Pick a clean, professional template that highlights numbers and decision-making. Use a reverse-chronological layout so hiring managers see recent finance leadership first.
Keep your resume concise. If you have under 10 years' finance experience, stick to one page. If you led finance teams for many years at multiple firms, use two pages only.
Use ATS-friendly fonts like Calibri or Arial. Set body text to 10–12pt and headers to 14–16pt. Keep line spacing consistent and leave margins that create white space.
Structure sections with clear headings: Contact, Summary, Experience, Achievements, Skills, Education, and Certifications. Put quantifiable achievements high in each role, like cost savings or forecast accuracy improvements.
Avoid heavy visuals, multi-column layouts, and embedded images. Those elements often break ATS parsing and hide key data. Use simple bullet lists and plain section headers.
Watch common mistakes. Don’t use unusual fonts or elaborate colors. Don’t cram text to fit space. Don’t list duties without results.
Keep date formats consistent and place company names, job titles, and dates on single lines. Use action verbs and short bullets that show impact. Proofread numbers and currency symbols carefully.