INDUSTRY STATS
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Communication Manager positions are at a 10% growth rate, which is as fast as average. With that said, there are currently 316,800 jobs in the market right now. The total number of jobs is expected to increase by 31,800 to 348,600 in the period of 2020-30.
What’s more, the median annual wage for the Communication Manager jobs was $141,490 in May 2020. The lowest 10% earned less than $74,620, and the highest 10% more than $208,000.
Our conclusion? The Communication Manager job market is wide open for candidates.
Top communication manager sections that make the best resume
- Header
- Professional summary
- Experience (with numbers and results)
- Relevant skills
- Education
- Certifications
Writing a strong communication manager experience section
Communication manager resume experience section: ultimate checklist
- Use no more than 4-6 bullet points per position;
- List relevant positions and situations that add value to your application;
- Describe situations, tasks, actions, and results (the S-T-A-R method);
- Remember to include numbers in whatever form you like (e.g. the number of projects you’ve finished);
- Begin each bullet point with an action verb.
Check out the examples below when building your experience section. They will help you stand out!
- project coordination among the EU Partners (the project partners were located in Italy, but also in Austria and Germany)
- execution of the communication plan: coordination with the advertising agency - content generation for all the promotional materials - events organizations (press conferences and other meetings) - PR activities
- project monitoring and reporting
- Leading the brand communications team in developing an integrated communications strategy for the company incorporating PR, Marketing and Online
- Implementing communications plans to increase brand awareness and recognition for the company
- Collating and analyzing current communications and messages and ensuring consistency
- Developing and leading the company’s internal communication strategy across the country
- Internal communications strategy created and implemented.
- Improved alignment with corporate communication strategy
- Established succesfull relationships with a.o. Sikkens partners like Carré, Concertgebouw and Rijksmuseum.
- Change management projects
- Content creation and editing
- Editorial planning for online publications
- Intranet design
- Events planning
- Collaborate with management to implement an effective communications strategy for audience.
- Write, edit, and distribute content, including publications, press releases, website content, annual reports, speeches, and other marketing material that communicates the organization's activities, products and/or services.
- Respond to media inquiries, arrange interviews, and act as a spokesperson for the organization.
- Establish and maintain effective relationships with journalists, and maintain a media database.
- Seek opportunities to enhance brand reputation and coordinate events as required.
- Maintain records of media coverage and collate analytics and metrics.
- Proficiency in design and publishing software.
- Drafted and implemented communication strategy and plan
- Launched online presence for the administration : website revamp, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube
- Content creation and management: posts, videos, articles, etc
- Ran multimedia campaigns : billboards, radio, video, digital/social ads
- Bilingual communication FR/NL
- Manage a +300K€ budget covering projects such as hackathons with NUMA or inauguration event with Minister of the Economy
- Lead all press relations with more than 20 articles in 6 months
- Built from scratch social media channels and a TumblR website
- Launched the Digital Shadow Committee in Europe - 13 young leaders - fostering innovative projects and reporting to the CEO in Europe
- Wrote and presented a prospective analysis on the agrochemical market by 2030 for the Executive Committee
- Realized +20 product sheets in coordination with 10 gobal BUs
- Organized with Syngenta a customer-oriented Tech Day with 5 keynotes and 5 roundtables
- Develop, manage and measure brand campaigns B2C and B2B with a customer-centric approach
- Translate consumer en shopper insights into a shopper strategy, develop and implement in-store activation plan in offline channels and strengthen brand loyalty
- Partner with Channel Manager on developing yearly marketing and activation plans & budgets
- Responsible for creating retail programs based on the customer journey of our clients in different channels. By using storytelling I express the value of the product lines and I stimulate cross-selling & increase sales.
- Project management
- Develop and guidance of the marketing communication strategy EMEA based on the Global Strategy and team up with the 29 countries to incorporate the EMEA approach Inc.
- Build on Customer Journey, adapt user stories and create new stories
- Build EMEA toolboxes & create new imagery, in line with the guidelines
- Lead for media-agency in EMEA, resulting in good relationships and effective Media plans
- Responsible for Brand identity and approval of all EMEA communication
- Project leader key project on Lock-in Consumers Journey Result: an advanced Customer
- Responsible for quantitative research based on data tracking EMEA and qualitative research
- Launched multiple 360 brand campaigns BtoC including managing advertising materials, media, online and PR
- Successfully developed and implemented new product introduction and promotions
- Led the development and implementation of the brand communication strategy based on the global marketing strategy
- Head of communication and online team 4 FTE
- Responsible for the successful campaign named ´kleur je clubhuis´ which has been honored with both an Esprix and a SAN award
- Responsible for A&P (budget), resulting in healthy finance.
- Successful integration of new corporate design Hema Website
- Developed internet promotions
- Developed Internet websites for Tesco and other 3rd parties
- Developed creative and target group-oriented consumer promotions
- NPD implementation of new products
- Developing and shaping the brand within 14 countries: 360° campaigns (creation of microsites, videos & content marketing, social media & media presence, mailings, participation to fairs, etc.)
- Follow up & analysis of the actions within the CRM system.
- Organisation of internal events- worlwide.
- Enhance the CSR policy messages in all communication channels & tools.
- International communication manager LACOSTE L!VE
- International digital communication LACOSTE Licenses
- Event project manager
- International PR
- 360° operational marketing & communication plan.
- Digital marketing, web analytics & email marketing.
- Internal / external ressources coordination : Graphics / Web / Mobile application (UI/UX) / Event / Print / Photo & Video teams.
- PR & Social campaigns management.
- Budget management.
- Shaped the global marketing & communication strategy
- Enhanced CINET's brand power within its sector
- Led the Global Best Practices Awards Program: 45 countries, reach - 5 million people
- Improved and led the content creation and social media platforms
- Crafting strategies for Branding and Positioning B2B2C
- Setting strategic guidelines for the Group with a customer-centric approach
- Define Portfolio strategy in cooperation with Sales team
- Setting marketing intelligence activities to understand customers
- Ensuring consistency of marketing strategy on all channels
- Identifing opportunities to reach new segments
- Working closely with Sales team to reach objectives
- Full responsibility of Marketing budget - P&L
- Defining business marketing strategy: from insights definition to marketing automation platform
- Setting strategic guidelines for the Group with a customer-centric approach
- Setting marketing intelligence activities to understand customers
- Ensuring consistency of marketing strategy on all channels
- Identifing opportunities to reach new segments
- Full responsibility of Marketing budget - P&L
PRO TIP
Include quantitative data throughout your Communication 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 communication manager resume
Recommended reads:
Writing a strong skills section for your communication manager resume
Checklist for your communication manager skills section:
- Include all relevant skills from the job description to pass ATS;
- Focus on skills that show your expertise;
- List your technical skills in a clear and concise manner;
- Leave room for transferable skills related to teamwork, communication, negotiation, and conflict management.
Top skills for your communication manager resume
Google Analytics
Wordpress
SEO
HTML
Social Media
Communication
Creative problem solving
Analytical thinking
Influencing
Team work
PRO TIP
Avoid getting sidetracked by Applicant tracking software by including a tech skills' section matching the job description and your own qualifications.
Communication manager resume header: tips, red flags, and best practices
Checklist for your communication 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 Communication 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 ideal summary for your communication manager resume
Mastering the summary section: checklist
- Mention the total years of experience you have in the field;
- Focus on 2 to 3 of your top achievements;
- Highlight the things that make you the best fit for the position;
- Go for short, easy-to-read sentences to keep the recruiter’s attention.
Resume summary formula:
PRO TIP
Your summary section should act as a brief but informative introduction to your experience section. In this section you should go into more depth about what you have done, and how you did it.
Recommended reads.":
Things to Include in Your Communication Manager Resume Education Section
Communication manager resume education section checklist:
- Mention your highest education degree;
- Add the duration of your course and the institution you attended;
- List the awards you’ve received during your studies;
- Feature your certifications if they are relevant to the position;
- Entry-level positions: Share more about projects and classes.
Top certifications for your communication manager resume
Communication Training for Managers
Improve Your Management Style With Better Communication!
Communication Skills every Manager should Master
Powerful Communication Techniques to better Delegate, Communicate Decisions, Change Resistance, Say No & Admit Mistakes
The Essential Guide for Effective Managers
Master flexible leadership and effective communication to build your leadership brand AND drive performance
Manager Communication: Communication Fundamentals
Improve your communication in all settings and learn to tell stories that stick. 2-minute information-packed lectures!
Business Communication Skills: Social Skills For Managers
Improve Communication Skills & Social Skills To Improve Leadership, Influence, Charisma, Business Communication, Social
Recommended reads:
PRO TIP
If you hold a certain major and a minor, your majors should be mentioned first.
Formatting your communication manager resume
What’s worse than a .docx resume? A resume with a poorly chosen format.
In general, there are three basic resume formats we advise you to stick with:
- Reverse-chronological resume format;
- Functional skills-based resume format;
- Combination (or Hybrid) resume format.
Choosing between them is easy when you’re aware of your applicant profile – it depends on your years of experience, the position you’re applying for, and whether you’re looking for an industry change or not.
The reverse-chronological resume format is just that – all your relevant jobs in reverse-chronological order. It’s great for applicants with lots of experience, no career gaps, and little desire for creativity.
When working with less experienced applicants, we suggest the functional skills-based resume format. It’s great for recent graduates or people with large career gaps. Functional skills-based resumes focus on your personality, the skills you have, your interests, and your education. Ultimately, the idea is to show you’re the perfect fit without putting too much emphasis on your work experience (or lack thereof).
If you’re in the middle or are generally looking to make your resume feel more modern and personal, go for the combination or hybrid resume format. It offers the best of both worlds by combining sections focused on experience and work-related skills and at the same time keeping space for projects, awards, certifications, or even creative sections like ‘my typical day’ and ‘my words to live by’.
Communication Manager Resume Formatting Checklist
- Choose the resume format based on your level of experience and the company you’re applying for
- Go for a traditional 10-12p font
- Stick to 1-inch page margins to ensure high readability
- Match the length of your resume to your experience, but don’t go for more than two pages!
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 Communication 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.
Additional sections for your communication manager resume
In some cases, especially when it comes to entry-level positions, adding more sections beyond the usual ‘experience’, ‘skills’, and ‘education’ works well in your favor. Such additional sections will help you paint a fuller picture of who you are in the recruiter’s head.
Here’s a list of fun yet informative additional sections for your resume:
Making your communication manager resume creative
We know too well that recruiters go through tons of resumes every day. The worse part is, they often need to hire people for different positions and teams. So how do you make yourself stand out in such cases?
By adding a dash of creativity to your Communication Manager resume. It can be in the form of a colorful layout, a section describing your typical day, or even a picture of your favorite book – you decide!
Just make sure that the levels of creativity match the industry, company, and position you’re applying for.
What makes a great communication 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.
