5.

The ability to develop appropriate business

acumen.

It is essential to know what is going on in your business and

knowing your businesss territory is referred to as business
acumen.

In my current role with (Company) I have strong business acumen.

I understand the agenda, issues and concerts of the people inside
my organisation, external business stakeholders, my customers and
my suppliers. I am also aware of the competition and how the
strategies and tactics that the companys leadership team have
implemented, work in the marketplace.

To stay on top of current business trends and practices I scan the

Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek and the Harvard Business Review
weekly for articles that relate to my current industry. I am also a
member of (Association) where I receive their monthly publication
and attend various seminars about (Industry) where I am able to see
current and emerging trends that are affecting the business. If I
were successful in this role I would transfer this practice to
government publications and periodicals and join any relevant
associations or working groups.

When I first started at (Company), five years ago, I found the best
way to get up to speed on the business was to read the annual
report and the various financial reports that were published both
internally and externally. At that time I had never read a financial
report and found it quite confusing, so used the Financial Reports
Explained guide published by (Capital Investment Firm) that helped
me understand the important parts of the report and apply it to the
business area that I worked in. I also met with the CEOs secretary
and asked her to explain what part of the current Strategic Plan the
CEO was currently focussing on, in order to gain a clearer
understanding of the current business focus of the organisation.

If I was successful in this role I would seek out key people to discus
the organisations current focus including mission-critical functions
and capabilities that are currently being developed. I would take
guidance as to the most important reports and documents to read to
develop an appropriate business acumen, however am aware of the
following that I believe would be useful:
The (Department) Annual Report
 The (Department) Strategic Plan
The (Department) Report to the Minister
The (Review Name) Review