As an account manager, you take care of your clients and customers.
You’re a people person who can help them reach their goals, discover new solutions for them, and keep the profits rolling in with their continued business.
Your team relies on you to keep the customers or clients happy. You’re directly responsible for how fast your company will grow.
Hiring managers understand the importance of a great account manager on any team. They’re on the hunt for the best of the best among a sea of candidates.
The first step to filling that position is reading through a stack of resumes. Most are average and don’t inspire any excitement from the hiring manager, but eventually they come across the perfect resume that makes them want to meet the candidate right away.
This guide will help you write that account manager resume that impresses the hiring manager, puts you ahead of all other candidates, and lands you the job of your dreams. Let’s get started!
What you’ll learn here
- How to write an account manager resume that helps you stand out from other candidates
- The right skill set you need to be considered for the role
- The best way to showcase your experience and education to land the role you want
- How to back up your claims with real-life data
- What to avoid when writing your account manager resume
Looking for related resumes?
How to Write an Account Manager Resume That Gets You Hired
Top account manager resume sections
- Account manager resume header that checks all the boxes
- Summary or objective that describes your expertise
- Work experience section with real-life achievements
- Skills section that shows the perfect mix of technical and soft skills
- Education section with information the recruiter’s looking for
Most valuable points in account manager resume (as told by recruiters)
- Quantitative data that backs up your claims
- Specific and up-to-date knowledge in your industry
- Strong interpersonal skills that keep clients and customers happy
- Relevant educational background and/or related experience
- Enthusiasm for the specific role and company you’re applying to
How to write an account manager resume header that checks all the boxes
Your resume header is the first section that recruiters will read on your resume. It’s essential that you start off on the right foot.
That means including all the information that recruiters want to see, and more.
An account manager resume should include:
- Your name
- Your job title - be specific about this! Since there are so many different types of account managers, including your industry will go a long way.
- Phone number and email address - having multiple ways to contact you will let the recruiter choose their preferred method.
- Your location - this is standard procedure for all resumes. No need for a full address.
- Special links - adding your LinkedIn URL, or any other portfolio site where recruiters can get more context about you will help you make a good impression
2 account manager resume header examples
The first (wrong) example is missing important information, like what kind of account manager they are, their phone number, and their LinkedIn profile URL.
The second example ticks all the boxes and is perfect for your resume.
How to describe your expertise in your account manager resume summary
The summary section of your account manager resume is the “elevator pitch” about what makes you perfect for the role. It’s the place where you can highlight your top accomplishments, experience level and your career objectives.
An excellent resume summary will inspire the hiring manager to keep reading your resume and learn more about you, eventually leading to an interview.
Let’s look at two examples of account manager resume summaries to inspire your own.
2 account manager resume summary examples
This sample is inspiring! It includes specific information about industry experience, highlights impressive achievements in former roles, and it displays enthusiasm for the role the applicant is applying to.
How to impress hiring managers with your work experience
You will be going head to head with qualified candidates, and the hiring manager is looking for the best of the best to interview. You have the knowledge, education and expertise to do the job well, but you need to prove that you do in your account manager CV.
To lift your resume experience section from average to great, you should include specific details that support your claims, including real-life data and accomplishments.
Let’s compare a boring resume experience sample with a strong one, so you can write your own outstanding resume too.
Account manager resume experience examples
Simply listing your responsibilities won’t make you stand out. Your resume will be put straight into the “do not call back” pile. Let’s step it up!
Now this resume deserves an interview! It lists specific, data-focused accomplishments and mentions software by name. The hiring manager will be confident that you’re the one for the job if you send them a resume like this one.
How to stand out from other candidates with the right mix of skills
For account manager resumes, you will want to display your perfect mix of technical and soft skills in a dedicated skills section. It’s a role that requires strong communication and client relationship building skills, while also staying up to date on the latest industry knowledge.
On top of that, every account manager position varies in what they’re looking for in the right candidate. Your best bet is to carefully read over the job description to see what they’re asking for, and then reflect those same skills in your resume.
That level of personalization proves that you are interested in that specific position, and that you match their standards for the role.
Here’s a breakdown of the technical and soft skills you can include in your account manager resume.
How to list tech skills on your resume
This skills section sample is excellent for two reasons:
- It will pass applicant tracking systems that scan for target keywords, such as the names of software or industry terms (“SEO”)
- Each skill includes more context and detail to support the information, instead of a basic description
Pro tip
With Enhancv, you can use different sections to showcase your skills. In the example above, we’ve used the Achievements Sections as a way to highlight your industry knowledge.
Hard / technical skills list for account manager resume
- CRM systems such as Salesforce and Hubspot
- High-level product or service expertise
- Discovering and closing leads on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
- Data collection and interpretation using Google Analytics
How to describe soft skills on your resume
Soft skills are one of the biggest influencing factors in the field of account management.
Account managers are responsible for starting and maintaining profit-producing relationships with clients and customers. They have to build trust, be empathetic, show confidence, and most importantly, be personable enough to keep the clients around.
All of these responsibilities rely on having a strong set of soft skills. Hiring managers will be looking out for them on your resume. The way to make a great impression is to list your best soft skills, and then back them up with either proof or more context.
Let’s look at an example to see this tip in action.
Soft skills list for account manager resumes
- Maintaining excellent client or customer relationships
- Negotiating contracts
- Collaborating with team members
- Presenting to clients and executives, both virtually and in-person
How to write an account manager education section that recruiters want to see
Having a university degree is most likely essential to landing an account manager position. Since account manager positions can span across many different industries, you should have a Bachelor’s degree in a field that’s related to your specific industry.
For example, if you’re a sales account manager, you will need a Bachelor’s degree in either Business or Marketing. Degrees in related fields such as advertising, communications and public relations are also accepted.
If you’re a technical account manager, your educational background needs to be more focused on IT, computer science and/or programming.
Having a Master’s degree isn’t essential to landing a role as an account manager, but it will be a huge advantage in helping you stand out among other candidates and help you negotiate higher salaries. This is especially true for a senior account manager resume.
When writing the education section of your resume, keep these tips in mind:
- Mention any notable achievements from your education, such as if you made the Dean’s List or Honor Roll
- Specifically mention any GPA isn’t necessary, it’s a good idea if you want to display your high performance
How to level-up your resume with the right certifications
There’s a huge variety of certifications you can take to level-up your career as an account manager, depending on your specific industry. Here are a few examples focused on sales account management.
Top 4 Account Manager certificates for your resume
- Rain Sales Training in Strategic Account Management
- SAMA’s Certified Strategic Account Management Program
- AA-ISP CISP Inside Sales Academy
- Hubspot Academy Inbound Sales
How to highlight your top achievements in your account manager resume
If you’ve been an account manager for a while, you probably have a list of achievements you’re proud of sharing. From negotiating big contracts to maintaining high customer satisfaction, there are lots of ways you can prove your expertise in your resume by highlighting your top achievements in their own dedicated section.
Here’s an example of how you can impress the hiring manager with your accomplishments:
Key takeaways: what does an account manager resume need to get you hired?
- Write a resume header that has all the information a recruiter would need to get to know you better, including a link to your LinkedIn profile
- Use exact examples and real-life data to support your claims about your expertise
- Demonstrate your mix of technical and soft skills equally, since both are important to the recruiter
- Highlight your top achievements in their own dedicated section to stand out
- Read the job description carefully and use the same keywords they do in your account manager resume
