What is a Commercial Analyst?

A Commercial Analyst conducts examinations of a company’s revenue, operations, expenses and competition to find ways improve the company’s financial standing. They use mathematical models and predictive economic research to identify patterns and discrepancies in financial activity, and then use this analysis to suggest policy changes and goals to improve profits. Essentially, they look at all the ways a business operates and determines ways that it can be more successful

Commercial Analysts are usually employed by large corporations, but some work as a contractor or consultants for multiple clients. They work in typical office settings, often as part of a larger team of financial analysts. Because they make suggestions for policy, Commercial Analysts often work directly with senior leadership within the company.

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Commercial Analyst Duties and Responsibilities

To analyze a company’s financial performance and think of improvements, a Commercial Analyst completes a number of core duties in their day-to-day work. We analyzed several job listings for Commercial Analysts to identify these primary Brand Manager duties and responsibilities.

Analyze Sales Figures

Commercial Analysts spend much of their time closely analyzing sales figures for product lines. They review records from previous years and quarters and compare them to current figures, looking for patterns or discrepancies. For example, they look to see if a product sells better at a certain time of year, or maybe sales are falling drastically in a particular city.

Determine Methods to Improve Sales

When the Commercial Analyst finds profit margins that are lower than they should be, they work out ways to improve sales. Commercial Analysts use detailed economic and mathematical models to predict the outcomes of changes in the business model to sales. They might try and see if a lower price will lead to more sales, or if a refined supply chain will lower company costs.

Suggest Improvements to Executives

Once the Commercial Analyst has identified changes to policy or strategy, they compile their data and findings into reports and presentations that will help executives understand the findings and make better business decisions. Often, this involves creating graphs, charts and other visualizations.

Analyze Competitor and Market Performance

To fully understand the business environment, Commercial Analysts must carefully scrutinize the performance of competitors and the product market. This will provide them with a better picture of the business environment, and help them understand the reasons behind the success or failure of a particular product or marketing strategy, or the potentials for a future strategy.

Commercial Analyst Skills

With analytical minds and the ability to think outside of the box, Commercial Analysts should be able to spot trends and ideas where other people might just see a jumble of data. They are innovative thinkers, problem-solvers and detail-oriented workers. Commercial Analysts should be strong and tenacious communicators, able to sell their ideas to senior management. Along with these general skills and personality traits, employers are looking to hire Commercial Analyst candidates with the following skills.

Core skills Based on a review of Commercial Analyst job listings, we found that employers want candidates with these core skills. If you are considering a career as a Commercial Analyst, make sure you have the following skills on your resume.

Ability to work under pressure and establish priorities
Strong capability in quantitative analysis
Writing and presentation abilities
Organizational skills
Financial management skills
Ability to work both independently and as part of a team

Advanced skills The following skills are not necessary for most Commercial Analyst positions, but they will give you a leg up over the competition of you have them in you skillset. Employers love to see Commercial Analyst candidates with these additional skills.

Experience in financial, economic and statistical analysis and/or modeling
Client relationship skills
Business Acumen, financial literacy and an understanding of business trends

Tools of the trade Commercial Analysts are required to use a variety of specialized tools in the course of their work. Here are some of the common tools used by Commercial Analysts that you may want to familiarize yourself with.

Business systems such as ETRM
Microsoft Office products
Financial modeling software

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Commercial Analyst Salary

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not track salaries for Commercial Analysts, but it does for the closely related job of Market Research Analysts. The median annual salary for Market Research Analysts is just over $62,000. The top 10 percent of Market Research Analysts earn more than $120,000 a year, while the lowest earning 10 percent make less than $33,000. Market Research Analysts in Delaware, California and New York make the highest median salaries in the U.S. – earning $73,040, $71,770 and $71,490, respectively.

Commercial Analyst Resources

We scoured the web to find the very best industry resources to help you learn all there is to know about a career as a Commercial Analyst. With blogs, industry organizations and helpful books, this list has all kinds of helpful links to guide your career explorations.

On the Web

Modern Analyst

This website has it all a forum, blog, career advice, articles, webinars, training, templates and Commercial Analyst tools? It’s a onestop shop to build a professional network and gain lots of invaluable knowledge.

Bridging the Gap

This website is designed just for Business Analysts, including Commercial Analysts, who are just starting out in their career. It has practical advice to kickstart your career, free courses and a job board.

BA Times

BA Times provides some great articles to keep you in the know on the latest happenings in Business and Commercial Analysis.

Industry Groups

International Institute of Business Analysis

IIBA is a global organization with chapters in most countries, dedicated to the field of business analysis, which includes commercial analysis. It has learning opportunities and certifications, as well as industry news and job postings.

ABPMP International

The Association of Business Process Management Professionals International works to advance business process management concepts and its practices, a key element of the Commercial Analyst’s job.