Top category manager sections that make the best resume
- Header
- Professional summary
- Experience (with numbers and results)
- Relevant skills
- Education
- Certifications
Writing a job-winning experience section: Category Manager resume edition
Category manager resume experience section: Dos and don'ts
- List 4-6 bullet points per position;
- Include only relevant job experience;
- Make sure to highlight your strongest skills by focusing on the challenges you’ve faced and the results you’ve achieved;
- Don’t use buzzwords that carry no meaning;
- Don’t share confidential information about your previous employers.
If you prefer to be led by example, check out some great Category Manager resume experience section snippets below!
- Business planning: Develop a short-term and long-term plan for growth and report to Management on a regular basis on the state of key top-line and bottom-line metrics & risk factors.
- Vendor Management: Developing a relationship with vendors and suppliers and maintaining a sustainable business relationship by vendor business requirements, review of vendor performance, vendor payments.
- Terms of Trade Negotiation: Optimizing the cost of sales and payment terms to improve the P&L by managingvendor partners, optimizing terms, marketing support and delivery and return of goods.
- Pricing and Promotion: Responsible for pricing and promotion planning to increase category sales and user penetration by cross-category promotion and competitive pricing.
- Marketing: Work closely with the marketing team to ensure sufficient visibility to the products and jointlyparticipate in the marketing events conducted on the platform.
- Product Management and Development: Monitoring product and category performance to identifyingimprovement area and developing the plans to drive category and improved bottom line to 25% from 17%.
- Inventory Management: Improved a healthy inventory pipeline by daily sales analysis and vendor relationship and exit planning for non-moving inventory.
- Onboarded more than 5 Vendors with exceptional terms of trades.
- Reduced 40 % unhealthy inventory with pricing strategy, promotion, and marketing.
- Improved the vendor fill rate to 100% from 70% by a healthy vendor relationship.
- Increase the margins to 18% from 11% by pricing policy and vendor support.
- Increased the vendor fill rate to 97% from 70% by a healthy relationship.
- Onboarded 3 Vendors by identifying the assortment gaps and maintained a 50% YoY sales growth.
- Supported on drafting Category Strategy to identify 6 potential projects to reduce 20 million DKK in costs and digitise processes
- Provided assistance to more than 100 internal stakeholders in areas of material sourcing, technical support and vendor relation
- Advocated procurement of alternative chemicals and consumables to replace former materials and decreased expenses by 40%
- Located supply sources globally to identify 20 vendors for innovative R&D projects complying with strict pharmaceutical regulations
- Contribute to develop, coordinate and execute marketing/brand/sales strategies, integrated 360 degree campaigns for the assigned OTC products (Lioton, Floraliv) and the entire gastro category (Espumisan, Mezym)
- Participate in annual marketing plan definition and execution (ATL, BTL), budget setting and monitoring to fully reflect category/brand strategies, profitability, sales turnover goals (in alignment with global and local specificities and with particular focus on NPDs)
- Optimize category and brand strategic goals via accurate sales/demand forecast, reasonable activity P&Ls
- Preparation of marketing tools to support the sales efforts of pharmacy sales team (eDM, product websites, POS materials, cycle meetings/goals, referrals, promotional activities)
- Lead cooperation with external entities like research agencies (AdTracking, Ipsos, IQVIA etc.) to obtain market data which will support strategy development and drive competitor evaluation projects
- Company representation at professional healthcare conferences and events involving HCPs
- Daily collaboration with advertising/media/creative agencies as well as external suppliers and co-departments
- "One-man-show responsibility" for managing the entire household chemical and cosmetics category (Szavo, Ultra, WU2, professional hygienic products etc.)
- Develop and implement short and long term marketing/trade marketing plans and lead NPD projects and launches, improve instore product visibility
- Continuously evaluate the brand/category activities, taking both qualitative and quantitative criteria into account. Identify impacts, propose changes and check implementation.
- Competitive category and brand analysis
- Control of brand budget to ensure optimal use of spending
- Supervision of the usage of ATL and BTL tools to ensure brand values, visions, positions and strategic/tactical objectives
- Cooperate with agencies and service providers, ensure effective use of funds, control spends
- Monitoring the market trends, category dynamics and proposing product solution as a platform for customer's innovation pipeline
- Identifying new business opportunities and translate them into different flavors offering and solutions to customers
- Promoted the newest trend in alcoholic cateogry and engaged over 15 customers across region
- Conducted the alcoholic category training for internal commercial team of 60 pax
- Pricing Expert in assigned category
- Applied expertise to simulate an optimum configuration of competitive pricing, product mix and promotional activities
- Negotiated, implemented and managed Frame Work agreements
- Category Management
- Increased GMV of beauty category by AED 90 Million with an improvement in product margin by 12% Strategized onsite and offsite promotion; catalogue with traffic increased by 2% & catalogue with sales by 4.5% Augmented profit contribution by 11% in the beauty category by optimising operations and pricing strategies Improved AOV by 7% and NMV by 12% for beauty category for 2017 Achieved 20% GMV share for marketplace in first 3 months
- Business Development
- Initiated international strategic partnership; improved category assortment by 3X and GMV share by 17% Launched over 40+ brands such as Nike, Adidas, SportsDirect, Puma, L’Oréal, Braun
- Campaign Management
- Spearheaded 2017 Black Friday (Shopathon); achieved 157% GMV & 143% units over the daily average Pioneered 2-fold increase in existing & new customer base by ideating segment-based CRM experiments
- Process Improvement
- Generated AED 300,000+ GMV on non-sales days by streamlining affinity notification process Maintained 95% in-stock for head selection by developing a 15 and 30 days reordering cycle Formulated the returns and advertising process for marketplace
- Analyze data or insights to determine industry and consumer trends
- Devise long-term development strategies for product categories
- Determine the positioning of a product category to maximize visibility
- Liaise with marketing teams to determine competitive pricing and promotional activities of a product category
- Collaborate with buyers and merchandisers to expand product categories
- Make forecasts for product demand to ensure the sustainability of inventory
- Responsible for both financial and aesthetic performance of a category that stands for 45% of SOB.
- Staff responsible for the largest team - womenswear and menswear collection teams (designers, buyers and pattern cutters).
- Scored 96 out of 100 in 360 employee survey ''Great Place to Work''.
- Lead team successfully through organisational changes.
- Working closely with key accounts such as ASOS, Zalando, Urban Outfitters, NA-KD and Nelly with increase in profit as result.
- Lanzar y desarrollar 3 nuevas categorías de productos cosméticos y alcanzar un 20% de Share adicional
- En base a los datos de Sell In y Sell Out, realizar periódicamente el análisis estratégico del catálogo de productos con el objetivo de mantener una oferta comercial atractiva
- Calcular y mejorar los resultados de P&L para los proyectos de desarrollo de productos
- Controlar el Budget y el calendario de los nuevos lanzamientos
- Liderar proyectos transversales para mejorar los procesos en colaboración con los otros departamentos
- Ensuring that the Top Line and Bottom Line Targets are achieved
- Responsible for keeping the growth of the categories aligned with Business Plan
- Development of New Channels and Partnerships to bring in new revenue streams in to the business
- Planning of Campaigns in order to maximize the Revenue to its full potential.
- Oversee End to End Business Development and Growth Opportunities
- Gestion du portefeuille de produits, construction de la gamme pour les deux enseignes et les sites internet
- Management des performances de la famille : CA, marge, parts de marché
- Animation, construction et mise en avant des offres marketing omnicales
- Gestion des approvisionnements : amont et aval. Pilotage de la valorisation du stock, de la rotation et des slow movers
- Développement, mise en place et suivi de l'abonnement Nespresso
- Management d'un assistant
- 1) Ensuring that the Top Line and Bottom Line Targets are achieved
- 2) Responsible for keeping the growth of the categories aligned with Business Plan
- 3) Development of New Channels and Partnerships to bring in new revenue streams in to the business
- 4) Planning of Campaigns in order to maximize the Revenue to its full Potential
- 5) Oversee End to End Business Development and Growth Opportunities
- Launched new sales category accomplishing 50% sales increase within 1 year
- Manage $348M+ Sales annually across 3 divisions - Atlanta, Michigan, & Mid-Atlantic
- Manage Beer in the following states: MI, OH, KY, WV, VA, TN, NC, SC, GA, AL, MS, & AR
- Experience in Creating a customer led strategy of writing Sales Plans with a balanced budget, Managing Assortment, and Creating seasonally relevant display plans
- Work with local distributors to ensure we have proper inventory and pricing is correct to the store
- Work with Breweries to get the products in stores that customers are seeking
- Leader on the team as the specialist in evaluating new liquid
- Help manage $3.6B+ sales annually across 4 dairy commodities
- Assist Category Managers in Dairy: Eggs, Butter, Cheese, & Yogurt
- Work with Category Managers to Create and Load sales plans, create display plans to support ads, and solely responsible for managing item set up for assortment
- Managed the Eggs/Butter commodity alone for 6 months before being promoted to Category Manager
- Exceeded sales and profit goals by up to 8% and 12% respectively from first year of managing
- Awarded 'Best Performer' of the year 2019
- Received high evaluation scores for store perfomance above 90%
- Introduced 3 new schemes to boost staff engagement and morale
- Hired and trained 25 staff and reduced staff turnover by 5% in 1 year
- Overseeing 17 staff and their perfomance and development
- Met and exceeded weekly sales goals by 6%
- Created employee improvement plans for underperforming staff and fostered advancement in monthly e-newsletter, resulting in 3 direct reports being promoted to supervisory roles
- Implemented measures to control stock shrinkage by 2%
- Won an award in 2015 for the 'Department With The Lowest Unresolved Order Rate'
PRO TIP
Include quantitative data throughout your Category Manager resume to impress the hiring manager. Real facts and figures that show off your competency as an audit manager go a long way. Did you reduce the costs of audits? Manage a large team? Boosted efficiency? Show off the real numbers!
Action verbs for your category manager resume
Recommended reads.":
An impressive skills section for your category manager resume
Writing a skills section that stands out:
- Check the job advert for keywords that you can use: this will help you pass ATS;
- Focus on relevant and valuable skills that will support your application;
- Make sure to include both hard and technical skills, leaving soft skills for other sections of your Category Manager resume;
- Don’t list skills you don’t have.
Top skills for your category manager resume
Jira
Project Management
MS Office
CRM
Negotiation
Strategic Planning
Communication
Attentions to details
Creativity
Empathy
Problem Solving
Listening
PRO TIP
When picking skills to feature in your resume, make sure they'll be relevant to the position you’re applying to. The point of listing skills is for you to stand out from the competition. Stay away from repetitive, meaningless skills that everyone uses in their resumes. Or else, they’ll backfire and make you look like an average candidate.
Recommended reads:
Category manager resume header: Tips, red flags, and best practices
Checklist for your category 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 policies about identifying information like photos on your Category Manager resume. Be sure to check all the relevant rules before submitting yours. If you’re in doubt, you can always try contacting the company’s HR department to ask for their policy.
The category manager resume summary: tips and tricks
Making a strong first impression.
- Keep your summary section short and easy to read; avoid long sentences;
- Highlight your total years of experience in the field;
- Mention 1-2 of your biggest achievements and strengths;
- Add a couple of keywords from the job advert.
Resume summary formula:
PRO TIP
Include a link to your portfolio in your resume header. Most companies will require that you include one in your resume, and even if they don’t, it’s an excellent opportunity to directly show them your proudest projects.
Recommended reads:
Category manager resume: a strong education section
What to include in your education section:
- Your highest education degree (incl. major, duration, name of institution);
- A bit more about the certifications you’ve got (if they are relevant to what you’re applying for);
- Some extracurricular activities that have helped you develop and strengthen your skills;
- If you’re an entry-level applicant: Relevant courses and projects.
Top Certifications for Your Category Manager Resume
Category Management
Category Management is a process of maximizing sales and profits while enhancing product value and customer experience.
Procurement Category Management: The Basics
Learn the basics of Category Management from the former Chief Procurement Officer of a Fortune 10 company.
Microsoft Endpoint Manager Training with Complete Concepts
Microsoft Endpoint Manager for Beginners -Configuration Manager SCCM, Microsoft Intune, Desktop Analytics, Co-management
The Project Management Course: Beginner to PROject Manager
The Complete Course for becoming a Successful Project Manager
Become a Product Manager | Learn the Skills & Get the Job
The most complete course available on Product Management. 13+ hours of videos, activities, interviews, & more
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
If you hold a certain major and a minor, your majors should be mentioned first.
Category manager resume: how to choose the right format
The content of your resume is necessary for showcasing your expertise, skills, and education. Great formatting, on the other hand, is essential for highlighting your attention to detail, creativity, and ability to stand out.
There are three basic resume formats to choose from:
- Reverse-chronological resume format;
- Functional skills-based resume format;
- Combination (or Hybrid) resume format.
Which one of these you choose depends on a couple of things, but most importantly: the industry and your level of experience.
The reverse-chronological resume format, for example, is great if you’re a Category Manager with many years of experience and no career gaps. It doesn’t really matter if your company of choice is a multinational corporation or an early-stage startup – this resume format is considered to be a safe bet.
If you’re someone with little or no experience, however, we advise you to go for a functional skills-based resume format. It focuses on skills, competencies, and education, rather than experience. This makes it great for entry-level applicants, career changers, and graduate students.
And if you’re tired of traditional formats and want to go over the top when it comes to your application, the combination or hybrid resume format is here to help. Here, you can focus on both your experience and your skills, there’s even space for you to highlight your most spectacular personality traits. If you want to give a modern feel to your Category Manager resume, this resume format is just what you need. Add a ‘my life philosophy’ section for additional bonus points!
Looking for ways to perfect your Category Manager resume layout and style?
- Don’t risk it: choose standard 1-inch resume margins;
- Go for traditional resume fonts (sized 10-12p);
- Match the length of your Category Manager resume with your years of experience – choose a one-page template if you’ve got less than 10 years of experience; otherwise, opt for a two-page resume;
- To be on the safe side, save your resume in PDF. This will help you avoid formatting issues and unauthorized editing.
Recommended Reads:
PRO TIP
Test your draft Category Manager resume by sending it out to peers and mentors in your circles. Ask them to review it as if they are hiring you for a project and implement the feedback afterwards.
Your category manager resume: Other sections to include
Tired of resumes that focus only on your professional side? Want to show you’re an actual human being with a real personality that goes beyond your work experience? Then add some other sections to your Category Manager resume!
Depending on the industry, company, and position, you can go for a more creative or less creative approach. Choose 1-2 of the following:
Making your category manager resume shine
In a pile of boring black and white resumes, a creative Category Manager application feels like a breath of fresh air. And trust us, recruiters love this.
There are two ways to add a splash of creativity to your resume. You can either go for a creative layout (bright colors, modern fonts, etc.) or add some creative sections (e.g. ‘what my typical day looks like’).
It’s up to you! Just make sure to keep the position, company, and industry in mind. Otherwise, you risk going over the top. And that’s not always a good idea.
What makes a great category 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.
