Despite the tendency to draw on experience from the commercial sector when it comes to theorising about school leadership, there is a paucity of research on comparisons between commercial and educational management. This article presents findings from a research project that followed a number of (experienced and newly appointed) school and commercial managers, and makes comparisons between them in terms of what they do, the nature of their common interactions and their leadership styles. It proposes a new, more grounded and activity-driven typology of leadership styles than that used to underpin existing literature. The discussion takes account of the differences in approach between new and experienced head-teachers and commercial managers in terms of how they perceive and actualise leadership. (Contains 6 notes and 4 figures.)