As a contracts manager, one resume challenge you may face is articulating your complex negotiation successes and contract oversight skills in a concise yet impactful manner. Our guide will provide you with targeted strategies to effectively showcase your achievements and refine your expertise into bullet points that resonate with potential employers.
- Get inspired from our contracts manager resume samples with industry-leading skills, certifications, and more.
- Show how you can impact the organization with your resume summary and experience.
- Introducing your unique contracts manager expertise with a focus on tangible results and achievements.
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Optimize your contracts manager resume format to pass the recruiters' assessment
You may be wondering just how much time you need to spend on designing your contracts manager resume.What recruiters are looking for is systematised content that is clear and coherent. Thus, your contracts manager resume needs to answer requirements and why you're the best candidate for the role from the get-go.
Often, a clear layout consists of:
- Sorting your experience in the reverse chronological order - starting with your most recent and relevant roles. This is an excellent choice for more experienced professionals;
- Writing your contact information (e.g. personal phone number and email address) and your portfolio or LinkedIn link in your contracts manager resume header. If you're wondering to include a photo or not, always make sure that it's appropriate for the country you're applying in;
- Use the basic, most important contracts manager resume sections - your experience, education, summary, etc. Use your resume's real estate wisely to tell a compelling, professional story and match job description's keywords;
- Don't go overboard with the length of your resume. One page is absolutely fine if you happen to have under a decade of relevant experience.
Are you still wondering if you should submit your contracts manager resume in PDF or Word format ? The PDF has a few more advantages, as it doesn't change the format and the text can't be altered upon application.
Format matters most when your contracts manager resume is assessed by the Applicant Tracker System (or the ATS).
The ATS parses resumes, looking for specific keywords, skills or experience that match the job description.
P.S. We recently did a study on how the ATS works and were able to demystify three of the biggest misconceptions about how it assesses candidate resumes.
To pass the ATS evaluation, select any of the serif or sans-serif fonts. Popular choices that would help your contracts manager resume stand out include Raleway, Exo 2, Montserrat, etc.
Most traditionalists go for Arial or Times New Roman, but it's often the case that many candidates choose these fonts, and you'd thus lose points on the uniqueness front.
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If you're in the process of obtaining your certificate or degree, list the expected date you're supposed to graduate or be certified.
The key to your contracts manager job-winning resume - present your expertise with these sections:
- A header to make your resume more scannable
- Snapshot of who you are as a professional with your resume soft skills, achievements, and summary or objective
- Job advert keywords in the skills section of your resume
- Resume experience quantifying your past job successes with metrics
- A relevant education, certification, and technical sills section to provide background to your technological/software capabilities
What recruiters want to see on your resume:
- Demonstrable experience in contract negotiation, drafting, and management
- Proven track record of successful project delivery within agreed timelines and budgets
- Strong understanding of legal requirements, contracting principles, and industry-specific regulations
- Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills for stakeholder management
- Relevant certifications or degrees, such as a Juris Doctor (JD), MBA, or certification from the National Contract Management Association (NCMA)
Guide to your most impressive contracts manager resume experience section
When it comes to your resume experience , stick to these simple, yet effective five steps:
- Show how your experience is relevant by including your responsibility, skill used, and outcome/-s;
- Use individual bullets to answer how your experience aligns with the job requirements;
- Think of a way to demonstrate the tangible results of your success with stats, numbers, and/or percentages ;
- Always tailor the experience section to the contracts manager role you're applying for - this may sometimes include taking out irrelevant experience items;
- Highlight your best (and most relevant) achievements towards the top of each experience bullet.
You're not alone if you're struggling with curating your experience section. That's why we've prepared some professional, real-life contracts manager resume samples to show how to best write your experience section (and more).
- Managed a 30+ contract portfolio worth over $50M, ensuring all agreements are in compliance with corporate and legal standards.
- Negotiated complex contracts with Fortune 500 companies, achieving an average of 15% cost reduction while maintaining quality and performance standards.
- Implemented a new contract management system that increased operational efficiency by 25%, allowing for more timely responses to contract discrepancies and amendments.
- Orchestrated the end-to-end contract lifecycle for international projects, expanding the company's reach into three new countries.
- Pioneered a risk management protocol that decreased contractual risks by 40%, safeguarding the company's interests and bottom line.
- Facilitated cross-functional team collaboration which successfully turned around a stalled $35M project by renegotiating critical deliverable timelines.
- Supervised a team of contract specialists and streamlined the contract approval process, cutting down approval time by 30%.
- Drove the negotiation and closure of contracts averaging $20M annually, consistently meeting or exceeding the departmental revenue targets.
- Collaborated with legal and finance departments to ensure the development of contracting policies that minimized exposure to financial penalties.
- Executed strategic contract negotiations focused on IT services, resulting in a 20% reduction in annual operating costs.
- Enhanced vendor relationships, leading to improved payment terms that benefitted the organization's cash flow by 10%.
- Championed a contract compliance initiative that minimized legal disputes by ensuring accuracy and adherence to business terms across all contracts.
- Transitioned the company toward automated contract management processes, reducing manual workload by 50% and enhancing traceability.
- Developed training programs for junior contract managers that increased department competency levels by 35%.
- Leveraged analytics to provide insights into contract performance, which influenced the renegotiation of three key vendor agreements, adding an additional $5M in revenue.
- Intensively managed procurement contracts up to $40M, effectively reducing material costs by 12% without compromising quality.
- Led an interdepartmental initiative that resulted in the standardization of contract templates, reducing legal review time by 20%.
- Successfully resolved numerous contract disputes through mediation, preventing costly litigation and fostering stronger partner relationships.
- Oversaw the successful negotiation and management of a pivotal $80M government contract which expanded the company's market share.
- Introduced a supplier evaluation system that improved supplier performance by 15%, enhancing overall project punctuality and performance.
- Instrumental in the legal vetting process, which led to a 10% reduction in compliance issues across all new contracts entered.
- Crafted and executed a strategic approach to software licensing agreements for SaaS products, leading to an adoption increase of 18% among enterprise clients.
- Piloted a contract monitoring program that improved contract enforceability and vendor accountability, resulting in a 5% increase in on-time project completions.
- Participated in high-stakes negotiations, which preserved key company assets and intellectual property rights within technology contracts.
- Facilitated the due diligence and integration effort for a $25M business acquisition, ensuring seamless assimilation of contracts and preservation of values.
- Developed a contract risk assessment methodology that identified key risk areas, averting potential losses of over $3M.
- Masterminded a supplier consolidation initiative that reduced the supplier base by 20% without impacting supply chain integrity or operational workflow.
- Oversaw and optimized contractual processes within the renewable energy sector, contributing to a 25% growth in service contracts.
- Pioneered innovative contractual frameworks for cross-border transactions, enabling entry into new markets and cumulative growth of 22% in international sales.
- Played a pivotal role in formulating performance metrics for contractors, which heightened accountability and improved service delivery by 17%.
- Include the total value of contracts managed to show the magnitude of responsibilities handled.
- Specify the percentage of cost savings achieved through successful negotiations to illustrate financial acumen.
- Document the number of contract disputes resolved to highlight problem-solving skills.
- State the exact number of contracts reviewed and drafted to demonstrate experience and productivity.
- Quantify the number of compliance issues identified and rectified to show attention to detail and regulatory knowledge.
- Mention the percentage reduction in processing times due to process improvements you implemented,
- Detail the number of cross-departmental collaborations to showcase team leadership and coordination skills.
- List specific figures regarding successful risk mitigation incidents to emphasize risk management capabilities.
Quantifying impact on your resume
Action verbs for your contracts manager resume
What if my contracts manager experience doesn't match the requirements?
You've just graduated from college and may have no real world job experience . What should you include within your resume then?
Instead of making up information or adding irrelevant past jobs (e.g. your on-campus work during freshman year), you can:
- Shift the focus from your professional experience to your community impact with your volunteer work. This would showcase numerous soft skills you've built over time (e.g. interpersonal communication);
- Highlight the projects you've completed, as part of your coursework, or, on your own. Thus, you will align your technical background with recruiters' requirements;
- Consider spotlighting your transferrable skills. Or, what lessons and talents your current professional and personal experience has taught you and how they could benefit your potential employers;
- Even if you've had a few months of internship experience, that is relevant for the role, make sure to include this. Recruiters do care about the years of experience you happen to have, but, at the end of the day, your profile would also be assessed based on role alignment.
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If you happen to have some basic certificates, don't invest too much of your contracts manager resume real estate in them. Instead, list them within the skills section or as part of your relevant experience. This way you'd ensure you meet all job requirements while dedicating your certificates to only the most in-demand certification across the industry.
Defining your unique contracts manager skill set with hard skills and soft skills
In any job advertisement, a blend of specific technologies and interpersonal communication skills is typically sought after. Hard skills represent your technical expertise and indicate your job performance capacity. Soft skills, on the other hand, demonstrate how well you would integrate within the company culture.
Incorporating a balanced mix of both skill types in your contracts manager resume is crucial. Here's how you can do it:
- In your resume summary or objective, incorporate up to three hard and/or soft skills. Make sure to quantify these skills with relevant or impressive achievements; less
- The skills section should list your technical know-how.
- The strengths section is an ideal place to quantify your competencies by focusing on the achievements facilitated by these skills.
Top skills for your contracts manager resume:
Contract negotiation
Contract drafting
Legal compliance
Risk management
Project management
Procurement
Financial analysis
Understanding of contract law
Vendor management
Data analysis
Communication
Attention to detail
Problem-solving
Leadership
Negotiation
Time management
Decision-making
Teamwork
Adaptability
Conflict resolution
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Always remember that your contracts manager certifications can be quantified across different resume sections, like your experience, summary, or objective. For example, you could include concise details within the expertise bullets of how the specific certificate has improved your on-the-job performance.
Showcase academic background with education and certifications' sections
Listing your education and certifications should be a rudimentary part of your resume writing.
Including your relevant academic background - in the form of your higher education degree and niche-specific certificates - will prove knowledge of the industry.
For your education section:
- Start by including your degree, followed by start and graduation dates, as well as the institution;
- You could include relevant coursework, major/minor , or GPA, only if your've just graduated from college or if this information would further support your application;
- If you have an "ongoing" degree, you can still list it in case you think your diploma can impress recruiters or it's required;
Follow a similar logic for your certifications section by listing the institution, alongside dates you've obtained the certificate. For some of the most recent and relevant industry certificates , check out the next part of our guide:
The top 5 certifications for your contracts manager resume:
- Certified Professional Contract Manager (CPCM) - National Contract Management Association (NCMA)
- Certified Federal Contract Manager (CFCM) - National Contract Management Association (NCMA)
- Certified Commercial Contract Manager (CCCM) - National Contract Management Association (NCMA)
- Project Management Professional (PMP) - Project Management Institute (PMI)
- International Association for Contract & Commercial Management (IACCM) Certification - International Association for Contract & Commercial Management (IACCM)
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Highlight any significant extracurricular activities that demonstrate valuable skills or leadership.
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The summary or objective: focusing on the top one-third of your resume
It's a well-known fact that the top one-third of your contracts manager resume is the make-it-or-break-it moment of your application. The resume summary and objective could help you further build up your professional profile.
- If you have plenty of career highlights behind your back, use the resume summary . The contracts manager summary immediately focuses recruiters' attention on what matters most within your experience.
- The resume objective is the perfect choice for balancing your career achievements with your vision. Use it to state precisely how you see yourself in a couple of years' time - as part of the company you're applying for.
Both the resume summary and resume objective can be your value pitch to potential employers: answering what makes your application unique and the top choice for the contracts manager role. They both have to be specific and tailored - as there's no one-size-fits-all approach to writing your contracts manager summary or objective. Use the contracts manager examples below as a starting point:
Resume summaries for a contracts manager job
- Seasoned Contracts Manager with over 10 years of experience in the technology sector, skilled in negotiating multimillion-dollar agreements and driving cross-functional teams for Fortune 500 companies. Led contract negotiations that resulted in a 20% increase in annual savings for a leading software firm, showcasing a stellar track record in vendor management and strategic sourcing.
- Proactive professional pivoting into contract management after a successful 8-year tenure as a project manager in construction. Outstanding ability to analyze contractual terms and resolve complex issues, combined with a strong background in ensuring compliance and mitigating risks, seeks to leverage transferable skills to excel in a high-stakes contract environment.
- Diligent and organized professional transitioning from a career in finance to contract management, bringing over a decade of expertise in risk assessment, due diligence, and financial analysis. Recognized for exceptional attention to detail and a strategic approach to cost reduction, eager to apply analytical and negotiation skills to a dynamic new sector.
- Ambitious and fast-learning newcomer aiming to embark on a career in contract management, determined to immerse in contractual agreements and procurement processes. Eager to apply a fresh perspective and dedicated to mastering the essentials of legal compliance and relationship management within a progressive organization.
- Looking to advance a burgeoning career in contract management, an enthusiastic and methodical candidate with recent certification in contract law seeks to contribute to high-level negotiations and contract administration. Committed to absorbing industry specifics and facilitating smooth contractual engagements in a challenging and rewarding professional setting.
Other relevant sections for your contracts manager resume
Apart from the standard contracts manager resume sections listed in this guide, you have the opportunity to get creative with building your profile. Select additional resume sections that you deem align with the role, department, or company culture. Good choices for your contracts manager resume include:
- Language skills - always ensure that you have qualified each language you speak according to relevant frameworks;
- Hobbies - you could share more about your favorite books, how you spend your time, etc. ;
- Volunteering - to highlight the causes you care about;
- Awards - for your most prominent contracts manager professional accolades and achievements.
Make sure that these sections don't take too much away from your experience, but instead build up your contracts manager professional profile.
Key takeaways
- Impactful contracts manager resumes have an easy-to-read format that tells your career narrative with highlights;
- Select a resume summary or objective, depending on what sort of impression you'd like to leave and if your accomplishments are relevant to the job;
- If you don't happen to have much industry expertise, curate additional gigs you've had, like contracts and internships, to answer how your experience aligns with the contracts manager job;
- Be specific about the hard and soft skills you list on your resume to define your niche expertise and outcomes of using those particular skills;
- Always tailor your resume for each contracts manager application to ensure you meet all job requirements.
