"Commercial awareness" is a term that refers to a candidate's general knowledge of business, their business experiences (or work experience) and, specifically, their understanding of the industry which they are applying to join. It is a key competency for all city job applications.
Candidates should read publications like the Financial Times and websites such as BBC News and BizEd to prepare in the days leading up to interviews and assessment days. Most industries also have specialist trade press (for example, Accountancy Age or The Lawyer) that you should consult regularly.
You will need to know some basic general commercial principles to be able to answer general commercial awareness questions, such as being able to describe private equity or explain the difference between a private limited company and a public limited company. You will also need to know about any current major global economic issues, and their impact, or potential impact, on your employer's business sector.
Typical commercial awareness questions include:Like all other competency based questions you will need to use situational examples from your life experiences to form answers to competency based commercial awareness questions. Try to highlight any past relevant work experience you have had to answer these questions, and make sure your you discuss your awareness of things like customer's needs and business targets, i.e. commercial issues.
Typical competency based commercial awareness questions include: