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Overview
In today’s fast-paced and value-driven environment, commercial awareness is a critical competency for all project managers. It plays a pivotal role in initial sales, from crafting compelling business cases, aligning projects with strategic objectives, negotiating contract terms and statements of work, managing risk, and making informed, value-driven decisions – commercial acumen underpins every stage of the project life-cycle.
For project managers working on the supplier side—whether in consultancies, software houses, or similar environments—commercial awareness is not just beneficial, it’s essential for organisational survival. Every activity must align with the commercial contract and/or statement of work to ensure profitability and client satisfaction.
Conversely, project managers overseeing external suppliers must be commercially astute to ensure that delivery meets contractual obligations and protects their organisation’s interests.
Delivery approaches—whether waterfall, agile, or hybrid—also carry commercial implications, particularly around contractual terms, risk allocation, and change control / scope-management. Understanding these dynamics enables project managers to make smarter choices and avoid costly pitfalls.
A commercial awareness is therefore crucial bringing ambitious business ventures to life, overseeing projects from conception to completion with a focus on profitability and strategic objectives.
Whether you're client-side or supplier-side, this course will equip you with the commercial confidence and competence to lead projects that deliver real business impact. This 1-day course provides a practical and engaging overview that blends proven project management practices with a sharp focus on commercial realities. Participants will gain the insight and tools needed to deliver projects that not only meet time and budget constraints but also drive tangible commercial value.
Prerequisites
Whilst there are no explicit pre-requisites for this course it is assumed that delegates have a working knowledge of project management, including typical project lifecycles and best-practice terminology and practices. You will probably have at least 2 years+ experience in a project-related role.
Target audience
This course has been designed for those who work on projects in a commercial context either from a supplier perspective, perhaps in a team-leader or project manager capacity, or for those working client-side. This course is suitable for roles including
- Project Managers who contribute to a business case creation, or business readiness at the transition phase of the project lifecycle
- Team managers
- PMO members who provide a ‘centre of excellence’ advice and support
- Portfolio managers (new to role) who wish to get an overview of the topic before undertaking a formal qualification such as MoP
- Client-facing roles where expectations and requirements need to be identified and managed
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, learners will be able to:
- Describe the relationship between a commercial and project environments; and explain how they influence each other
- Analyse the external project environment and evaluate its impact on project delivery
- Apply financial principles to assess and compare project appraisal and selection options
- Demonstrate how benefits management links to
andproject delivery and long-term value - Explain typical project governance and differentiate the
associatedroles within a commercial context - Compare and select appropriate contract types based on project characteristics and commercial considerations.
- Identify, analyse stakeholders requirements and expectations across different project contexts
- Apply key interpersonal skills such as conflict management and negotiation to manage stakeholder expectations appropriately,
Course Outline
This is an instructor-led live event.
Session Detail
- Session One: Commercial v Project management overview
- Session Two: Understanding the Project environment
- Morning Break: (approx. 10.30 – 10.45)
- Session Three: Stakeholders and project roles
- Session Four: The Business Response to the client requirements
- Lunch: (approx. 12.30 – 13.15)
- Session Five: Investment Appraisal techniques
- Session Six: Contracts and procurement
- Afternoon break: (approx. 15.00 – 15.15)
- Session Seven: Requirements Management
- Session Eight: Conflict Management and Negotiation
Exams and assessments
No formal exam, however topics align with APM terminology and syllabus for PFQ/PMQ
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