A vice president of finance is responsible for the financial operations and health of a company and is answerable to the president, CEO, or board of the company. This senior-level position is heavily male-dominated with men making up over 73% of all VPs of finance. Interestingly, the manufacturing industry is where you will get paid the most in this profession, and you are more likely to find yourself working in a public company as opposed to a private one.
To succeed in this position you need to show a very strong finance background and a very strong managerial and executive background. In fact, 95% of VPs in finance have a bachelor’s or master’s degree so make sure your resume highlights these degrees and any finance certifications you have. It should also concentrate on your previous roles in a managerial or executive previous role as much as possible.
This resume guide comprises several resume samples, recruiter tips, and relevant skills and action verbs you can use to elevate your resume.
Jump to a resource:
Get advice on each section of your resume:
This senior executive position has you in charge of all the financial functions of a company. You will work with the relevant finance-related departments to ensure that expenses are paid and that all revenue is accounted for. You will oversee tasks like payroll and policy and strategy creation. This position requires expertise in finance and at least a bachelor’s degree in finance or a related field. Recruiters will also want to see a history of management-level roles so highlight your management experience in your resume. Take a look at this recruiter-approved resume sample.
Grab recruiters’ attention from the very beginning of your resume. Because they may not have time to scrutinize the hundreds of resumes they get, it’s advantageous to include impressive achievements and metrics in the introduction section as this applicant has done.
Show recruiters that you are very experienced in the finance sector by showing a history in finance positions. Being able to show an upwards progression like this applicant has, will give you the extra benefit of indicating your success in each position and the confidence previous employers had in you to promote you.
In this position, you will serve two functions. On one hand, you will oversee the company's finances and work with the president and/or board to create strategies and goals that will maximize the company’s financial health. On the other hand, you will oversee the company’s operations and implement policies that will maximize the output and efficiency of employees and other company resources. Your resume should show your experience and skill in performing both functions. Here is a strong resume sample.
In this position, your main goal is to maximize efficiency and revenue, and minimize costs. Use metrics to show how successful you have been at achieving those goals. Metrics make your resume more easily digestible and can give you an edge over your competition. Take a look at how this applicant’s metrics make their experience seem more impressive.
Your position is dualistic in nature so your skills list should be dualistic as well. Make sure you include skills needed to satisfy both your finance function and your operations function. This applicant has done this successfully.
A senior vice president of finance is in charge of anything finance related in the company. Their job is to ensure the company’s financial operations are in line with the company’s mission statement and strategic goals. Tasks you can expect include hiring finance-related staff, coordinating resources and staff, overseeing the finance department, and providing necessary guidance.
This position requires that you have a strong financial background both in terms of your educational background and your experience background. Ensure you include any related degrees or certifications like a CFA in your resume. Likewise, because this is a very senior role, use your experience section to highlight your experience as a leader and manager of large numbers of people. Take a look at this successful resume sample.
This is a very senior position so being able to show a steady and upwards career trajectory in the finance department is very beneficial. It indicates that you are a stellar employee and are assertive and passionate about your career progression.
It is one thing to say you were in charge of a finance department and another to say you led 232 staff members and 12 finance managers. Numbers and metrics are an easy way to put your capabilities and successes into perspective and impress recruiters. So where possible use metrics. This applicant has done this very effectively.
We interviewed several hiring managers at top financial firms like Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and Morgan Stanley to get their insights on what makes a strong VP of Finance resume. They shared valuable tips on how to showcase your experience, skills, and achievements in a way that will grab the attention of recruiters and hiring managers. Here are six key tips to keep in mind when crafting your VP of Finance resume.
As a VP of Finance, you need to demonstrate your deep knowledge of financial concepts, strategies, and best practices. Showcase your expertise by including specific examples of how you:
A summary on a VP of Finance resume is optional, but it can be a powerful way to provide additional context about your career and highlight your most relevant qualifications. As a senior-level executive, you likely have an extensive background that may be difficult to fully capture in the limited space of a resume. A well-written summary can help you quickly convey your value proposition and make a strong first impression on potential employers.
However, it's important to avoid using an objective statement, which is an outdated practice that focuses on your own goals rather than how you can benefit the company. Instead, your summary should be a concise overview of your key strengths, experience, and accomplishments that are directly relevant to the VP of Finance role you are seeking.
Your work experience section is the backbone of your resume. It's where you showcase your career trajectory, key accomplishments, and the skills that make you qualified for the VP of Finance role you're targeting. In this section, we'll walk through step-by-step how to write an effective work experience section that will impress hiring managers and increase your chances of landing an interview.
A VP of finance needs to be a strong leader and a finance expert. In their position, they need to be able to strategize and enforce policies that will maximize a company’s financial health. Using the right action verbs is a great way to highlight your success in accomplishing these main functions.
You can highlight your leadership functions by using action verbs like spearheaded, managed, and orchestrated, and you can highlight your finance functions by using action verbs like audited, raised, and accounted. Here is a list of strong action verbs related to your position.
For a full list of effective resume action verbs, visit Resume Action Verbs.
The skills section of a resume should be where recruiters can gain an understanding of what you offer and what you are capable of, at a glance. A skills section can be divided into sub-sections that can include industry knowledge, tools, hard skills, etc. Not including a vital skill might result in your resume not making it past ATS filters and you not getting a chance to interview for the job. So concentrate on creating an effective skills section.
The skills section for the VP of finance resume needs to cater to the technical finance needs and the managerial and executive needs. Under tools make sure you include the industry standard finance tools used and any administrative tools an executive would use. Use the industry knowledge section to list the tasks and functions of a VP of finance that you have experience in, such as budgeting, financial planning, and auditing. Here is a compiled list of skills that you can include in your resume.
This word cloud highlights the important keywords that appear on VP of Finance job descriptions and resumes. The bigger the word, the more frequently it appears on job postings, and the more 'important' it is.
Thank you for the checklist! I realized I was making so many mistakes on my resume that I've now fixed. I'm much more confident in my resume now.
