Impress hiring managers by showcasing your experience and skills as a business development manager. We've got a guide that will help you take your resume to the next level.
We live in a world where we have the possibility to dream, and dream big, even making our dreams a reality. Some people dream of starting a business, whether it's a restaurant, a clothing brand, or anything else. Here is where business development managers come in.
Business development managers are tasked with planning, coordinating, and directing skill-enhancement and knowledge-enhancement programs for an organization’s staff. They are responsible for helping businesses and companies grow by finding new opportunities for them through leads and potential clients.
Now, to become a business development manager, you do need the following:
According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, business development manager positions are at a 7% growth rate, which is faster than average. With that said, there are currently 42,300 jobs in the market right now.
If you're looking to grow yourself as a business development manager, one thing that is important is to have a business development manager resume and keep it updated, even if you're already working with your dream company.
Luckily for you, we're here to help you grow your resume and allow it to really showcase what you've got.
In this article, we are going to go over the following 7 steps that will help take your resume to the next level:
There's a lot of competition in the business world, and when it comes to applying to jobs and actually getting hired, there's just as much.
To truly impress hiring managers, it is crucial to correctly format your resume.
Be sure to include the following sections in your resume:
Tip: If you're part of an organization relevant to the field or have any relevant hobbies, if you've got the space, feel free to create sections for them in your resume.
There are three ways to choose from to correctly format your resume:
As a business development manager, you want to use the reverse-chronological format to highlight the work you've done. Given hiring managers are looking for someone with at least 5 years or more experience in business development, they want someone who knows the ropes and will help the business to grow and succeed.
If you're applying to your first business development manager position and have more skills to offer than actual experience, considering selecting the functional format.
If you've got both the skills and the experience and really want to impress hiring executives, then go with the hybrid format.
Tip: Since the field is growing, hiring managers may be receiving tons of resumes and applications for the job. Look over the job listing and implement some details and keywords listed to your resume to ensure it at least gets looked over.
Take a look at our guide on how to format your resume if you want to learn more.
We live in a busy world, and businesses are busy, too. Oftentimes, resumes are only looked at for only 6-7 seconds. Therefore, you can make your resume stand out to hiring managers by including a resume summary at the top of your resume.
A resume summary is a 1-2 sentence blurb that summarizes the important stuff on your resume. Including a resume summary shows hiring managers that you don't want to waste their time. It also makes your resume look more professional, which can help you land the job.
Here are some things to include in your resume summary:
Tip: Sometimes, it's easier to write your resume summary after you have already written your resume. That way, you can pick and choose what you want to include.
Here's an example of what your resume summary can look like as an executive:
Self-motivated and success-driven business development manager with 5+ years of experience helping the development of startups, new and growing alike. Skilled in negotiating $3.5 million contracts and increasing company sales and recognition by 25%.
Here's what your resume summary should not look like:
Business development manager with experience helping startups grow.
The difference is pretty noticeable.
Need more help writing a professional resume summary? Our guide on writing resume summaries has tons of examples.
To become a business development manager, you need at least 5 years of experience working with businesses or around the field. This could be on an assistant level or through training.
With that said, it's time to go over what you should be putting in the work experience section of your resume.
When listing your work experience, it is important to go in reverse-chronological order. This shows hiring executives your most recent job experience and what you learned or mastered in that job.
Tip: When listing your work experience, it's also important to highlight the specifics you did on the job and use good verbs.
Here are some job descriptions examples you can include in your resume as a business development manager:
Want more tips and tricks on how to write your work experience description? Check out our guide on describing your work experience.
As a business development manager, it is crucial for you to have certain interpersonal skills:
On top of that, there are other key skills you can include on your resume that will show hiring managers you're qualified for the position.
Here are some examples of hard skills as a business development manager:
Tip: You can also include languages as key skills if you don't have the space to make them their own section or simply don't want to.
Having trouble identifying your skills? We have a guide with 100+ key skills you can include in your resume.
While certifications are not a requirement to land a business development manager position within a company, they can definitely help.
Oftentimes, you can get business certifications directly through your university, but if this is not an option, there are online programs you can complete as well.
Here are some certifications that you can get and include in your resume:
If you're looking for more certifications to include in your resume or want to know how to correctly list them, check out our guide.
As we mentioned earlier, you need a minimum of a Bachelor's degree to land a business development manager position. Even then, an MBA will make you look even more attractive to hiring managers.
To assure you have a chance at getting hired, it is crucial to add your education to your resume.
With that said, here is how you should be listing your education in your resume:
New York University
New York, NY
2015 — 2017
MBA in Business Management
Tip: If you're low on resume space and got your MBA at the same university you got your Bachelor's degree in, just list your MBA and make sure to add up the years it took you to get both degrees.
Need more helping listing your education? Don't know if to include your GPA? We have a guide that will help you list your education in 2021 with examples and tips.
Business development managers work with nearly any industry and type of company. This means, more likely than not, you are going to run into foreign businesses and/or workers.
Therefore, if space allows, it is important to list languages in your resume in their own section.
Tip: If you don't have the space to highlight your known languages on their own, as we mentioned earlier, be sure to add them to your key skills.
Knowing more than one language helps to improve your verbal communication and makes you more precise and logical in your problem-solving. Not to mention, it also makes you a more attractive candidate.
Here are some languages you can include on your resume if you know them:
Tip: Next to the languages you know on your resume, add if you're fluent, intermediate or a beginner in the language to show hiring managers just how well you know the specific language.
Need more help writing the perfect resume? We have a guide that can help you do just that.
As a business development manager, your job is to help companies and businesses grow. As resume builders and experts, it is our job to help you grow by creating and building a resume that will land you any job with any company.
We know we've covered a lot, so here's a summary of everything we've covered:
Good luck out there in the business world!
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