Facilities managers are the wizards working behind the scenes of any large business. These modern-day magicians make sure every part of the facility works just as it should. Precious is everything — the talented professionals need to be well-versed in the latest legislation, safety procedures, and more.
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If you’re looking to take a step up the career ladder and land this role, your resume has to do the heavy-lifting. Here at Resume.io, we’ve got powerful resources to supercharge your job search, including epic resume examples for 350+ professions and helpful guides.
Within this guide and the corresponding facilities manager resume example, we will cover everything you need to know including:
- What a facilities manager does
- How to write a facilities manager resume (with tips!)
- The best format for a facilities manager resume
- Market outlook and statistical insights
- Professional layout ideas and design tips.
What does a facilities manager do?
The main role of a facilities manager is to plan and coordinate the activities that help a business run smoothly. That is most likely to include overseeing safety measures, service contracts management, dealing with building inspections, collaborating with staff members, and dealing with daily functions.
For example, you may find yourself planning essential services, such as the facility cleaning, catering, waste disposal, recycling, and maintenance. Think of the facility — or premises — as a well-oiled machine. You simply have to keep it running efficiently.
While that’s the broad definition of what a facilities manager does, the duties you can expect will be varied. These may change from business to business. However, let’s take a quick look at some of the tasks you will need to undertake:
- Prepare contracts for vendors and third-party businesses
- Oversee the budget for all facility-centric activities
- Coordinate essential services (such as cleaning and catering)
- Ensure that the staff is safe at all times
- Meet health and safety requirements and any legislation
- Track the performance of the facility and its sustainability
- Oversee a team of workers, e.g. maintenance staff
The typical entry-level requirements for this role is a bachelor’s degree and less than five years of experience in a similar position. The median salary for a facilities manager was $98,890 per year in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
What’s more, the job outlook is expected to grow by 9% between 2020 and 2030, on par with the market average. Put simply, the future is bright for facilities managers.
How to write a facilities manager resume
To get started writing your facilities manager resume, you need to understand what sections to include. Your CV needs to feature the following elements:
- Resume header
- Resume summary (AKA profile or personal statement)
- Employment history
- Skills section
- Education section
Facility managers play a vital role in the everyday running of the business. Demonstrating that you have what it takes to take the helm is vital. When writing your resume, you need to showcase both your educational background and the skills you have gained. Recruiters are looking for candidates with the experience and knowledge to hit the ground running.
When writing your facilities manager resume, you need to showcase both your skills and education. Be sure to tailor your application to the job at hand. While the main duties of a facilities manager will be similar across the board, be as specific as you can. The more you can share about your expertise and quantify your track record, the better.
To help you along the way, it’s smart to research the employer first. Learn as much as you can about the facility — its location, size, and functions — before you work on your resume. This trick will mean that you have the competitive edge over other candidates.
Professionalism is key. You are steering the figurative ship that is the facility. The management team will trust in you to keep the staff safe and weather the tides. For that reason, the tone of your resume should be formal, clear, and precise. Chances are, the hiring manager is not looking for someone with creative flair or a penchant for joke-telling. No, they want a hard-working individual with boundless knowledge and an eye for detail.
Adapt your resume for the ATS
Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) help recruiters find the best candidates. The software filters resumes by keywords — dumping some in the ‘junk’ and sending close matches to the recruiter. In simple terms, if your resume doesn’t contain the right keywords, you might miss out on a job interview. Luckily, there’s a way to beat the ATS.
Look through the job advert and note down the specific words used. Peppering your facilities manager resume with these phrases is a savvy move. Chances are, the ATS is looking for the same words written in the posting. Including them may mean that your resume is more likely to end up on the hiring manager’s desk.
Choosing the best resume format for a facilities manager
Most of the time, job seekers should use a reverse chronological format for their resume. That means that your most recent job role appears at the top of your employment section. Next, you work your way backward in time, listing all other positions you’ve held.
You don’t want to overcomplicate your resume format. Hiring managers spend seven seconds looking at each application. That’s not a lot of time to make the right impression. You need to position the most important information front and center. The vast majority of the time that will be your most recent job and the achievements you gained within it.
While there are times that you may break this rule — such as when you lack any work experience — it is a solid guide. When writing a facility manager resume, you should already have a degree and experience, and so a reverse chronological approach works.
Resume summary example: make the right first impression
Next up, the most creative part of your resume. The summary — also known as the profile or personal statement — sits neatly at the top of the page. You should position it below your resume header. It’s your chance to sell yourself to the employer.
First impressions matter. The summary is the first thing that a hiring manager will read about you. Give them a taste of what you have to offer: your experience, your skills, and any other accomplishments that set you apart from the crowd.
Resume space is valuable. For that reason, your sentences should be short and sweet. Cut out any fluff or flowery language, and stick to the facts. Additionally, you may want to avoid using ‘I am’ or ‘I have’. Instead, go straight in there with the meat of your sentences. It may be useful to take a shot at writing your summary and then edit it down. Below you’ll find the summary from our facilities manager resume sample.
Find more inspiration for your summary in our related maintenance and repair resume examples including our handyman resume example and maintenance worker resume sample.
Highly skilled facilities manager adept in directing all facility operations and maintenance procedures. An excellent communicator with the proven ability to effectively manage staff and ensure that all facility procedures comply with local, state, and federal regulations. Experienced in transportation industry and storage of hazardous materials.
Employment history sample: telling your story
Experience is golden if you want to be a successful facilities manager. As we have already stated, you will need a few years of experience in a lower role before you can level up. Your employment section is where you show off your previous experience. You should use a reverse chronological approach, starting with your most recent job.
Formatting wise, you need to start with the job role, company name, and location at the top. Beneath each of these headers, include your dates of employment followed by your duties and achievements. You can bullet-point the latter to save yourself some space. As before, leave out any ‘I’ statements and simply get down to the point. Check out the employment history section from our facilities manager resume sample below.
Facilities Manager, CBR Trucking, New York
Mar 2018 - Apr 2022
- Successfully developed and managed a facilities team consisting of 15 employees.
- Scheduled the implementation of improved monitoring of all utilities.
- Effectively addressed all emergency response efforts for immediate stabilization of operations in zones involving hazardous substances.
- Supervised 10+ vendors and property management teams to consistently ensure timely performance.
- Mentored all maintenance associates by providing direction and motivation.
- Worked with the purchasing department to order necessary supplies and arranged for timely deliveries.
- Reduced costs by 15% due to meticulous upkeep of equipment maintenance, resulting in less machine malfunctions and failures.
Head Groundskeeper, Hudson Company, New York
May 2016 - Feb 2018
- Effectively oversaw daily operation of three garages and five acres of property.
- Performed all duties in accordance with company rules, policies, safety requirements, and security standards.
- Maintained an up-to-date knowledge about the current shipments, deliveries and equipment coming and going at the facility.
- Oversaw the work of maintenance employees and delegated responsibilities to achieve higher levels of productivity.
- Worked closely with upper management to establish and work toward the achievement of goals.
CV skills example: showcasing your talents
Let’s delve into the skills section of your CV. Facilities managers have to wear many figurative hats. Not only will you be responsible for ensuring that every aspect of the building runs well, but you also need to collaborate with others. Having a strong base of interpersonal skills and expertise is vital to your success.
What are the most important qualities of a facilities manager?
A Facilities Manager resume should highlight a blend of personnel and project management expertise. Hiring managers are looking to find a candidate that can manage projects on time, within budget, and with an eye for implementing processes and procedures to cut costs and improve service. At the same time, they'll need personnel leadership qualities to make effective use of their teams, as well as providing effective oversight and management of vendors and contractors.
Your CV skills section needs to be a medley of both hard and soft skills. Soft skills include communication and professionalism. Hard skills are more technically-focused, such as legislation compliance. Refer back to the job advert for inspiration. You may want to use the same wording as the employer. The more specific you are, the better your chances. Here is a list of skills from our adaptable resume sample:
- Facilities Management
- Effective Time Management
- Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
- Leadership
- Staff Management
- Teamwork
- Customer Service
- Ability to Multitask
- Critical
Facilities manager education example
The average entry-level requirement for a facilities manager is a bachelor’s degree, according to the BLS. However, you may get the job with an associate’s degree. When it comes to your education section, you should list your degrees and diplomas in reverse chronological order.
That means that your most recent and highest qualification will go at the top of the section. You simply need to include the name of the degree, the university, the location, and the dates you attended. If you want to add something extra, you can include your minor (if applicable), any relevant coursework, and extracurricular activities you engaged in. Before you make that decision, you should think about how much space you have to spare. See the education resume sample below.
CUNY Bronx Community College, Associate of Business Administration, Bronx
Sep 2014 - May 2016
Resume layout and design: perfect the look
Looking to land yourself an interview? The last thing you want is to put recruiters off at first glance. Ensuring that your design and layout is right will help you avoid that pitfall. Hiring managers favor clean and simple designs that don’t detract from the information.
To give yourself the best shot, make sure that your facilities manager resume is clear and concise. Include white space wherever possible and avoid overly complicated designs. Formatting can be extremely dull. If you’re unsure where to start, check out our field-tested resume templates. That way, you can focus on what matters: showing off your talents.
Key takeaways for a facilities manager resume
- Facilities managers have to oversee a wide selection of tasks, and so highlighting your experience and expertise is essential.
- Since you will be working across departments, you will need to showcase your excellent communication and interpersonal skills too.
- Tailoring your resume to suit the job advert will help it get past the Applicant Tracking System (ATS).
- Using a tried and tested resume template saves you hassle and time — meaning you can effortlessly create an interview-winning resume.
