If you want to get on in your career (and who doesn’t) you need to have what is often called ‘commercial awareness’. But what do we mean by this?
The Cambridge Business English Dictionary defines commercial awareness as: The knowledge of how businesses make money, what customers want, and what problems there are in a particular area of business.
It may sound like a tall order, but if you sit down and start analysing your business and thinking about how it functions, its relationship to competitors and customers and any problems that it might face, you’re making a good start. This applies whether you run your own business or work for a larger organisation.
It’s a skill that can be developed and it’s one that will make you a better manager and give you a competitive edge when applying for promotion or a new job.
So here are some simple tips for how to go about it:
Consider your customers: Who are they, what do they want/need and how can you best supply those needs?
Consider your competitors: How well are they doing? Do they have any strengths that your company lacks? Is there anything you can learn from them? Find out as much as you can about them and then think how you can take advantage of any chinks in their armour or improve your own performance.
Make sure you understand how company finances work: Money is important to every business so it helps if you can understand any financial reports and annual statements that the business publishes. You can see how ‘healthy’ it is – where the money is being spent, if there are any outstanding loans and whether there are any problems.
Make sure you understand how the company is organised: How do the departments work together; what is the chain of command? What are the aims and objectives? Where do you fit in?
Keep up- to- date on developments in your field: Listen to business reports on TV and radio; read the business section of a good-quality newspaper. If your industry has specific magazines – subscribe. Join any professional body that is related to your work. This will not only keep you up-to-date, but it will also provide networking opportunities. And don’t forget the Internet, LinkedIn can be a very useful business tool.
Developing your business acumen isn’t as difficult as you might think. It just takes some fact-finding time and a little analytical thinking – but it could make a huge difference to your career or how you run your business.
