strong claim for their share of the pie. Like all things, haggling is a negotiation skill that must be learned in order to be perfected. Here are six tips gleaned from the Negotiation Briefings newsletter to help you start becoming a better at haggling in business negotiations.

One common misconception of haggling is that it must focus only on a single issue: price.
Although price might be the most important issue at stake, you could sweeten the deal for both sides by discussing other issues, such as delivery, financing, and the possibility of repeat business.

You can open up such opportunities through direct questioning or by making what Malhotra and Bazerman call contingent concessions—concessions that you link to specific actions by the other party.