As a business planning manager, articulating your ability to synthesize complex data and drive strategic decisions can be a daunting resume challenge. Our guide provides targeted advice and examples that will help you effectively highlight these skills, ensuring your resume stands out to potential employers.
- Incorporate business planning manager job advert keywords into key sections of your resume, such as the summary, header, and experience sections;
- Quantify your experience using achievements, certificates, and more in various business planning manager resume sections;
- Apply practical insights from real-life business planning manager resume examples to enhance your own profile;
- Choose the most effective business planning manager resume format to succeed in any evaluation process.
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Is there a correct way to format your business planning manager resume?
This is a tricky question. While skimming over your resume, recruiters will be looking at your experience and the message your profile conveys. That's why your resume format needs to be clear and concise, serving to supplement and organize your experience. Professional best practices point that the best business planning manager resumes:
- Follow the reverse chronological order, where the most recent experience items are presented first . This is to keep your expertise succinct and to show recruiters your career growth over the years;
- Have a clearly defined header that includes all relevant contact information and a portfolio or a LinkedIn link. In some countries, it is acceptable to include a professional photo , so that your application is more memorable;
- Feature the most important business planning manager resume sections towards the top, e.g. summary, skills, and experience. That way, recruiters can immediately find information that is relevant to the role;
- Take up no more than two pages - and two pages are the exception for more experienced professionals. Keep your expertise to the point and use your business planning manager resume real estate wisely .
- Selecting modern, yet simple fonts, e.g. Rubik, Lato, etc., would help your application stand out;
- Many candidates stick with the tried-and-tested Arial or Times New Roman, but you'd want your business planning manager resume to be a bit more unique;
- The ATS can read all serif and sans-serif fonts, so you should avoid fancy, formal script (or cursive) fonts.
Keep in mind the market you’re applying to – a Canadian resume, for instance, might have a unique layout.
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Mention specific courses or projects that are pertinent to the job you're applying for.
Ensure your business planning manager resume stands out with these mandatory sections:
- Header - the section recruiters look to find your contact details, portfolio, and potentially, your current role
- Summary or objective - where your achievements could meet your career goals
- Experience - showcasing you have the technical (and personal) know-how for the role
- Skills - further highlighting capabilities that matter most to the business planning manager advert and your application
- Certifications/Education - staying up-to-date with industry trends
What recruiters want to see on your resume:
- Demonstrated experience in strategic planning and business model design.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including proficiency with data analysis tools and methodologies.
- Proven track record in project management and cross-functional team leadership.
- Advanced understanding of financial modeling, budgeting, and forecasting.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills to effectively articulate strategies and business plans to stakeholders.
Quick formula for writing your business planning manager resume experience section
Have you ever wondered why recruiters care about your business planning manager expertise?
For starters, your past roles show that you've obtained the relevant on-the job training and expertise that'd be useful for the role.
What is more, the resume work experience section isn't just your work history , but:
- shows what you're capable of achieving based on your past success;
- proves your skills with (oftentimes, tangible) achievements;
- highlights the unique value of what it's like to work with you.
To ensure your resume work experience section is as effective as possible, follow this formula:
- start each bullet with a powerful, action verb , followed up by your responsibilities, and your workplace success.
The more details you can include - that are relevant to the job and linked with your skill set - the more likely you are to catch recruiters' attention.
Additionally, you can also scan the job advert for key requirements or buzzwords , which you can quantify across your experience section.
Not sure what we mean by this? Take inspiration from the business planning manager resume experience sections below:
- Led development of a 3-year strategic business plan, aligning with market trends and forecasts, driving a 25% increase in market share.
- Managed cross-departmental teams to implement operational improvements, which boosted overall efficiency by 15%.
- Oversaw a portfolio of projects valued at over $5M, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and on-time, under-budget delivery.
- Coordinated with senior management to define KPIs, optimizing resource allocation across projects and resulting in a 20% cost reduction.
- Spearheaded market analysis for new product development, contributing to a launch that captured a 10% market share within the first year.
- Initiated and maintained partnerships with key stakeholders, enhancing brand reputation and leading to a 30% increase in B2B leads.
- Drove the financial analysis for a major merger, which improved the company's profitability by 18% within the first year post-merger.
- Implemented a continuous improvement program that identified inefficiencies and improved operational workflow by 20%.
- Facilitated training programs for junior planning analysts, improving team productivity and data analysis skills within the department.
- Streamlined the business planning process using advanced analytics tools, reducing time-to-market for new initiatives by 25%.
- Collaborated on a sustainability project that cut down material costs by 15%, while improving environmental and social governance metrics.
- Crafted competitive analysis reports that guided decision-making on entering new markets, effectively growing the customer base by 50,000+ within two years.
- Orchestrated the launch of a new service line that grew to generate $2M in annual revenue.
- Managed a team of analysts to oversee a diversified portfolio, optimizing investment strategies that led to a 12% rise in annual returns.
- Directed the market entry strategy for three new geographic regions, achieving a consistent year-over-year growth rate of 8%.
- Introduced a data-driven decision-making framework that helped prioritize investment projects, delivering an increase of 16% in ROIC.
- Negotiated with external suppliers to lower costs by 10%, positively impacting the overall profit margin.
- Developed a risk management strategy that reduced potential financial losses by 22%, enhancing company stability during market volatility.
- Implemented an agile project management methodology, which shortened the planning cycle times by 30% and increased team agility.
- Oversaw a strategic pivot that opened up a new revenue stream, contributing to an increment of $1M in profits within the first year.
- Led the development and execution of a cost optimization plan that saved the company $500K annually.
- Masterminded a new subscription-based pricing model that improved customer lifetime value by 40% over two years.
- Coordinated with IT to deploy a business intelligence platform, enhancing data accessibility and supporting revenue growth by 20%.
- Conducted in-depth industry research that helped reposition the company's core products, leading to a 15% increase in sales.
Quantifying impact on your resume
- Include the size of the budgets you have managed to demonstrate your financial accountability and responsibility.
- Detail the percentage increase in revenue your strategies contributed to, showing your direct impact on growth.
- List the number of projects you have led and their scale to prove your experience with managing complex initiatives.
- Mention the exact number of team members you've supervised to underscore your leadership and management skills.
- Quantify the amount of cost savings you've achieved through various initiatives to show your ability to drive efficiencies.
- Present the number of strategic partnerships you've developed to highlight your networking and collaboration skills.
- Specify the growth in market share your projects have resulted in to demonstrate your competitive acumen.
- Report on the percentage reduction in process times your improvements have achieved to evidence your productivity enhancements.
Action verbs for your business planning manager resume
How to shift the focus from your business planning manager resume experience section to your professional profile
If you're at the start of your career journey or transitioning industries, you might be concerned about the lack of professional experience while crafting your business planning manager resume.
How can you effectively present your business planning manager resume experience section under these circumstances?
Rather than a traditional, extensive experience section, demonstrate your expertise through:
- Emphasizing your education. Your academic background might impress recruiters, especially if it includes recent, industry-relevant knowledge;
- Creating a compelling objective statement. The first few sentences of your resume should map out your motivations and career aspirations, offering insight into your goals;
- Highlighting your transferable skills. For example, if you've honed communication skills through volunteering, illustrate on your business planning manager resume how these can benefit a potential employer;
- Detailing your technical background in certifications and skills sections. As a recent graduate, your technological foundations might be particularly attractive to employers looking to develop these skills further.
It's important to remember that employers sometimes prefer candidates with less experience but who are a better cultural fit for their organization.
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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.
Popular business planning manager hard skills and soft skills for your resume
Apart from assessing your professional expertise, recruiters are on the lookout for whether your skills align with the job.
Your profile would thus be assessed in regard to your:
- Hard or technical skills - your ability to perform on the job using particular technologies or software
- Soft skills - how you adapt, communicate, and thrive in different environments.
Both types of skills - hard and soft skills - are important for your resume, so make sure to create a dedicated skills section that:
- Lists up to five or six skills that align with the job advert.
- Integrates vital keywords for the industry, but also reflects on your personal strengths.
- Builds up further your skills with an achievements section within which you explain what you've achieved thanks to using the particular skill.
- Aims to always quantify in some way how you've used the skill, as it's not enough to just list it.
What are the most sought out hard and soft skills for business planning manager roles?
Check out the industry's top choices with our two dedicated lists below:
Top skills for your business planning manager resume:
Financial Modeling
Data Analysis
Microsoft Excel
Project Management Software (e.g., MS Project, Asana)
Business Intelligence Tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI)
Strategic Planning Software
ERP Systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle)
Market Research Tools
Forecasting Software
Budgeting Tools
Analytical Thinking
Communication Skills
Problem-Solving
Leadership
Attention to Detail
Time Management
Collaboration
Adaptability
Critical Thinking
Stakeholder Management
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Showcase any ongoing or recent educational efforts to stay updated in your field.
Maximizing your business planning manager resume: education and certification sections
To effectively showcase your industry knowledge in your business planning manager resume, it's important to properly list your education and certifications.
For the education section, ensure you include:
- Higher education degrees pertinent to the industry or those at a postgraduate level;
- The start and end dates of your education, along with the name of the institution you graduated from;
- Your GPA and relevant coursework, but only if they are impressive and applicable to the role.
Additionally, create a separate certifications section to spotlight your most notable recognitions. Another excellent place to feature a leading industry certificate is in your resume header, right after your name.
Below is a list of key industry certifications that are often sought after by recruiters
The top 5 certifications for your business planning manager resume:
- Project Management Professional (PMP) - Project Management Institute (PMI)
- Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) - Scrum Alliance
- Master Business Continuity Professional (MBCP) - Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRII)
- Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) - International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA)
- Strategic Management Professional (SMP) - Strategy Management Group (SMG)
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Listing your relevant degrees or certificates on your business planning 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.
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Which one to use: a resume summary or a resume objective?
The business planning manager resume summary or objective serves as a good introduction to your experience for recruiters.
Have you ever wondered which one (the summary or objective) will be more appropriate for your business planning manager resume?
- If you are a less experienced professional, write a resume objective statement. The objective is about three sentences long and provides recruiters with information about your career goals, strengths, and achievements . It should basically denote how you see yourself in this particular role, and what is your relevant experience and/or know-how;
- If you happen to have plenty of relevant experience, select your most impressive achievements for your resume summary. The summary is no longer than five sentences and serves as a storytelling instrument - highlighting your greatest career wins . Don't forget to align your summary with the job requirements to ensure your resume stays relevant to the role.
Read on for more information and examples of resume summaries and objectives from real world professionals.
Resume summaries for a business planning manager job
- With over a decade of experience in strategic business planning and implementation, I have successfully led cross-functional teams in the technology sector to exceed profitability targets. I possess a profound expertise in market analysis and an ability to integrate emerging trends into actionable growth strategies. My crowning achievement includes orchestrating a turnaround initiative that resulted in a 20% revenue increase within a single fiscal year.
- Experienced marketing strategist transitioning into business planning management, I bring 8 years of expertise in consumer behavior analysis and campaign management. Having contributed to a startup's growth by 150% through innovative market penetration tactics, my goal is to leverage data-driven insights and strategic planning skills to drive sustainable business growth in a new industry.
- Former military officer with a strong background in operations, logistics, and team leadership, looking to apply over 12 years of disciplined work ethic and strategic project management to the business planning sector. I am eager to utilize analytical skills and a results-oriented approach to contribute to the successful planning and execution of complex business operations.
- Aspiring to harness my recent MBA education and enthusiasm for strategic planning, I am keen on joining a forward-thinking organization where I can apply my academic knowledge and fresh perspective. I am excited to learn and grow, aiming to build a foundation in business planning with an emphasis on sustainable growth, financial analysis, and operational efficiency.
- Enthusiastic newcomer with a strong foundation in business analytics and a passion for strategic thinking. Having excelled in academic coursework focused on strategic management and operational planning, I am eager to translate theoretical knowledge into practical skills by contributing to the development and execution of comprehensive business plans.
- Adept at recognizing and analyzing business trends, I have 15 years of experience crafting strategic roadmaps for multinational corporations in the finance industry. Notably, I spearheaded a resource optimization project that resulted in a 30% cost reduction without impacting service quality. My proficiency in financial modeling and stakeholder management are essential assets in driving corporate objectives.
Recruiters' favorite additional business planning manager resume sections
When writing your business planning manager resume, you may be thinking to yourself, " Is there anything more I can add on to stand out? ".
Include any of the below four sections you deem relevant, to ensure your business planning manager resume further builds up your professional and personal profile:
Key takeaways
- The layout of your resume should take into consideration your professional background while integrating vital sections and design elements;
- Highlight your most pertinent achievements for the role all through different sections;
- Be very specific when selecting your certifications, hard skills, and soft skills to showcase the best of your talents;
- Include within the top one-third of your business planning manager resume a header and summary to help recruiters understand your experience and allocate your contact details. A skills box is optional, but it will help you align your expertise with the role;
- Detail the full extent of your professional experience with specific bullets that focus on tasks, actions, and outcomes.
