As a business office manager, articulating your diverse skill set and leadership experience on your resume can be a daunting challenge. Our guide offers tailored strategies and examples to help you distill your extensive expertise into a compelling narrative that will capture the attention of potential employers.
- Sample industry-leading examples to learn how to write your best resume yet.
- Improve the experience, education, and achievements section of your resume with insights from resume-writing professionals.
- Curate your technical expertise and personality to stand out amongst the pool of candidates.
- Succinctly focus on your unique skill set all through your business office manager resume.
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The ultimate formula for your business office manager resume format
Our best advice on how to style your business office manager resume is this - first, take the time to study the job advert requirements.
The resume format you select should ultimately help you better align how your experience matches the specific role.
There are four crucial elements you need to thus take into consideration:
- How you present your experience. If you happen to have plenty of relevant expertise, select the reverse-chronological resume format to organize your experience by dates, starting with the latest.
- Don't go over the top with writing your resume. Instead, stick with a maximum of two-page format to feature what matters most about your profile.
- Headers aren't just for "decoration". The header of your resume helps recruiters allocate your contact details, portfolio, and so much more.
- The PDF format rules. It's the most common practice to submit your business office manager resume as a PDF so that your resume doesn't lose its layout. However, make sure the read the job well - in some instances, they might require a doc file.
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Highlight any significant extracurricular activities that demonstrate valuable skills or leadership.
The six in-demand sections for your business office manager resume:
- Top one-third should be filled with a header, listing your contact details, and with a summary or objective, briefly highlighting your professional accolades
- Experience section, detailing how particular jobs have helped your professional growth
- Notable achievements that tie in your hard or soft skills with tangible outcomes
- Popular industry certificates to further highlight your technical knowledge or people capabilities
- Education to showcase your academic background in the field
What recruiters want to see on your resume:
- Demonstrated proficiency in office administration and staff management
- Proven experience with budget preparation, financial reporting, and cost control strategies
- Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize tasks efficiently
- Experience with office software, including CRM systems, databases, and project management tools
- Effective communication abilities and a track record of maintaining professional relations with staff and clients
Defining your professional expertise in your business office manager resume work experience section
The work experience section, often the most detailed part of your resume, is where you discuss your past roles and achievements. To effectively list your experience, consider these four key tips:
- Align your expertise with the job requirements. It's vital to integrate keywords matching the job criteria to pass initial assessments;
- Show, don’t just tell. Quantify your responsibilities by stating your actual achievements in previous roles;
- Include measurable metrics. For instance, how did your performance impact the annual ROI?
- Highlight crucial industry skills. Mention both technological knowledge and interpersonal skills in this section.
These guidelines will help you craft an impressive business office manager resume work experience section that is bound to catch recruiters' attention.
- Spearheaded the implementation of a cloud-based accounting system, which streamlined accounts receivable processes and reduced invoice turnover time by 30%.
- Managed a team of 10 administrative staff, improving team productivity by implementing a new performance evaluation system that increased operational efficiency by 25%.
- Negotiated vendor contracts resulting in a 15% reduction in office supply costs while maintaining quality standards for all office materials.
- Directed office operations and managed an annual budget of $500,000, consistently staying within +/- 2% of the forecasted expenditures.
- Developed and executed a new employee onboarding program, enhancing staff retention by 20% within the first year of employment.
- Improved inter-departmental communications by implementing weekly cross-functional meetings, leading to a 10% uplift in project completion efficiency.
- Led the financial management of multimillion-dollar projects, providing detailed cost analyses and reports, contributing to a 12% increase in profitability on key initiatives.
- Coordinated with IT department to upgrade company’s CRM system, which enhanced customer data accuracy and improved sales follow-up processes.
- Championed the transition to a paperless office environment, reducing office expenses by 18% and increasing document retrieval efficiency.
- Enhanced staff productivity by 20% through the implementation of a flexible work schedule and telecommuting options, leveraging new remote work technologies.
- Orchestrated the adoption of a centralized digital filing system, improving record-keeping accuracy and reducing time spent on file management by 25%.
- Initiated and maintained compliance with new GDPR and data protection regulations, ensuring zero breaches and full legal compliance since implementation.
- Oversaw the upgrade of office security systems, introducing biometric access that diminished potential security breaches by 40%.
- Implemented cost-saving measures that decreased office overheads by 22% without impacting staff efficiency or morale.
- Fostered strong relationships with suppliers to ensure optimal pricing and delivery terms, improving inventory turnover by 15%.
- Streamlined payroll processing through the use of automated systems, reducing errors by 98% and saving 10 hours of manual work per pay period.
- Led a cross-department initiative to maximize office space utilization, which resulted in a 20% decrease in space-related costs.
- Enhanced vendor management systems to optimize supply chain workflows, thereby expediting delivery times by 15%.
- Initiated a customer feedback system that improved client satisfaction scores from 78% to 94% within two years.
- Implemented a comprehensive risk management plan, reducing operational risks by 35% and safeguarding company assets.
- Optimized office layout and ergonomics, resulting in a 5% increase in overall staff productivity and a reduction in workplace injuries.
- Developed a custom performance dashboard for real-time monitoring of KPIs, which led to a more agile response to market changes and a 15% improvement in KPI performance.
- Pioneered a sustainability initiative that cut the company’s carbon footprint by 30%, while also reducing operating costs by 10%.
- Cultivated a culture of continuous improvement, conducting regular training sessions that contributed to a 25% increase in competence-related performance measures.
Quantifying impact on your resume
- Include the size of the team you managed, as it demonstrates leadership scale and scope of management experience.
- Outline the budget you were responsible for overseeing to showcase financial management skills.
- Detail any revenue growth figures during your tenure to illustrate your contribution to the company’s financial success.
- Mention specific percentages of cost savings achieved through office management optimizations or negotiations.
- Report the number of projects or initiatives led to emphasize project management ability and productivity.
- Quantify improvements in operational efficiency such as reduced processing times or increased throughput.
- Highlight any increases in customer satisfaction scores or service levels under your supervision to show a dedication to client service and experience.
- Present the volume of documentation or records managed to indicate organizational skills and attention to compliance.
Action verbs for your business office manager resume
Four quick steps for candidates with no resume experience
Those with less or no relevant experience could also make a good impression on recruiters by:
- Taking the time to actually understand what matters most to the role and featuring this within key sections of their resume
- Investing resume space into defining what makes them a valuable candidate with transferrable skills and personality
- Using the resume objective to showcase their personal vision for growth within the company
- Heavily featuring their technical alignment with relevant certifications, education, and skills.
Remember that your resume is about aligning your profile to that of the ideal candidate.
The more prominently you can demonstrate how you answer job requirements, the more likely you'd be called in for an interview.
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Listing your relevant degrees or certificates on your business office manager resume is a win-win situation. Not only does it hint at your technical capabilities in the industry, but an array of soft skills, like perseverance, adaptability, and motivation.
In-demand hard skills and soft skills for your business office manager resume
A vital element for any business office manager resume is the presentation of your skill set.
Recruiters always take the time to assess your:
- Technological proficiency or hard skills - which software and technologies can you use and at what level?
- People/personal or soft skills - how apt are you at communicating your ideas across effectively? Are you resilient to change?
The ideal candidate presents the perfect balance of hard skills and soft skills all through the resume, but more particular within a dedicated skills section.
Building your business office manager skills section, you should:
- List up to six skills that answer the requirements and are unique to your expertise.
- Include a soft skill (or two) that defines you as a person and professional - perhaps looking back on feedback you've received from previous managers, etc.
- Create up to two skills sections that are organized based on the types of skills you list (e.g. "technical skills", "soft skills", "business office manager skills", etc.).
- If you happen to have technical certifications that are vital to the industry and really impressive, include their names within your skills section.
At times, it really is frustrating to think back on all the skills you possess and discover the best way to communicate them across.
We understand this challenge - that's why we've prepared two lists (of hard skills and soft skills) to help you build your next resume, quicker and more efficiently:
Top skills for your business office manager resume:
Financial management
Accounting and bookkeeping
Human resources management
Office administration
Budgeting
Knowledge of regulatory compliance
Data analysis
Proficiency with office software
Contract negotiation
Project management
Leadership
Communication
Problem-solving
Time management
Organizational
Decision-making
Teamwork
Adaptability
Attention to detail
Interpersonal skills
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List your educational qualifications and certifications in reverse chronological order.
What are the best certificates to add to your business office manager resume + how to curate your education section
The education and certification resume sections are the underdogs of your business office manager resume.
They showcase to recruiters that you've invested plenty of time to gain valuable and specific know-how, vital for growth.
As far as the resume education section is concerned:
- Detail only advanced education, specifying the institution and timeframe.
- Indicate your forthcoming graduation date if you're in the midst of your studies.
- Consider omitting degrees that don't align with the job's requirements.
- Offer a description of your academic journey if it underscores your notable achievements.
When curating your degrees and certificates on your business office manager resume:
- Select only accreditation that matters to the role
- Niche knowledge that could help you stand out as a candidate (as is within the past few years), should be listed towards the top of your resume
- Include any pertinent data for credibility (e.g. institute name, graduation dates, etc.)
- Irrelevant degrees and certifications shouldn't make it on your resume. Those include your high school diploma and any specializations that have nothing to do with the technical or soft skills that are required for the job
As a final note, if you feel tempted to exclude your education or certification from your resume, don't.
These two sections could help you have a better competitive edge over other candidates - hinting that your professional journey in the industry may be for a longer period of time.
Recruiters find all of these business office manager credentials impressive:
The top 5 certifications for your business office manager resume:
- Project Management Professional (PMP) - Project Management Institute
- Certified Manager (CM) - Institute of Certified Professional Managers
- Certified Business Office Manager (CBOM) - Management and Strategy Institute
- Professional in Human Resources (PHR) - HR Certification Institute
- Facilities Management Professional (FMP) - International Facility Management Association
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Highlight any significant extracurricular activities that demonstrate valuable skills or leadership.
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Deciding between a resume summary or objective for your business office manager role
Understanding the distinction between a resume summary and an objective is crucial for your business office manager resume.
A resume summary, typically three to five sentences long, offers a concise overview of your career. This is the place to showcase your most pertinent experience, key accomplishments, and skills. It's particularly well-suited for those with professional experience relevant to the job requirements.
In contrast, a resume objective focuses on how you can add value to potential employers. It addresses why they should hire you and outlines your career expectations and learning goals. Therefore, it's ideal for candidates with less experience.
In the following section of our guide, explore how resume summaries and objectives differ through some exemplary industry-specific examples.
Resume summaries for a business office manager job
- Dynamic Office Manager with over 7 years of experience specializing in operational enhancement and team leadership within the financial services sector. Distinction for restructuring office operations, resulting in a 20% increase in efficiency. Expert in the integration of advanced technological tools and software for office management.
- Highly organized and driven professional transitioning from a 10-year career in health care management to business office management. Adept at coordinating large-scale events and maintaining meticulous records, with a proven track record of enhancing patient care through administrative excellence.
- Exuberant and detail-oriented former high school principal with a decade of experience, bringing strong interpersonal skills and a strategic approach to the field of business office management. Celebrated for improving student success through efficient allocation of resources and a focus on staff collaboration.
- Accomplished Office Manager with 8 years in the legal sector, renowned for driving productivity by leveraging legal software expertise and implementing best practices in document control and client communication. Spearheaded the digitization of client files, reducing retrieval time by 15%.
- Eager to apply my fresh perspective and energetic commitment to efficiently managing office functions and contributing to a harmonious workplace environment. Keen on mastering necessary administrative skills and utilizing my robust organizational abilities to streamline processes for organizational success.
- As a recent Business Administration graduate, I am excited to utilise my academic grounding and passion for optimizing workplace efficiency. I aim to absorb the intricacies of managing a dynamic office environment and to support and energize the staff with effective leadership strategies.
More sections to ensure your business office manager resume stands out
If you're looking for additional ways to ensure your business office manager application gets noticed, then invest in supplementing your resume with extra sections, like:
These supplementary resume sections show your technical aptitude (with particular technologies and software) and your people skills (gained even outside of work).
Key takeaways
- The format and layout of your business office manager resume should reflect on both your career and what matters most to the job you're applying for;
- Use the resume summary and objective to hint at your most prominent accomplishments;
- Always be specific about your experience and consider what value each bullet you curate adds to your business office manager application;
- Consider how your academic background and technical capabilities could further showcase your alignment to the role;
- Your soft skills should contribute to your overall business office manager profile - aligning your personality with skills and results.
