INDUSTRY STATS
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Certified Financial Planner positions are at a 5% growth rate, which is slower than average. With that said, there are currently 275,200 jobs in the market right now. The total number of jobs is expected to increase by 12,600 to 287,800 in the period of 2020-30.
What’s more, the median annual wage for the Certified Financial Planner jobs was $89,330 in May 2020. The lowest 10% earned less than $44,100, and the highest 10% more than $208,000.
Our conclusion? The Certified Financial Planner job market is wide open for candidates.
Top certified financial planner sections that make the best resume
- Header
- Professional summary
- Experience (with numbers and results)
- Relevant skills
- Education
- Certifications
How to write a certified financial planner resume experience section
Certified financial planner 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 Certified Financial Planner resumes that got people hired at top companies. You can use them as an inspiration to build your own resume:
- Consultation for financial check-up
- Write articles and publish in company's web
- Online consultations though FINANSIALKU application
- IG/ Youtube Live for financial update
- Conduct class for financial literacy
- Customizing personal book plan for clients
- Update with recent economic and financial planning products
- Lead Advisor, Crop Insurance, Agriseker
- Specialises in Holistic Planning: Estate Planning, Investment Planning and Retirement Planning
- Projected Millionares Club, SFP 2021
- Increased AUM by 25% within the first year of employment.
- Developed and implemented financial plans for over 100 clients, resulting in an average annual return of 8%.
- Conducted regular reviews of client portfolios to ensure they were on track to meet their financial goals.
- Collaborated with tax and estate planning professionals to provide holistic financial planning services to clients.
- Managed a book of over 200 high-net-worth clients with a combined AUM of $150M.
- Increased revenue by 20% through cross-selling of banking products and services.
- Developed and presented financial plans to clients that resulted in an average annual return of 7%.
- Provided ongoing advice and guidance to clients to help them achieve their financial goals.
- Developed and implemented financial plans for over 50 clients in the healthcare industry.
- Increased revenue by 15% through referrals from satisfied clients.
- Collaborated with tax and estate planning professionals to provide comprehensive financial planning services to clients.
- Provided ongoing education to clients on industry-specific financial planning strategies.
- Generated over $10 million in assets under management within first year of employment
- Increased client satisfaction ratings by 25% through implementation of personalized financial plans
- Developed and led financial education seminars for corporate clients, resulting in 20 new clients and over $2 million in new assets under management
- Managed a portfolio of over 100 clients, with an average account size of $1 million
- Grew client base by 50% within first year of employment through targeted marketing efforts and referrals
- Implemented tax-loss harvesting strategies for clients, resulting in tax savings of over $100,000 annually
- Developed customized retirement income plans for clients, resulting in increased retirement readiness and peace of mind
- Collaborated with tax and estate planning attorneys to provide comprehensive financial planning solutions
- Assisted in the evaluation of acquisition targets, resulting in the successful acquisition of two companies and increased revenue by 20%
- Developed financial models to evaluate capital expenditure projects, resulting in cost savings of over $500,000 annually
- Managed cash flow and liquidity for the company, ensuring timely payment of obligations and maximizing returns on excess cash
- Provided financial analysis and recommendations to the Board of Directors, resulting in increased shareholder value
PRO TIP
Don't make the same mistake everyone else does. What we mean is, don't list your Certified Financial Planner job responsibilities instead of your achievements. Recruiters know what you do. They want to know what kind of difference you can bring to their company. Focus on what you've accomplished.
Action verbs for your certified financial planner resume
Recommended reads:
Certified Financial Planner 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 Certified Financial Planner Resume
Microsoft Office
SAP
Excel
Salesforce
Data Entry
Quickbooks
Project Management
Customer Service
CRM
Communication
Negotiation
Critical thinking
Problem solving
Collaboration
Flexibitly
Resilience
Dedication
Empathy
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:
Certified financial planner resume header: tips, red flags, and best practices
Checklist for your certified financial planner 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
Include a link to your portfolio in your Certified Financial Planner 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.
Certified financial planner resume summary best practices
Checklist: what to include in your certified financial planner 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 Certified Financial Planner resume
Become a Certified Financial Planner : CFP Full preparation
Complete, hands-on practice test to passing the CFP exam and becoming a Certified Financial Planner
Financial Planning Tutorials
Course covers topics that are important for Certified Financial planner(CFP) and Personal Financial Planner (PFP®) exams
DIY Financial Planning: Home Purchases
Avoid home buying mistakes and save time by using the spreadsheets and guidance from a Certified Financial Planner
Personal Capital Free Financial Planner Application
Learn to use the financial planning tool and how it compares, and or, complements other accounting and finance tools
Personal Finances: Personal Finance Online Course
Earn more, save more and invest wisely to live a happy and stress free life. A Course by a certified financial planner
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
There are dozens of certifications that you can claim as a Certified Financial Planner. 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.
How to Write a Certified Financial Planner Resume
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.
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.
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
Sometimes you’ll want to go after a job which requires more experience than you have. Instead of using a typical Certified Financial Planner 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 Certified Financial Planner resume:
Certified financial planner 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 Certified Financial Planner 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 certified financial planner 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.
