Businesses of all kinds often have an operations manager behind the scenes ensuring that all business operations are running efficiently. When you apply to an operations manager position, however, you need to have a powerful resume to even be considered for the role. Here’s how to write the perfect resume to gain an operations manager job.
Acting as an operations manager means you need to juggle a wide variety of business operations every day. This can include:
The operations manager job is not always an easy one, which is why recruiters are only looking for the best of the best candidates. Your resume not only should display that you can perform all these tasks with ease but also that you are the perfect fit for the job.
All professional resumes will typically follow similar resume formats. The operations manager resume format is no different. The best format to use for your next resume is as follows:
The header should contain the following contact information:
The resume summary should tell hiring managers all about your skills and management experience at a glance. Using metrics to describe a work-related achievement can also highlight your best qualities as an employee. For instance, if you exceeded your targeted KPI of fifty new clients, then you might want to mention that here as well. If you lack work experience, use a resume objective that states your overall career goals.
The best resumes should have a good mix of hard skills and soft skills. Here are some top skills any good operations manager should have:
Of course, you should also take a good look at the job description to see if you can also pull any skills or keywords from it to use on your resume. Many job applications nowadays are run through an applicant tracking system (ATS) that scans for certain keywords and phrases. If your application contains enough of these keywords, then it will pass through to an actual hiring manager.
This is perhaps the most important aspect of your resume. Listing your years of experience in project management in reverse-chronological order can highlight your most recent accomplishments. This can tell hiring managers whether or not you have the right experience to be an operations manager. Having professional experience within the business sector is always a plus. It’s also important to use action verbs for each bullet point in your resume. Utilizing specific action verbs can depict what your day-to-day duties are and that you are a take-charge candidate with initiative.
In an Operations Manager resume, recruiters will probably be more interested in your work experience and other qualifications than your GPA. However, you should still include any degrees you possess in your resume. Holding at least a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration or a similar major will demonstrate that you have some training for the role. This can help you stand out among other job candidates.
If you have earned any certifications, awards or other acknowledgments in your previous leadership positions, then you should include a brief list on your resume in its own section. Certifications can display a higher level of expertise compared to other candidates that don’t hold these same qualifications.
Operations managers often handle a lot of behind-the-scenes tasks within a company. An operations manager can definitely become a consultant to other companies to help streamline their current business strategies and operations. In order to do so, however, you might want to build up your brand and network with others to promote your consultation services.
Yes, you should always write a cover letter for each job you apply to. The cover letter acts as a formal introduction of your unique skills, work history and other achievements to the hiring manager in question. You can use it to explain why you are the perfect fit for the role long before you land an interview.
It can be tough to write new resumes from scratch for every new job you apply to. This is where using a resume builder tool can come in handy. With dozens of operations manager resume templates and sample resumes for you to peruse, you can easily craft the perfect resume for your next job search in just a few minutes.
