How to Write a CFO Resume That Reflects Your Leadership Brand

How to Write a CFO Resume That Reflects Your Leadership Brand Pursuing your next step up the career ladder as CFO or Controller? Your CFO resume must connect the dots from tactical details, such as financial reporting or systems, to strategic advisor and CEO partner. By showing examples of strategic decision-making and forecasting, IT oversight, performance recommendations, and Board influence, your CFO resume will position you to compete against other contenders for a C-suite role. Heres how to present your value proposition on a powerful, effective  CFO resume: 1 â€" Assess your brand value against typical CFO achievements and your goals. All of us have a personal brand, but we can be unaware of it (until needing to capture the message for a job search). So, take stock of your reputation as a first step! You might already be known as a leader who can: Overcome obstacles to company growth Identify cost drivers and substantial areas of savings Build consensus for challenging new systems or Finance processes Drive new opportunities for capital funding Add a long-range outlook through financial planning and strategy Add these qualities to a brand value information document, then continue to make a list of what you’d like to be known for, including areas and skills you plan to use during your next role as CFO. Perhaps you’re intent on standardizing financial operations for better accuracy, or offering your expertise to other parts of the corporation struggling with profitability. You’ll also need to gather feedback from your teams, vendors, colleagues, or bosses (which may already be in the form of LinkedIn recommendations or 360 degree reviews). This data will round out your list of brand information points. 2 â€" Blend your brand information into taglines or statements of value for a CFO job. Now, use the information youve gathered to create strong statements that reflect your ROI and future-focused value (as shown in this sample CFO resume). Other branding statements or tagline examples include: CFO Placing Regions Among Top Corporate Performers Strategic Financial Executive Positioning Companies For Growth in the Steel Industry Divisional CFO Behind ABC Company’s Transition to Multi-Brand Industry Leader These statements can be added throughout your CFO resume, both as taglines and to describe your influence on specific projects. 3 â€" Add the scope of your authority (relevant to a CFO role). The key to a strategic message in your CFO resume is to elevate the details  â€" taking the hard facts of budgets managed, teams directed, or cost savings achieved to a higher level. As an example, a CFO who managed S-4 filings and tax requirements during a major corporate transition can mention the effects of the change: “Served as primary accounting officer for evolution into $2B+ retail company”. A Controller intent on ascending to the CFO role could add,  â€œConferred with APAC CEO on operational policies, balance sheet, and liquidity compliance, leading to 32% increase in bank deposits,” tying together a key metric with a solid example of international influence. Back up these numbers with keywords (MA, Global Experience, Executive Team Collaboration, etc.) throughout your CFO resume to reinforce your brand message. By noting the metrics, youre demonstrating executive competency for your next career move and helping employers see why youre a competitive candidate for the CFO slot. 4 â€" Pull CFO-worthy achievements to the first page. By looking at this example of a CFO resume, youll see how accomplishments reflecting your strengths  can be pulled to the first page for quick reading. Without lengthy explanations, you can make an impression and explain your actions (“$130M in working capital freed through initiative to analyze receivables strategies). Be sure to use strong metrics  to catch a reader’s eye and frame the scope of your abilities. The advantage of this strategy? Employers and recruiters typically scan your resume quickly, with much more attention paid to your first page than other areas. A first-page summary ensures that these notable examples of value aren’t missed at first glance. Here, you can also describe challenges that required intensive problem-solving or affected major areas of the company â€" without letting your brand message slide to the back of your executive resume. In summary, capturing   your personal brand message â€" with critical details â€" is an important exercise for your CFO job search. By taking stock of your value-add (current and future) and pointing out the scope of your work in context, you’ll make it easier for the right employer to select you as their next financial officer. Need a competitive edge in your job search? As an award-winning executive resume writer, I create branded, powerful resumes and LinkedIn Profiles that position you as the #1 candidate. My clients win interviews at Fortune 500 firms including Citibank, Google, Disney, and Pfizer, plus niche companies, start-ups, and emerging industry leaders. Get in touch with me  to experience the outstanding results I can bring to your transition. Laura Smith-Proulx, CCMC, CPRW, CPBA, TCCS, COPNS, CIC, CTTCC