Business Consultant Resume Guide: Sample & Job Description

Have you heard those overblown rumors that consultants sit on their butts all day and make top dollar without as much as breaking a sweat? Yeah, right!

And what if I told you that there are jobs like that out there? Maybe not as idyllic as that, but certainly up there in terms of luxury, salary, and work-life balance.

Of course, getting one ain’t exactly a cakewalk.

Put in the work to make a fantastic business consultant resume, and you’ll be reaping massive profits yet.

This guide will show you:

• A business consultant resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
• How to write a business consultant resume that will land you more interviews.
• Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a business consultant resume.
• How to describe your experience on a resume for a business consultant to get any job you want.

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Business Consultant Resume Sample

Without further ado, this is how to write a glowing business consultant resume:

1. Format the Business Consultant Resume Properly

Business consultants assist companies in identifying any potential room for improvement in any department to optimize the way the business can be run. A successful business consultant resume will show analytical thinking, knowledge of business models and strategies, and a knack for problem solving.

So, time to roll up our sleeves, the first problem is right ahead:

Getting your business consultant resume to shine brighter than that of the 125K new candidates that’ll explode all over the market soon!

Now, that’s not an easy feat. It’ll require some portfolio analysis on your end.

If you’re not sure how to write a resume to begin with, there are a few crucial steps to follow:

• The topmost part of your resume—the resume header—needs to display your contact details.
• After that, focus on picking a resume format.Functional resumes exist but are a bit old-fashioned (and potentially confusing to recruiters), so consider the reverse-chronological format, as it lets the recruiter read the juiciest details right away.
• Choose a readable resume font, keep your resume divided into distinct sections, and utilize enough white space, so the recruiter doesn’t feel too overwhelmed.
• Remember that a longer resume doesn’t necessarily mean a better one. Single-page resumes are enough in the vast majority of cases. Consider a two-page resume if you have 10+ years of relevant experience and plenty of achievements to describe.

Pro Tip: Make sure the company allows this, but if they do, submit your resume in PDF format. It’s generally more user-friendly.

2. Present a Business Consultant Resume Summary or Objective

When serving as consultant to a company, whether in the SMB or megacorp sector, you’re going to need two things:

A plan and a way to present it. 

Now, in the recruitment process, things look more or less the same in a way, and presentation is just as important.

To cut down on fluff, use a resume profile.

There are two kinds:

If you’ve consulted plenty a business, write a resume summary. Mention your most bombastic achievements to showcase yourself in the best light, and back those claims up with numbers to emphasize the real impact of your work.

And, if you’re just getting your foot in the door of your first consultancy meeting (or hoping to), a resume objective is your weapon of choice. To write one effectively, focus on transferable skills and knowledge you already have, plus how both parts will put a big smile on your project sponsor’s face.

Read more: How to Write a Resume Introduction [+Intro Paragraph Examples]

3. Create a Business Consultant Job Description

You need to write a spotless resume experience section, worthy of the Bain Company, even if that’s not where you’re applying.

Here are some job description best practices:

• Start by listing your most recent position, then go backward from there—reverse chronology.
• Each job will need your business title, years worked, and the company details (name and location).
• Write no more than 6 bullet points, each beginning with an action word (Engaged, Implemented, etc.), to describe your tasks, achievements, and responsibilities. Use numbers to make them more appealing.
• Stick to relevant tasks and experience only—you don’t want your best stuff to become lost among less important things.

Pro Tip: Always write a tailored resume that’s personalized for the company you’re applying for. That kind of personal touch is exactly the vibe you’ll want to give off.

4. Write about Your Education on the Business Consultant Resume

Seniors, juniors, and entry-level candidates all need an education section on their resumes.

Especially since business consultant positions without at least a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration or Development basically don’t exist.

Here’s what you do:

• Start with your school name, your majors and minors, and the date you graduated with your highest completed degree.
• Only if you’ve been at it for less than 5 years since leaving school, generate more interest in your application by adding school achievements and extra information. Relevant coursework on a resume can show your theoretical knowledge, and Latin honors or a high GPA (3.5+) prove your potential. 

Writing your resume with no experience? Swap the order of the work experience and education sections. Pimp out the latter, too, to really start with your best foot forward.

Read more: How to List Latin Honors on a Resume

Creating a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide and use content from Certified Professional Resume Writers to have a resume ready in minutes.

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5. Demonstrate the Skills They Want to See on a Business Consultant Resume

Business consultants need to be adaptable and able to serve a wide spectrum of clients, depending on business size and sector.

And there’s no better way of showing that versatility than with a skills section that hits it out of the park.

But—

If you’re tempted to claim you’re Bruce the Almighty and flood them with an unending list of skills, I have to dash your hopes once again: bigger doesn’t always equal better.

A tailored approach is the way to go:

• Look through the job posting and extract resume keywords that hint toward the kind of skill set their ideal applicant would have.
• Most likely, the ideal solution is to also draft a master list of your soft skills, hard skills, and technical skills to get a better idea of your skills mapped out.
• Then, going back to those keywords, try to match them with ones from your list. That way, the matching skills drastically boost your worth in the recruiter’s eyes.

Take a look at this example list of excellent business consultant skills:

Business Consultant Resume Skills

• Flexibility
• Client-first Approach
• Willing to Learn
• Reliability & Drive
• Analytical Thinking
• Business Strategizing
• Gathering Information
• Developing Roadmaps
• Interviewing Skills
• Financial Data Interpretation
• Finding Solutions & Alternative Practices
• Following up with Managers
• Collaboration Skills
• Time Management
• Organization Skills
• Inquisitiveness
• Communication Skills
• Negotiation Skills
• Business Psychology
• Management Consulting
• Active Listening

Read more: What Skills to Put on Your Resume

6. Add More Individual Sections to Your Business Consultant Resume

Great job! Your resume now has all the right sections, and you’re already likely to perform way better than before.

There’s also some not-so-good news here: all the other candidates prepared their applications the same way: header, format, resume profile, experience, education, skills, likely in that order, too.

Best way to stand out from among the generic copycats?

Extra resume sections.

Consider these:

• Certifications and licenses
• Passion projects
• Awards and special achievements
• Hobbies and interests
• Language skills
• Volunteer work
• Publications
• Memberships in relevant professional associations

Pro Tip: Volunteering and working in a multicultural environment are activities that are likely to score the most points, as cultural awareness and interpersonal skills have been demonstrated to be the core competencies of any business consultant.

7. Write a Business Consultant Cover Letter

Cover letters still play an important role in the business world. Nearly 50% of hiring managers expect to see one, period.

If you’re not sure what a cover letter should look like, see this simple checklist:

• Start your cover letter with a hook, or in other words, a statement meant to keep the reader engaged. Bring up your experience in an exciting way, and throw in an achievement or two to start with.
• In the middle section, shine some light on your accomplishments and add context.
• When ending your cover letter, reiterate how motivated you are, mention what exactly excites you about joining the company, and make them a promising offer—one they’d be silly to refuse.
• One perfect way to round out a cover letter is a P.S. statement at the end. Keeps you burned in their minds.
• Also, a neat cover letter format is another crucial element. Don’t submit scrawls on a napkin and call it a job done, that’s not in line with protocol.

Read more: How to Write a Consulting Cover Letter (+ Example)

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

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Thanks for reading! Did we skip any important details? Maybe you are an experienced business consultant willing to share some knowledge with others? In any case, the comments are always open!

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