Bar Manager CV Example & Writing Guide

When patrons enter your bar for the first time, as a bar manager you’re responsible for their first impression. From the beers you have on tap to the way they’re greeted by the bartenders. The role of your bar manager CV is much the same when you’re applying for jobs.

Your CV is like the promotional posters you put out for karaoke nights or the specials board. It should have all of your best bits and give employers a clear idea of what they’re getting by choosing you as their bar manager. What is it that they can get from you that they wouldn’t be able to get elsewhere? 

Needless to say, it’s important to understand what it takes in order to craft a CV that will get your job application repeat business. Knowing the ins and outs of the various sections needed for a strong CV is a good start. Remember, taking the initiative is already your job, so lean into the process and let your CV do the rest. 

CV guide for a bar manager CV

A good bar manager can’t get their job done well without some delegation along the way. Make Resume.io part of your team by making use of our guide and CV examples that span over 100 professions. Better yet, go that next step further and use our CV builder to save yourself even more time so you can get back to turning a profit.

This CV guide and corresponding bar manager CV example will cover the following:

• How to write a bar manager CV
• Choosing the right CV format for a bar manager
• How to add your contact information
• Using summaries
• Adding your bar manager experience
• Listing education and relevant experience
• Picking the right CV design/layout
• What the bar manager market looks like and what salary you can expect

How to write a bar manager CV

The very first step in writing your bar manager's CV is understanding what sections to include. Your CV should contain the following elements:

• CV header
• CV summary (aka profile or personal statement)
• Employment history section
• CV skills section
• Education section

There will be standards that you need to meet and licences you’ll need to have to operate a bar successfully. Writing a CV that will get the job done and land you your next bar manager role will also require you to tick a few boxes. Fortunately, understanding what those are is easy enough and is just a matter of being as informed as possible about where you’re applying to work.

Most bars run in similar ways. Nonetheless, understanding what separates one bar from another will be the key to catching a hiring manager’s eye. 

Start putting pen to paper with our tips. Not only are they transferable, but you can also tweak and tailor them to suit the bar you’ve got your heart set on managing:

• Focus on what you accomplished in previous roles as opposed to what your responsibilities were. Employers will want to know how you could contribute to their bar as a bar manager beyond performing your daily duties.
• Tailor your CV to suit the bar that you’re applying to. That includes prioritising certain skills above others as well as adjusting the tone where necessary.
• Pick a template that you think will speak to what the bar you’re applying to is looking for. If it’s a high-end cocktail bar, for example, aim for a design that’s polished and modern.
• Optimise your CV by making sure you’ve included keywords from the job description to get it past the ATS software.

Choosing the right CV format for a bar manager

Like the bar you manage, your CV should be well-organised. The best format to achieve this for a bar manager's CV is typically the reverse chronological format.  Good managers lead by example, and at this stage, the only example of your leadership that employers will have is your CV. 

By listing your experiences in reverse chronological order, you’ll be able to clearly outline your career. This format is also characterised by its focus on your employment history section.

As for design, a bar manager’s CV doesn’t need all of the frills. We recommend a modern layout that shows that you can keep up with the times to ensure the bar you manage does the same. 

Include your contact information

Your CV header is the key to making sure that your prospective employer gives you that all-important call. You want to make it to the interview, don’t you? Don’t let this be the oversight that holds you back!

Make it easy for hiring managers to get in touch with you by listing your up-to-date contact information in your CV header.

• Full name & title. List your first and last name, as well as the title of the role you are pursuing.
• Professional email address. Every aspect of your CV should demonstrate your professionalism, including your email address. Use a clean format like [email protected].
• Phone number. Employers won’t expect you to be on your phone 24/7. But be sure to list a number where you can be readily contacted.
• Location. Only list your city. Including your full address is no longer standard practice. If you’re willing to relocate for a role, this is the space to note it.
• LinkedIn. Include your LinkedIn profile if you’ve been active and think its content could lend itself to your application. Employers may look favourably at applicants who know their way around social media.

Don’t include:

• Date of birth: This is no longer necessary and you could put yourself at risk of age discrimination.
• Personal details: Your marital status, social security number, passport number, etc are not required and are considered sensitive information that should not be shared on a CV.

Make use of a summary

Think about what you would want to know about bartenders or other staff members hoping to work in the bar that you manage. Better yet, think about how much time you typically have to look at applications when trying to fill open positions. You know the drill. The CV summary is the friendly face that introduces your professional profile. 

The main content of your summary should be keywords and phrases that the hiring manager for this job will respond best to. The purpose of your CV summary is to capture who you are as a bar manager and how you could help a bar prosper in as few words as possible. Chit-chat is an important part of your job but that can be saved until your interview. 

To land an interview in the first place, you need to craft the perfect CV summary that will hook a hiring manager’s attention, and the recipe for success is simple:

• Short and sweet. Aim for a maximum of 2-3 sentences, that shine a light on your talents and value as a bar manager.
• Descriptive language. Use action verbs written either in the present or past tense to capture what you do in a compelling yet concise way. Some options for bar managers include, “managed”, “organised” and “oversaw”.
• Tailor it to the application. Tweak your summary based on the needs of the bar manager role you’re applying for.

 For more inspiration, you can find adaptable bar manager CV example summaries below:

Outline your bar manager work experience

You don’t get to become a bar manager without a whole lot of experience under your belt. This is the space to let all that effort take pride of place. Show employers how far you’ve come by listing your previous bar roles in your work experience section.

When listing your work experience, apply the reverse chronological format. Start with your most recent job at the top of the section and then work backward. A good rule of thumb is to try not to go back more than 15 years. You only have so much space in your CV, so use it wisely. 

To make this section as reader-friendly as possible, every role you’ve held should have its own subheading which includes:

• The job title
• The name of the company you worked for
• Your dates of employment
• The location of the position

Make every word count by keeping things brief with bullet points, using dynamic action verbs, and omitting “I”. Be sure to detail what you contributed and accomplished during your time in each position. Employers will want specificity so provide examples. 

Ultimately, as a bar manager you are the driving force behind whether a bar hits the sales targets or not. You are responsible for the business side as well as the human element. Plus, you ensure there’s a strong team that you can rely on to support your work. 

Pick out examples from your previous work experience that will highlight your ability to expertly navigate the various parts of the job. For a better idea of what your bar manager employment history could look like, take a look at the CV sample below:

Include the relevant key skills that make you a great bar manager 

There is a wide range of key skills that go into being a great bar manager. This is the section of your CV where you get to show off just how accomplished you are. Include a combination of both hard skills and soft skills. How you choose to balance that mix will depend entirely on the role you’re applying for. 

Here are some hard skills an employer may be looking for in a bar manager: 

• Bar operational knowledge. You will be everyone’s point of reference when it comes to scheduling, inventory management, and enforcing regulations.
• Managing finances. The responsibility for making sure the bar turns a profit will be on you. You need to know how to draft budgets and control costs.
• Regulatory knowledge. Depending on your bar’s structure, it might be up to you to keep informed about the current laws and regulations regarding bars and the sale of alcohol.

Soft skills, on the other hand, may look like some of the following: 

• Conflict resolution. You will be working with a variety of people daily, from your team to your patrons. Patience and the ability to mediate are integral skills to guarantee you’re able to resolve conflicts that may occur.
• Leadership. New hires will be looking to you as an example of how to conduct themselves at the bar. Leadership means setting a positive example and keeping morale high, even on the busiest of nights.
• Customer service. The customer doesn’t have to always be right, but they do have to always feel respected and heard.

What your skills list looks like may change depending on the bar you’re applying to. The hard skills you possess will generally come in handy in every bar you work in. However, employers might prioritise certain soft skills over others, such as leadership and communication if the role involves managing a large team of people. 

These types of requirements will normally be listed in the job description, so read through them carefully and make the necessary adjustments to your skills section. 

To get an idea of what you should be aiming for, here’s what the skills box looks like in our bar manager CV template.

Detail your education & relevant bar manager certifications

Completing your education CV section should be relatively straightforward, regardless of how many qualifications you hold. Simply list either your academic or secondary school qualifications in reverse chronological order.

If you pursued higher education, only include your most recent and relevant qualifications to save space on your CV. This section should be organised and pint-sized. Include the following for each qualification:

• Qualification name
• Name of the institute it was earned at
• Dates of attendance
• Location

Alongside your formal education, this is the space in which you should absolutely make room for any additional certifications or licences that are crucial to being a bar manager. 

Pick the right CV layout and design for a bar manager CV

When picking the right layout and design for your CV you’ll need to consider what kind of bar you’re applying to work at. Cocktail bars in the centre of a busy city may be looking for something more modern and polished than a cosy local pub. 

So, first things first, consider your audience. Every choice you make concerning your bar manager CV should be made with your potential employer in mind. We recommend limiting your colour palette to a couple of shades. Accompany this with a clean font and modern layout. 

You want your leadership skills to stand out and be the star of your CV content! Whatever you settle on, make sure it prioritises readability and oozes professionalism.

If you’re better at mixing drinks than designing, then follow our lead. We have a variety of field-tested CV templates you can choose from that will speed up the process. 

Bar manager text-only CV example

Bar manager job market and outlook

Rapid career progression as a bar manager is often dependent on how successful you are in the role you’re in. Once you’ve established yourself as being competent, more career possibilities may open up. This could include becoming a regional manager or even changing direction within the company.

What type of salary you can expect in bar management 

The average bar management salary in the UK currently sits at around £28,591. This amount can vary depending on the company you work at and whether you’re working in a large city. As with most professions, you can expect to see an increase depending on how experienced you are. 

Key takeaways for building a bar manager CV

Bar managers are responsible for a variety of tasks, so make sure your achievements across them are reflected in a variety of ways across your CV! You’re a multitasking machine, so always adapt your CV by including the right keywords for this particular job from the job description. That way you’ll be more likely to stand out to the hiring manager and to make it past the ATS screening phase. 

If design isn’t your thing, you can always ask for some help from our CV builder to save you some time.