INDUSTRY STATS
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Business Continuity Manager positions are at a 14% growth rate, which is faster than average. With that said, there are currently 907,600 jobs in the market right now. The total number of jobs is expected to increase by 124,400 to 1,032,000 in the period of 2020-30.
What’s more, the median annual wage for the Business Continuity Manager jobs was $87,660 in May 2020. The lowest 10% earned less than $50,990, and the highest 10% more than $156,840.
Our conclusion? The Business Continuity Manager job market is wide open for candidates.
Top Business Continuity Manager sections that make the best resume
- Header
- Professional summary
- Experience (with numbers and results)
- Relevant skills
- Education
- Certifications
How to write a Business Continuity Manager resume experience section
Business Continuity Manager Resume’s Job Experience Checklist:
- Use 4-6 bullet points per job title;
- Don’t go further than a decade behind when describing your job history, unless you’re applying for an executive position;
- Combine job responsibilities as well as achievements with numbers in results when you describe your past work;
- Start each sentence with a power verb and avoid overused buzzwords;
- Use either C-A-R or S-T-A-R methodology, when describing your experience.
The work experience samples below come from real Business Continuity Manager resumes that got people hired at top companies. You can use them as an inspiration to build your own resume:
- Develop, manage, maintain and operate the Association's Business Continuity Program including plans, assessment, analysis, reporting, testing, and follow-up, in accordance with Board and regulatory policies.
- Works with and provides consultative guidance to Association leadership and all other association employees on all Business Continuity related matters.
- Consults with critical process team members to identify business recovery requirements, and develops and updates the Association’s Business Continuity plans, business impact analysis, and risk assessments as necessary.
- Assists in the development and documentation of disaster recovery and crisis management processes, and ensures they are consistent with the Business Continuity Program, as well as Board and regulatory policies.
- Develop and update IT's annual multi-million dollar budget reporting including expense spend, capital asset and project summaries, and year-to-date variance.
- Develop, implement and manage the bank’s BCM Program (Emergency Response, Crisis/Incident Management, Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery)
- Assess organizational risk and recommend resiliency/recovery strategies to the BCM Steering Committee and the Board of Directors
- Chair the BCM Committee and the Security Steering Committee
- Develop and conduct Risk Assessments and Business Impact Analyses
- Support the Chief Risk Officer in executing the Sunwest Bank Enterprise Risk Management Program
- Develop, write, and maintain BC, DR, and CM/IM plans
- Write, facilitate and evaluate BC, DR, ER and CM/IM plan exercises
- Manage BCM Program budget and vendor relationships
- Perform vendor assessments and respond to audit requests
- Ensure compliance with standards and regulations (e.g. GLBA, FFIEC)
- Develop project plans, scope statements, AARs and incident reports
- Develop and maintain policies and standard operating procedures
- Conduct training and facilitate BCM awareness activities
- Provide 7x24 support to the Sunwest Incident Management Team
- Develop, implement and manage the bank’s BCM Program (Emergency Response, Crisis Communications, Incident Management, Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery)
- Assess organizational risk and recommend resiliency/recovery strategies to the BCM Steering Committee and the Board of Directors
- Chair the BCM Committee and the Security Steering Committee
- Develop and conduct Risk Assessments and Business Impact Analyses
- Support the Chief Risk Officer in executing the Sunwest Bank Enterprise Risk Management Program
- Develop, write, and maintain BC, DR, and CM/IM plans
- Write, facilitate and evaluate BC, DR, ER and CM/IM plan exercises
- Manage BCM Program budget and vendor relationships
- Perform vendor assessments and respond to audit requests
- Ensure compliance with standards and regulations (e.g. GLBA, FFIEC)
- Develop project plans, scope statements, AARs and incident reports
- Develop and maintain policies and standard operating procedures
- Conduct training and facilitate BCM awareness activities
- Provide 7x24 support to the Sunwest Incident Management Team
PRO TIP
In writing your Business Continuity Manager resume, you will no doubt want to list your previous duties - as you should. But steer clear of just listing your duties, instead of your achievements. Make your resume stand out by communicating what you have done, and not merely what the job needed you to do.
Action Verbs for your Business Continuity Manager Resume
Recommended reads:
Business Continuity Manager Resume Skills’ Tips & Tricks to Impress Recruiters
Resume Skills Section Checklist:
- Ensure your hard skills section (including technologies) are exactly matching the job description.
- Don’t simply list your soft skills. Apply the “show, don’t tell” principle - let your job achievements speak for themselves.
- Find a way to showcase your skills beyond the skills section.
- Your resume’s skill section is important to ATS systems - so don’t skip it.
Top Skills for your Business Continuity Manager resume
- SQL
- Microsoft office
- Tableau
- Salesforce
- Jira
- Google Analytics
- Project Management
- Time Management
- Interpersonal Communication
- Decisiveness
- Delegation
- Patience
- Creativity
- Self-motivation
PRO TIP
When describing your experience, don’t go too far from its terminology. Recruiters use ATS systems to filter resumes based on them having certain keywords, so make sure you use at least a few keywords mentioned in the job description.
Recommended reads:
Business Continuity Manager Resume Header: Tips, Red Flags, and Best Practices
CHECKLIST For Your Business Continuity Manager Resume Header
- Your name and surname in a legible and larger resume font
- The job title you’re applying for or your current job title as a subheading to your name
- Link to your portfolio or online profile, such as LinkedIn
- Address (City and State for the US; just your city for rest of the world)
- Email address
- Headshot (required or welcomed in the EU; not required and sometimes frowned upon in the US)
Stick to popular email providers such as Gmail or Outlook. And use these professional formats to create your username:
- first.last@gmail.com
- last.first@gmail.com
- firstlast@gmail.com
- f.last@gmail.com
- first.l@gmail.com
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
Some companies, states, and countries have non-discrimination policies about what kind of information can be included on your Business Continuity Manager resume. This might include a photo (which is often included in a resume header and might be on personal web pages you link to). You can always email the company’s HR department to ask about their policies before you apply.
Business Continuity Manager Resume Summary Best Practices
Checklist: What to include in your Business Continuity Manager resume summary:
- Years of experience;
- Highlight top 3 skills and proficiencies;
- One big professional accomplishment you’re most proud of, that you can tie with the aforementioned skills;
- Use short, direct sentences - but no more than three - to keep the HRs interested.
Resume Summary Formula:
PRO TIP
Your summary section should act as a professional taster. Use it wisely. Effectively convey your professional profile and let the hiring manager know that if they hire you, they won’t be disappointed. Make sure to include keywords from the job description too! Elaborate on your abilities further in your experience section. Again, cater to the job description.
Recommended reads:
Listing Your Education, Certifications and Courses
Resume Education Section Checklist:
- Ensure your hard skills section (including technologies) are exactly matching the job description.
- Don’t simply list your soft skills. Apply the “show, don’t tell” principle - let your job achievements speak for themselves.
- Find a way to showcase your skills beyond the skills section.
- Your resume’s skill section is important to ATS systems - so don’t skip it.
Top Certifications for your Business Continuity Manager resume
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
There are dozens of certifications that you can claim as a Business Continuity Manager. But, some are more effective than others. That’s why you mustn’t include every certificate other applicants might have. Try instead to earn and list a few of the difficult ones.
Business Continuity Manager Resume: Additional Writing & Formatting Tips
There are three basic resume formats you can choose from:
- Reverse-chronological resume format;
- Functional resume format;
- Hybrid (or Combination) resume format;
The most optimal format for your particular case will depend on your years of experience, as well as whether you’re switching industries or not.
Reverse chronological resumes are best suited for experienced individuals who are sticking to their industry. The experience section takes a central place, and its bullets contain your responsibilities and achievements, coupled with numbers and results.
Functional resumes are used by less experienced jobseekers or career changers. Note that it’s not a format that recruiters prefer, as most are used to the classic chronological alignment. Instead of a list of job titles, functional resumes focus on your skills, and through what experiences you gained them.
Hybrid resumes are great for both experienced and entry-level candidates, as well as career changers. They combine the best of both worlds - most often in a double column format, where one side of the content is focused on your experience, whereas the other - on your skills, strengths, and proudest moments.
Business Continuity Manager Resume Summary best practices
Here are more resume tips regarding your layout and style:
- Clear and legible 12p resume font size;
- Use 10’’ resume margins - that’s default for a great resume design;
- Use a one-page template resume length if you’ve got less than 10 years of experience; otherwise, opt for a two-page resume;
- Save your resume as PDF before sending it to the recruiter.
To take it a step further, check out how your resume can stand out without leaning too much on the creative side.
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PRO TIP
Sometimes you’ll want to go after a job which requires more experience than you have. Instead of using a typical Business Continuity Manager resume layout, you can use a creative layout. Getting noticed is the most important challenge and a creative resume layout might help you get invited for an interview as most of other accountants have boring resume designs.
Other sections to include in your resume
Depending on the type of company (corporation or start-up; innovative or traditional), job seniority level and your location, you may want to include more sections to your Business Continuity Manager resume:
Business Continuity Manager Resume: How to Make Yours More Creative & Stand Out
When you send your resume to a potential employer, chances are it's the fiftieth one they've seen that day. That's why you need to make your Business Continuity Manager resume stand out for the right reasons. That means showing your personality, not just your professional experience. Employers are far more likely to remember a candidate who seems like a genuine person and not a robot. Do this by including your passions (which is also a great place to demonstrate skills on a resume), share your favorite books, or even what your usual day looks like.
What Makes a Great Business Continuity Manager Resume: Key Takeaways
- Choose a resume layout that sends the right message across and fits your current career situation;
- Create a resume header that shows your desired job title, and easy to find contact numbers;
- Be specific about your experience, accomplishments and future goals in your summary;
- Feature detailed metrics and specific examples that show the impact you made in your previous roles when describing your experience;
- List soft skills backed by examples;
- Add all of your technical skills and certifications that you have and match the job description;
- Show off a dash of personality in your resume that will demonstrate your culture fit and the right mix of hard and soft skills.
