Commercial management is "the identification and development of business opportunities and the profitable management of projects and contracts, from inception to completion".^[1]

Commercial management within an organization is applied only at policy levels.^{[clarification needed]} Commercial policies relate to the rules or practices that define how business will be conducted and the standard terms under which external relationships will be conducted. Many of these policies are reflected in the terms of any contract in which the organization engages. At a transactional level, commercial management is applied through the oversight of trading relationships to ensure their compliance with business goals or policies and to understand or manage the financial and risk implications of any variations.

Within the UK government, civil service competency includes the ability to "[achieve] commercial outcomes".^[2] An "uplift in commercial and contract management capabilities" among staff in government and the wider public sector engaged in project and programme delivery has been seen as an important efficiency goal. A "Contract Management Capability Programme" was initiated in 2018 to secure training, development and accreditation in contract management, including the commercial elements of delivering government programmes.^[3]