Department Manager Resume Examples

Land your desired job with help from our Department Manager resume examples! We’ve got high-quality samples, plus tips for organizing and writing each resume section.

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LiveCareer Staff Writer
by LiveCareer Staff Writer
Last Updated: September 01, 2023 
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Department Manager resume
summary examples

Most hiring managers only do a seven-second scan of your resume. If they don’t see what they’re looking for in your professional summary, they’re probably skipping to the next person.

A professional summary is a two-to-three-sentence paragraph that sells your top achievements as a Department Manager and best qualifications for the job at hand.

Recent grads, career-changers and those without much work experience would be better served by writing an objective statement which mentions your goals for a position and the skills that you do have.

Below, we’ll share examples of Department Manager professional summaries for different job candidates.

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Good example:

“ A highly motivated and experienced Department Manager with 10+ years of experience in the retail industry. Proven track record of successfully managing and motivating teams to exceed sales targets and increase customer satisfaction. Possesses excellent communication and organizational skills, as well as an aptitude for problem-solving and developing efficient processes.”

Why this example passes:

  • Feature candidate’s success statistic to grab attention. Numbers add detail about how big the results you deliver are, e.g., test scores, passing rate and more.
  • Shows career length, 11 years.
  • Mentions employer-desired skills: student motivation and interactive lessons.
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Bad example:

“ I am a Department Manager with a lot of experience in the field. I have strong organizational and communication skills, and I am able to manage multiple tasks at once. I am a hardworking and dedicated individual who is always looking for ways to improve.”

Why this example fails:

  • Doesn’t include any numbers that quantify department manager’s performance
  • Uses vague descriptions and skills.
  • Doesn’t include years of teaching experience.

The fastest way to write your
professional summary

Showcase your selling points as a Department Manager with an attention-grabbing professional summary generated by our Resume Builder! It’s an automated tool that will suggest best-use phrases and content-rich sentences you can customize.

  • 1

    Enter the details about the job title you held. The builder comes preloaded with auto-suggested phrasing written by resume experts.

  • 2

    Then, just pick from these suggested phrases that best frame your experience and customize them to your liking!

  • 3

    All you have to do is choose the summary phrases that best frame your experience. It’s like having a professional do it for you!

Our Resume Builder will help you write a custom Department Manager resume in 15 minutes! However, if you want to give your resume more dedicated attention, you can also employ our professional writing services to kickstart your search for an Department Manager role confidently.

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Department Manager resume work
experience examples

A big part of your resume’s content will live in your work experience, so you’ve got to put in the extra effort to make it stand out. This section should feature achievements that show recruiters you have what they’re looking for if you want to write a good resume.

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Good example:

Rolling Meadows Middle School I Rolling Meadows, IL I 8/2018-current

  • Managed a team of 15 employees to ensure efficient and effective operations of the department
  • Developed and implemented strategies to improve customer service and increase sales
  • Collaborated with other departments to ensure company-wide goals were met
  • Analyzed customer feedback and implemented changes to improve customer satisfaction.

Why this example passes:

  • Numbers and statistics add detail and quantify the results this department manager delivers: 4% improvement and a class size of 20-25.
  • Good use of strong words and active language.
  • References specialized value cahier provides with “individualized lesson plans.”
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Bad example:

Emily Dickinson Elementary I Redmond, WA I 4/2022-present

  • Managed a team of 10 employees
  • Oversaw the daily operations of the department
  • Handled customer inquiries
  • Dealt with customer complaints.

Why this example fails:

  • Lacks numbers or statistics.
  • Describes general tasks, not teaching achievements or career highlights.
  • Uses active verbs, but doesn’t focus on results.

Department Manager resume skills examples

Here are 18 sample skills for department manager:

  • Problem-Solving
  • Systems and software expertise
  • Scheduling
  • Customer Service
  • Vendor Relationship Management
  • Database Management
  • Emergency Response
  • Performance Management
  • Loss Prevention
  • Vendor Management
  • Sales Reporting
  • Customer Engagement
  • Staff Management
  • Workflow Coordination
  • Staff Development
  • Order Management
  • Resource Coordination
  • Policy Development

You should sprinkle skills and abilities throughout your resume. Include them in your professional summary, work experience blurbs and a dedicated skills section.

Examples of additional resume sections

Your resume must include the five main sections: contact information, professional summary, work experience, skills and education. However, you can also add different sections to show off more achievements.

Here are some examples of optional department manager resume sections that you could add to provide greater detail:

  • References
  • Languages
  • Additional skills
  • Professional skills
  • Soft skills
  • Certifications
  • Accomplishments
  • Photo

Only include additional sections that feature valuable information for your desired Department Manager job. If the information you want to add is irrelevant to the job, save that space for more relevant information.

Examples of resume formats

A resume format refers to how a resume’s parts are organized. There are three resume formats: chronological, functional or combination.

The main difference among them is whether or not they give more visual weight to your work history or to your skills section. The format you should select for your resume is based on your years of work experience as a department manager.

How to choose a resume format

0-3
Years of experience

Functional formats

  • Focus on skills.
  • Best for first-time department manager who lack work experience.
  • Good for people re-entering workforce.
  • May omit dates in the work history section.
Organization:
  • Skills listed above work experience.

3-10
Years of experience

Combination formats

  • Balance skills and work history.
  • Ideal for mid-career department manager.
  • Suitable for career changers and people seeking promotion.
Organization:
  • Skills next to or above work experience.

10+
Years of experience

Chronological formats

  • Put the most focus on work history.
  • Best for department manager with a long, steady career.
  • Most popular format.
  • Preferred by recruiters.
Organization:
  • Work experience listed above skills.
Once you know the best format for you, it’s easy to pick a department manager resume template. Templates are preformatted layouts created by design professionals to ensure your resume looks amazing!

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