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Office Manager Resume: Templates, Examples & Essential Skills
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Before writing your office manager resume, it is fundamental to know the office manager’s duties, and the differences between an office manager, an administrative assistant, and an operations manager.
Generally, the responsibility hierarchy of these three positions from high to low is: an operations manager, an office manager, and an administrative assistant. An operations manager focuses on the long-term goals and directions of the whole company, while an office manager (sometimes called administrative manager) is responsible for all things related to “office”. He/ She has to ensure the office runs smoothly. For example, an office manager needs to create a productive and comfortable working atmosphere, supervise the office supplies expense, and organize the administrative details such as event planning and receptions of visitors.
On the other hand, an administrative assistant is often a subordinate of an office manager. Common work for an administrative assistant includes arranging meetings and appointments for senior managers, welcoming visitors, ordering office supplies, and etc.
Having this understanding, we can start to write your perfect office manager resume that catches the recruiter’s eye in 6 seconds!
How to make a perfect resume for an office manager position?
Step 1: Understand the differences between a CV and a resume.
A Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a resume are both about your experience, but there are 4 differences between them: content, purpose, length, and design.
An Office Manager CV:
- Includes more details and is often longer than 2 pages.
- Is usually for academic, medical, or science fields.
- Has fewer formats and tends to be simple.
An Office Manager Resume:
- Includes only the information related to that position and is no more than 2 pages.
- Is for general job-hunting.
- Has a typical format but has some differences between each industry.
Therefore, unless your preferred company requires an office manager CV, a resume for the office manager position is usually recommended.
Step 2: Choose the right office manager resume format.
There are 4 types of formats to choose for an office manager resume: chronological, functional, hybrid, and targets resume format. Which formats to adopt depends on one’s experience. A chronological resume format is the most common type that will not go wrong for everyone. However, if you have gaps in your career, a functional resume format can shift the hiring manager’s attention from those gaps to your qualifications and accomplishments.
💡 Tips: It is strongly recommended to read job descriptions thoroughly and add those required skills in your office manager resume.
Step 3: Take online office manager resume templates and examples as references.
We do have the time when opening our laptops and not knowing what to write on our resumes. Therefore, at this moment, searching for online office manager resume samples to know how other professionals write their office manager resumes can be inspirational.
Step 4: Tailor your resume for the office manager position.
It is important to craft your office manager resume based on each position. For instance, a dental office manager resume and a medical office manager resume, even though both positions fall in the same field, they can still be different in details such as appointment frequencies and procedures, types of medical equipment, etc. Hence, tailor your resume specifically to the position.
Step 5: Craft your office manager cover letter.
A good office manager cover letter helps the hiring manager understand your motivation and qualification for the job.
Step 6: Proofread both your office manager resume and cover letter.
As an office manager, being heedful of details is also one of the characteristics, so it is suggested to proofread your office manager resume to ensure no grammar or spelling errors occur.
What to put on an office manager resume?
When one is thinking about “What to put on his/her office manager resume?”, it is helpful to change this question into “What the recruiter would like to see on an office manager resume?”. It is easy to answer - simply keep in mind the primary principle: relevancy to the position.
If you still have no idea what to add, generally, an office manager resume will include:
1. Office Manager Resume Profile (Personal Information)
This part is like a greeting section of your office manager resume.
You should include these:
- Full name
- Professional title
- Email address
- Phone number
- Address
- Linkedin, Cake profile, or personal website (optional)
You should not include these:
- Current salary
- National insurance number/ Social security number
- Gender, nationality, birthday
- Sexual orientation, race, marital status, dependency, and religious belief
- Photograph (note the cultural differences)
2. Office Manager Resume Headline
A great office manager resume headline is a one-liner about your core competency.
📝 Noted the capitalization rule!
Office manager resume headline examples:
- Front office manager resume:
“A Service-Award-Winning Front Office Manager Skilled in CRM and Proficient in English, French, and Spanish” - Business office manager resume:
“A Computer Proficient Business Office Manager with 5 Years of Experience in Office Administration”
3. Office Manager Resume Summary
How to write an office manager professional summary? Like the headline, an office manager profile summary is also about your core competency, but it is in more detail which is around 30 to 50 words. → See More Guides
Resume summary for an office manager:
A hotel office manager with the ability to optimize processes and assess employee performances. Currently seeking a position as a hotel office manager at Welcome hotel. Lead a team of 6 to build an online customer service system that increased customer satisfaction by 40%.
4. Career Objective for an Office Manager Resume
An objective for an office manager resume is all about your career goals. However, unless it is for an office manager resume with no experience, it is not recommended to use a career objective since it tends to be too vague.
Career objective example for an office manager resume with no experience:
A communicative administrative assistant with 2+ years of cross-team cooperation experience and excellent computer skills. Currently being eager to use my coordination ability to resolve problems and develop better office service.
📖 Further reading: Write Professional Career Objectives for Resume
5. Office Manager Skills for a Resume
It is common to use a simple bullet point to list skills in an office manager resume, but one can choose another list method such as the categorized skills section if he/she truly understands the industry’s know-how.
Typical office manager skills a resume often includes:
Hard Skills
- Microsoft Office Suite
- CRM system
- Word per minute (WPM)
- Performance evaluation
- Budget management
- Event scheduling
Soft Skills
- Communication
- Leadership
- Time management
- Problem-solving skills
- Adaptability
- Detail-oriented
💡 Tips: It is strongly recommended to read job descriptions thoroughly and add those required skills in your office manager resume.
6. Work Experience in an Office Manager Resume
In this part, one can select several relevant jobs and list them in a reverse chronological resume format. Each job can be described by 3-5 bullet points, including the information of the organization, job location, role title, job description, and beginning & end dates. → See More Guides
Example of an office manager job description for a resume:
Law Office Manager, August 2015 - Present
XYZ Law firm, Washington
- Budgeted office expenses and reduced cost by 20%.
- Conducted legal research and managed office records.
- Standardized recruiting process to efficiently evaluate lawyers and designed training program.
7. Education in an Office Manager Resume
The education section is like a necessary but not primary component of your office manager resume.
To describe your educational background, include:
- School name
- Degree (high school degree is added only if you do not have a higher one)
- Majors & Minors
- Year of graduation
- Honors & Awards
- GPA, extracurricular activities, relevant courses (optional)
8. Additional Information in an Office Manager Resume: Certifications
Certifications are not a required element for an office manager resume. Yet if a candidate has any, he/she can immediately stand out from others because certification is the authorized proof of one’s skills.
Professional certifications for an office manager:
- Certified Business Office Manager (CBOM)™
- IAAP Certified Administrative Professional (CAP)
- ASAP Professional Administrative Certification of Excellence (PACE)
- IFMA Certified Facility Manager (CFM)
Tips for writing the best office (administrative) manager resume
#Tip 1: Customize your office manager resume.
As we mentioned above, a dental office manager resume and a medical office manager resume will not be completely the same. Customization can persuade the hiring manager that you are truly prepared for their company.
#Tip 2: Insert job description keywords in your office manager resume.
It is a similar idea to customization. Besides knowing who your readers are, this tip is about what your readers want, and it is obvious - the keywords in their job descriptions. Hence, an office manager resume with keywords (no matter if it is soft or hard skills) can advance the chance of getting an interview opportunity.
#Tip 3: Quantify achievements in your office manager resume.
Instead of using plenty of ambiguous adjectives to describe your achievements, a numerical figure can directly reveal the level of your ability to the recruiter.
#Tip 4: Choose an ATS-friendly office manager resume format.
Nowadays, some companies adopt Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to filter resumes automatically, so a fancy resume format with graphs and charts is not recommended.
#Tip 5: Use action verbs in your office manager resume.
Action verbs always make your office manager resume more intriguing and strengthen your statements.
#Tip 6: Earn a Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification for your office manager resume.
In many office manager job descriptions, Microsoft office skills are often included. Since an office manager has to organize all the administrative work, understanding how to use software like excel can facilitate efficiency. Therefore, having MOS certifications can convince the employer of your computer skills.
📚 Further reading: Action Verb List for Resumes & Cover Letters
How to write a cover letter for an office manager position?
An office manager cover letter should be a one-page content with the following elements:
1. Contact details
Like a profile in your office manager resume, it is suggested to begin your cover letter for an admin manager with your contact details.
Necessary information includes: full name, email, phone number.
2. Greeting
Greeting the hiring managers with their right names in your office manager cover letter can always impress them very well.
3. Motivation
It is time to answer why you would like to apply for the office manager position in that company. No matter if it is about their product, strategies, culture, etc., try your best to demonstrate your knowledge about their company.
4. Qualification
Here we come to an integral part of your office manager cover letter. In this section, it is best to choose several experiences related to the office manager position, and elaborate them to build a vivid picture to the recruiter about what value and benefits you can bring to the company.
5. Closing
It is polite to appreciate the hiring manager for his/her time to read your resume and cover letter, and please do not forget to sign your name at the end of your office manager cover letter.
Check out some professional cover letter examples!
Office Manager Resume Sample
Ashley Coope
A Flexible Business Office Manager Skilled in Human Resource Organizing and Budget Management
Address: London, England
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ashleycooper
Mobile: (44)-7234-561-234
Cake Profile: cakeresume.com/portfolios/ashley-profil
Resume Summary
A business office manager specialized in internal management. Currently seeking a position as an office manager at Space Corp. Organized a team of 19 to support administrative service in each department and received the employee of the Month in 2019.
Work Experience
Rocket Corp.
Business Office Manager
Dec 2017–Present
- Managed 19 office employees to ensure the office operations go smoothly.
- Standardized appointment and reception process which reduced personnel cost by 30%.
- Designed new administrative policies and procedures with an increase in employee satisfaction rate by 25%.
Moon Ltd.
Administrative Assistant
Aug 2015 - Nov2017
- Maintained office files and records, and arranged purchase receipts.
- Scheduled appointments for C-suite executives, prepared relevant materials and organized meetings.
- Supervised office supply usage, and negotiated price with supply vendors which decreased administrative expenses by 10%.
Education
2011– 2014, BSc in Business Adminstration
University of London
Relevant courses: HRM
Skills
- Microsoft Office Skills (MOS certification)
- WPM: 85
- Performance evaluation
- Budget management
- Scheduling
- Human resource planning
- Leadership skills
- Negotiation skills
- Language: English, French
Certifications
Certified Business Office Manager (CBOM)™
Online resume builders like Cake, provide service in building a professional office manager resume/CV.
--- Originally written by Angela Ye ---
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