Director of Finance Resume Examples for 2024

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Director of Finance

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Director of Finance Resume Tips

Keywords

Google Docs Template #1

Director of Finance Resume Sample

A director of finance cares about the long-term financial health of a company. You will keep management and your superiors constantly updated on the financial health of the company and will spend time analyzing the markets and writing reports. You will also play a leadership role for the department and will ensure all internal financial policies are followed as well as all financial laws and guidelines.

Recruiters will expect to see a bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, or a relevant field, and will need you to be an expert in corporate finance. Take a look at this recruiter-approved resume sample.

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A director of finance resume sample that highlights the applicant’s specific skill set and impressive experience.

Tips to help you write your Director of Finance resume in 2024

Use finance keywords.

Your resume should read like someone who has been in finance for a long time. An easy way to do this is by using common finance terms and phrases. Examples include ‘YOY’, ‘ERP system’, and ‘overhead costs’.

Also see: 50+ Finance Resume Examples for 2024

Use finance keywords. - Director of Finance Resume

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Focus on finance skills in the skills section.

As much as management and leadership are vital functions of your position, use your resume to show off your expertise in finance. So concentrate on including finance-related skills in the skills section like financial modeling and forecasting.

Also see: Essential Components of Your Skills Section

Focus on finance skills in the skills section. - Director of Finance Resume

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Director of Finance Resume Tips

As a hiring manager who has recruited for Director of Finance roles at companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Citigroup, I have seen thousands of resumes. The best ones always stand out by showcasing the candidate's financial acumen, leadership skills, and ability to drive business growth. In this article, we'll share some tips on how to create a winning Director of Finance resume that will catch the eye of recruiters and hiring managers.

Highlight your financial expertise

Showcase your deep understanding of financial concepts, methodologies, and best practices. Provide specific examples of how you have applied your expertise to solve complex financial problems and drive business success.

Developed and implemented a new financial forecasting model that improved accuracy by 25% and saved the company $2M annually
Led a cross-functional team to streamline the budgeting process, reducing cycle time by 30% and improving collaboration across departments

Bullet Point Samples for Director of Finance

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Demonstrate your leadership and management skills

As a Director of Finance, you will be leading a team of finance professionals. Highlight your experience in managing and developing high-performing teams.

Built and led a team of 15 finance professionals, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and collaboration
Mentored and coached team members, resulting in 3 promotions and a 95% retention rate over 2 years

Avoid generic statements that don't provide specific examples of your leadership impact:

Managed a finance team
Strong leadership skills

Show your impact on business growth

Ultimately, the role of a Director of Finance is to drive business growth and profitability. Use metrics and data to demonstrate how your financial strategies and initiatives have contributed to the bottom line.

Implemented a new pricing strategy that increased revenue by 15% and market share by 10%
Negotiated key vendor contracts, saving the company $5M over 3 years

Don't just list your responsibilities without showing the impact:

Responsible for pricing strategy
Managed vendor relationships

Tailor your resume to the company and industry

Research the company and industry you are applying to, and tailor your resume accordingly. Highlight the skills and experiences that are most relevant to the specific role and company.

Summary: Financial executive with 15+ years of experience in the retail industry. Proven track record of driving growth and profitability through strategic financial planning, analysis, and execution. Expertise in developing and implementing financial systems and processes that improve efficiency and accuracy.

Avoid using a generic summary that could apply to any finance role:

Experienced finance professional seeking a challenging role in a dynamic organization.

Highlight your education and certifications

Include your relevant education and certifications, such as an MBA or CPA. If you have completed any relevant courses or training programs, include those as well.

MBA, Finance, Harvard Business School
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Completed executive leadership program at Wharton School of Business

Don't include irrelevant or outdated education:

Bachelor's degree in English Literature
Completed online course in social media marketing

Use a clear and professional format

Use a clear and professional format for your resume. Use a font that is easy to read, such as Arial or Calibri, and use consistent formatting throughout.

Use bullet points to highlight your achievements and responsibilities
Use bold and italics sparingly to draw attention to key information
Use a consistent font size and style throughout the resume

Avoid using fancy or hard-to-read fonts, or inconsistent formatting:

Using multiple fonts and sizes throughout the resume
Using long paragraphs instead of bullet points
Including graphics or images that distract from the content

Writing Your Director of Finance Resume: Section By Section

Summary

As a Director of Finance, your resume summary is an optional section that can help provide context and highlight your most relevant qualifications. While your resume itself is a summary of your experience, a well-written summary can be useful if you're changing careers or have a lot of experience to condense. However, avoid using an objective statement, as it's outdated and focuses on your goals rather than what you can bring to the role.

When crafting your summary, focus on your key strengths, experience, and accomplishments that align with the Director of Finance position. Avoid repeating information that's already covered in other sections of your resume. Instead, use this space to provide a high-level overview of your qualifications and the value you can bring to the organization.

How to write a resume summary if you are applying for a Director of Finance resume

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1. Highlight your financial expertise and leadership

As a Director of Finance, it's crucial to showcase your financial acumen and leadership skills in your summary. Highlight your experience managing financial operations, developing strategies, and driving growth. For example:

Accomplished financial leader with 15+ years of experience driving financial strategy, optimizing processes, and delivering measurable results. Proven track record of leading cross-functional teams, implementing cost-saving initiatives, and ensuring compliance with financial regulations.

Avoid generic statements that lack substance, such as:

Experienced finance professional seeking a challenging role
Results-driven leader with a proven track record

Instead, focus on specific areas of expertise and accomplishments that demonstrate your ability to excel as a Director of Finance.

Quantify your achievements whenever possible to add credibility and impact to your summary. For example, mention the size of budgets you've managed, the percentage of cost savings you've achieved, or the revenue growth you've contributed to.

2. Tailor your summary to the specific role and company

While it's essential to highlight your overall qualifications, tailoring your summary to the specific Director of Finance role and company can help you stand out. Research the organization and identify key skills, experiences, or values that align with their needs. For example:

Dynamic finance leader with a proven track record of driving financial performance in the tech industry. Expertise in financial planning, analysis, and strategic decision-making to support rapid growth and scalability.
Collaborative financial executive with a passion for healthcare innovation. Skilled in leading financial operations, optimizing processes, and partnering with cross-functional teams to drive mission-driven results.

Avoid using a one-size-fits-all summary that could apply to any Director of Finance role. Instead, customize your summary to showcase how your unique combination of skills and experiences make you an ideal fit for the specific position and company culture.

To ensure your resume resonates with the target employer, try using Targeted Resume to compare your resume against the job description. This tool will help you identify key skills and keywords to incorporate into your summary and throughout your resume, increasing your chances of passing applicant tracking systems (ATS) and catching the attention of hiring managers.

Experience

The work experience section is the core of your Director of Finance resume. It's where you'll highlight your most relevant and impressive career achievements. Aim to tailor this section to the job description. Showcase the skills, experience and knowledge the company is looking for in your bullet points.

1. Highlight financial planning and analysis experience

Hiring managers want to see examples of your financial planning and analysis skills on your resume. Be specific about the types of financial planning and analysis work you've done, like:

Built and maintained financial models to support $50M+ annual budgeting and quarterly forecasting processes
Partnered with business leaders to develop and implement financial plans for new $10M product launch
Led cross-functional teams in financial review meetings to identify risks and opportunities in a $200M business unit

Avoid being vague or generic like this:

Responsible for financial planning
Did financial analysis and modeling

Use strong, specific action verbs at the start of each bullet point, like "built", "led", "developed", "implemented" or "identified" to make your experience impactful. This helps hiring managers quickly understand the depth of your skills.

2. Showcase strategic decision-making and leadership

Companies look for finance directors who are strategic thinkers and strong leaders. Highlight examples of how you've influenced key business decisions and led initiatives:

Advised executive team on M&A opportunities, leading to successful $50M acquisition of key supplier
Developed new capital budgeting process, resulting in 15% improvement in ROI on capital investments
Built and mentored a team of 6 financial analysts, improving productivity by 20%

Weak, non-specific examples will fail to impress:

Gave input on business decisions
Managed a team of analysts

When you highlight leadership experience, include the size and scope of the teams or projects to give context. Leading a team of 10 is more impressive than being vague.

3. Include key finance systems and technical skills

Hiring managers scan for the specific technical skills needed for the role. Mention your expertise with common tools like:

ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, etc.)
Financial planning & analysis software (Adaptive Planning, Hyperion, etc.)
Advanced Excel skills (complex modeling, VBA, etc.)
BI and data visualization tools (Tableau, Power BI)
Other relevant tools like Salesforce, NetSuite, etc.

Sprinkle these in naturally in your bullet points, like:

Built Tableau dashboards to visualize sales pipeline data, identifying $2M in revenue at risk

Optimize your resume keywords by analyzing the job description with Targeted Resume. It scans your resume and identifies skills and keywords you may be missing for a specific job.

4. Quantify your impact with dollars and percentages

As a finance leader, your work has a direct impact on company performance. Use metrics to quantify that impact whenever possible:

Renegotiated key vendor contracts, saving $1.5M annually
Reduced days sales outstanding (DSO) by 10 days, improving working capital by $5M
Implemented cost reduction initiatives that lowered operating expenses by 8%

Avoid missing opportunities to include numbers:

Negotiated better terms with vendors
Improved accounts receivable collections
Cut operating costs

When quantifying your accomplishments, use specific numbers like dollar amounts or percentages to provide context. "Saved $1M" is more meaningful than "saved money". Numbers jump out to hiring managers and make your resume more impactful.

Education

Your education section is a key part of your director of finance resume. It shows hiring managers that you have the right knowledge for the role. Follow these tips to write an effective education section:

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1. Put education at the top if you're a recent grad

If you graduated within the last few years, put your education section above your work experience. This is because your degree is your most relevant qualification.

Include your:

Degree name
University name
Graduation year
GPA (if above 3.5)
Relevant coursework

Here's an example of a strong education section for a recent grad:

Bachelor of Science in Finance, 2020
New York University
GPA: 3.8
Relevant Coursework: Financial Accounting, Corporate Finance, Investment Analysis

If you had a low GPA, leave it off. There's no need to draw attention to it. Focus on your other achievements instead.

2. Keep education short if you're experienced

If you have more than a few years of experience, keep your education section brief. Hiring managers will be more interested in your work history at this stage. You can leave off the graduation year to avoid potential age discrimination.

A senior candidate's education section might look like this:

MBA, Finance
Harvard Business School
B.A., Economics
Stanford University

Compare that to a resume that provides too much detail:

MBA, Finance, 1995
Harvard Business School, Boston, MA
GPA: 3.7
Relevant Coursework: Advanced Corporate Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, Venture Capital
B.A., Economics, 1990
Stanford University, Stanford, CA
GPA: 3.6
Honors: cum laude
Relevant Coursework: Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Econometrics, Game Theory

The exception is if your older degree is highly prestigious and relevant to the job. In that case, you may want to include it to stand out.

3. Add certifications to education or a separate section

Finance professionals often have certifications like Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) or Certified Public Accountant (CPA). These can go in your education section or in a separate "Certifications" section.

If you have a certification that's in progress, you can still include it. Just make it clear that it's not complete yet. For example:

Certifications
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Level 1 Candidate, June 2023

Don't list online courses or non-degree programs in your education section. Save that space for your most relevant and impressive credentials.

Consider creating a separate certifications section if you have several to list. This will make them stand out more than if they're buried in your education section.

Skills

The skills section is a critical part of your director of finance resume. It's where you highlight your top abilities that are relevant to the job you're applying for. Hiring managers and applicant tracking systems (ATS) scan this section to determine if you have the right skills for the position. Here are some tips to make your skills section stand out:

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1. Tailor your skills to the job description

When deciding which skills to include, carefully review the job posting. Look for the key skills and qualifications the employer is seeking. Then, make sure to incorporate those same skills into your resume, using the same language when possible.

For example, if the job description emphasizes experience with financial modeling and data analysis, your skills section might look like this:

Financial modeling
Data analysis
Budgeting and forecasting
Financial reporting

By tailoring your skills to the job description, you demonstrate that you have the specific abilities the employer is looking for.

For extra assurance that you're including the right skills, try using a tool like Targeted Resume from Resume Worded. It scans your resume and compares it against the job description to identify missing keywords and skills.

2. Categorize your skills

As a director of finance, you likely have a wide range of skills, from technical abilities to leadership qualities. To make your skills section easy to read, consider grouping your skills into categories. For example:

Financial Management: Budgeting, Financial Analysis, Cost Control, Risk Management
Accounting: GAAP, Financial Statements, Auditing, Tax Compliance
Leadership: Team Management, Strategic Planning, Decision Making, Change Management
Technology: ERP Systems, Microsoft Excel, SQL, Tableau

Categorizing your skills helps the hiring manager quickly see that you have the right mix of abilities for the role. Just be sure to choose categories that are most relevant to the position.

When categorizing your skills, put the most important categories first. For a director of finance role, this might mean leading with financial management and accounting skills.

3. Focus on hard skills and technical abilities

While soft skills like leadership and communication are certainly important for a director of finance, your skills section is not the place to highlight them. Instead, focus on the hard skills and technical abilities that are essential for the job.

Some examples of hard skills to include:

Financial analysis
Budgeting and forecasting
Cost accounting
Risk management
Financial modeling
ERP systems (e.g. SAP, Oracle)
Advanced Excel skills

By emphasizing your hard skills, you show the hiring manager that you have the practical knowledge and abilities to excel in the role.

Soft skills are still important to mention, but the place for those is in your work experience section. There, you can provide concrete examples of how you've demonstrated leadership, communication, and other key qualities on the job.

4. Be specific and use industry terms

When listing your skills, be as specific as possible. Avoid broad or generic terms that could apply to any job or industry. Instead, use targeted, industry-specific language that shows your expertise in finance.

For instance, instead of saying:

Accounting
Analysis
Management

Get more specific:

GAAP Accounting
Financial Statement Analysis
Capital Budgeting
Cross-Functional Team Leadership

The more targeted your skills are to the world of finance, the more you'll stand out as a qualified candidate.

If you want to check how well your resume highlights your most relevant and specific skills, consider using Score My Resume from Resume Worded. This tool gives you an instant analysis of your resume based on criteria hiring managers and ATSs look for, including your skills section.

Skills For Director of Finance Resumes

Here are examples of popular skills from Director of Finance job descriptions that you can include on your resume.

Internal Controls
Emerging Markets
Investment Banking
Financial Reporting
Due Diligence
Financial Accounting
Sarbanes-Oxley Act
Private Equity
Funding
Finance

Match Your Resume To These Skills

Skills Word Cloud For Director of Finance Resumes

This word cloud highlights the important keywords that appear on Director of Finance job descriptions and resumes. The bigger the word, the more frequently it appears on job postings, and the more likely you should include it in your resume.

Top Director of Finance Skills and Keywords to Include On Your Resume

For more skills, visit Director of Finance Skills & Keywords.

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