Aiming for your next board of directors position? You’ll need a resume that emphasizes your professional experience, places previous board membership front and center, and highlights what you bring to the table. We have tips on exactly how to do that, as well as real examples of successful board of directors resumes and downloadable templates to save you time.

Ready to dive right in? Let’s start with a quick step-by-step guide to walk you through creating a board of directors resume.

How to write a board of directors resume

1. Download a professional resume template or create your own. Keep reading to see some examples of great resumes.
2. Choose where you want to include your board of directors experience. Appropriate places include alongside your work experience, community involvement, additional information, or in a dedicated board membership section.
3. Identify the board you served on, the dates you served, and whether it was for a non-profit or for-profit company.
4. Specify your role. If you held a specific position, list it. Otherwise, use a title like “Committee Member” or “Member of the Board.”
5. Choose 1-2 achievements from your time on the board. For maximum impact, start these with an action verb and include measurable metrics. (More tips on how to write meaningful resume accomplishments below.)
6. Highlight any transferable or technical skills you gained during your time on the board.
7. Tailor your resume for a specific role by identifying the company’s pain points and focusing on how you’ve tackled similar challenges in the past.

Wondering exactly how to put all of that together? Here’s an example.

Board of directors resume sample

Before we detail exactly what should be on your board of directors resume, let’s take a look at a sample resume for a board of directors role.

Short on time? Why not download this template — and 350+ others — directly from our ATS resume templates page?

Board of directors resume format and key sections

Your board of directors resume should include:

• Professional summary
• Work experience
• Education
• Skills
• Professional affiliations and board memberships

Professional summary

An executive summary should be more detailed than a regular resume summary, since it’s your first chance to highlight some of your key accomplishments. Lead with the title of the job you want and include 2-3 of your most impressive accomplishments in bullet points so they stand out.

Here's an example of a board of directors executive summary:

Work Experience

You can include previous board membership in this section if it’s significant enough. Other leadership, management, or high-level positions are also a good fit here. Either way, the key is to quantify your achievements — pull out numbers like how many projects you led, how many people you worked with, or how much money you raised.

Here’s an example of how to include board of directors in your work experience section:

A board of directors resume should highlight your soft and hard skills as well as your relevant experience and professional affiliations. Use the tool below to find out if your resume highlights relevant experience and skills.

Education

Keep this section short. Simply list any degrees in reverse chronological order — you can omit extra information like coursework, GPA, and even graduation dates.

Here’s an example of what it should look like:

Skills

If you’re applying for a high-level role on a board of directors, your skills section might look a little different, too. You can stick to a traditional Skills section at the bottom of your resume or opt for a higher-profile Core Competencies or Areas of Expertise section below your resume summary.

These all look a little different, but they all have a few things in common:

• You should only list hard skills in these sections (including technical skills, languages, techniques, etc.)
• You can use subheadings to separate different skill types and make your resume easier to skim
• To highlight soft skills like leadership, communication, or industry expertise, use your work experience bullets instead

On the topic of skills, use the tool below to get a list of hard skills to include in your skills section.

Professional Affiliations and Board Memberships

Including any previous board memberships is essential for a board of directors resume. If you’ve held multiple board positions in the past, pull these out into their own section with a heading like “Board Memberships” or “Community Involvement.”

Here’s an example:

How to include board of directors on a resume: Essential tips

For your best shot at landing a board of directors position in 2024, you’ll want to highlight:

• Diversity and inclusion (DEI) experience
• Experience with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues
• Involvement in industry associations and thought leadership
• Familiarity with emerging technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI)
• Cybersecurity and data privacy experience
• Crisis management

The best place to do this is in your work experience bullet points (see above for examples).
For even more tips, check out our guide on how to add board membership to your resume.