Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an organization. Policies can assist in both subjective and objective decision making. Policies used in subjective decision-making usually assist senior management with decisions that must be based on the relative merits of a number of factors, and as a result, are often hard to test objectively, e.g. work–life balance policy. Moreover, Governments and other institutions have policies in the form of laws, regulations, procedures, administrative actions, incentives and voluntary practices. Frequently, resource allocations mirror policy decisions.

उचित समय और उचित स्थान पर उचित कार्य करने की कला को नीति कहते हैं। नीति, सोचसमझकर बनाये गये सिद्धान्तों की प्रणाली है जो उचित निर्णय लेने और सम्यक परिणाम पाने में मदद करती है। नीति में अभिप्राय का स्पष्ट उल्लेख होता है। नीति को एक प्रक्रिया या नयाचार की तरह लागू किया जाता है।