Business development CV example

How to add contact details to your business development manager CV

It’s a silly oversight, but some candidates forget to add their most up-to-date contact details at the top of their CV – meaning employers can’t reach them about the next steps. As such, double-check you’ve included all your information before sending your application, preferably in a slightly larger or bolder font for maximum readability. Remember to note:

• Full name – first name and surname
• Location – mention if you’re willing to relocate
• Phone number – the best one to reach you on
• Email address – keep it work appropriate

Example of contact section for a business development manager CV

Start your business development manager CV with a personal statement

Want to develop a personal connection with your business development manager CV? You’ll need a persuasive personal statement. This brief summary at the top of your application usually consists of just three or four sentences to catch the recruiter’s attention.

A personal statement should give an overview of your career path and your achievements or goals.
Our top tips?
Present yourself as an asset, showcase what you can add to the new workplace, and explain why your experience makes you a good candidate for the position. Still confused? Use the handy formula below to get you started.

Sentence one introduces who you are, including your years of experience and career focus, such as hospitality. Sentence two explains what you can achieve using facts and figures. For instance, you might have “headed five sales campaigns that generated £9,000,000 each”. Finally, sentences three and four underline your specialisms, e.g. B2B business strategies.

What else do you need to know about personal statement writing?

• Stick to around 50 words – personal statements should be succinct
• Convey confidence through positive descriptors, such as “passionate”, “enthusiastic”, and “diligent”
• Tailor all the information to the job description – even better, sneak in some of the company’s unique USPs
• Repeat some of the job requirements to reassure employers you have what it takes to succeed
• Avoid clichés – talk about what makes you unique

Example of personal statement for a business development manager CV

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Adding experience section to your business development manager CV

Work experience is the top deciding factor in the hiring process. Employers always prefer candidates with a proven track record because they need less training and supervision. List your previous and current positions in reverse-chronological format and note between three to six responsibilities for each.

If you’re unsure about what information to include, ask yourself – is this recent and relevant? There’s no point discussing a business development manager position from four decades ago if you changed industries and stopped keeping up to date with best practices. Similarly, recruiters don’t need to know about last year’s waitressing position unless you can identify transferable skills that pertain to the job you’re applying for.

How should you format this section? We suggest including:

• Job title
• Company name
• Company location
• Employment start and end dates
• List of responsibilities
• Achievements, awards, and promotions

Like the personal statement, sprinkle in plenty of statistics that prove you can walk your talk. Let’s say you “identified and closed new business opportunities” – can you expand on this? You might have “identified and closed 20 new business opportunities”. Or, you could mention the outcome, e.g. “identified and closed new business opportunities, generating over £5,000,000 in revenue”. Remember, the more specific you can be, the better your chances of success.

In addition, cover as many different duties as possible to show the reader the scope of your abilities. For instance, if you’ve discussed “collaborating with cross-company departments” under one role, talk about “growing engagement” in another. You could also elevate the tone by opening sentences with exciting action verbs. Some of our favourites for business development managers include “advised”, “proposed”, and “negotiated”.

Example of work experience for a business development manager CV

Top skills for your business development manager CV

When employers are short on time, they often skip straight to the CV skills section to assess whether you meet the job criteria. Applicant tracking system (ATS) software also uses this collection of practical hard skills and transferable soft skills to blast your CV past the algorithm. For maximum impact, we advise noting around 12 skills in total, split equally between the two.

Hard skills are job-specific and technical – you’ll learn them through work experience or formal education. Examples include “forecasting sales targets”, “identifying key data metrics”, and “delivering business presentations”. In contrast, soft skills are personality-based, such as “organised”, “motivational”, and “diligent”.

Our best advice? You need both to succeed. All the experience in the world doesn’t compensate for a bad attitude. Likewise, character alone doesn’t get the job done. What skills to include in your business development manager’s CV? Check out the below lists for more inspiration:

Outlining education on a business development manager CV

When competing against equally experienced and skilled candidates, education often gives you the upper hand. You can discuss school, college, and university courses, additional training, memberships to governing bodies, and special licences. Basically, shout about anything that confirms you have the building blocks for a successful career.

While pretty self-explanatory, there are a few rules to remember when filling out this section. Firstly, you don’t have to mention bad grades or incomplete courses – the ultimate goal is to impress the hiring manager, not put doubts in their mind. Secondly, like work experience, only spotlight your most recent and relevant credentials. For example, listing individual GCSEs is unnecessary if you’ve completed a university degree.

What does it take to become a business development manager? Nearly all companies require a degree in a relevant subject, such as “Business Management”, “Business Development”, or “Economics”. They also prefer candidates with a sales, marketing, or business management background. Once you’ve finished university, we suggest looking for internships to put your knowledge into practice.

Here are a few details to include:

• Name of school, college, university, or other awarding body
• Study start and end dates
• Subject title
• Qualification level – e.g. undergraduate degree or A level
• Qualification result – not essential but desirable

Example of education for a business development manager CV