Chief of Staff Resume Examples & Templates for 2025

Crafting a standout chief of staff resume can open doors to high-level executive roles. In this article, discover expert tips to highlight your leadership prowess, strategic planning skills, and ability to drive organizational success. Learn how to create a resume that showcases your expertise and positions you as the indispensable right hand to top executives.

This guide will show you:

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

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Chief of Staff Resume Sample

Now, that’s one of those impressive chief of staff resume examples that make the recruiter grab the phone ASAP. Here’s how to write your own chief of staff resume:

1. Format Your Chief of Staff Resume Correctly

Design plays a crucial role in crafting your chief of staff resume. After all, that’s the first thing your recruiter will see among other 250 resumes on their desk. With a competitive job market, your resume must stand out and grab attention immediately. So, how do you make sure it does? Opting for a professionally-designed resume layout format can significantly improve your chances.

To format your resume for chief of staff positions, follow these steps:

• Begin with a clear resume header. Include your contact info: full name, phone number, email, and LinkedIn profile.
• Don’t include your full street address, but mention your town can be beneficial if it matches the location of the company.
• Choose a reverse-chronological resume format to highlight what’s most important for any recruiter: your most recent experience.
• Select a resume font like Calibri or Arial, and keep the its size between 10 and 12 points for readability.
• Adapt resume margins and line spacing.
• Stick to the right length of your resume. It’s usually one page, but you can also aim to write a two-page resume if necessary.
• Name your resume file as “Your Name—Chief of Staff—Resume.pdf.” 
• Save your resume as a PDF file to keep its formatting intact.

Read more: How to Write an Eye-Catching Resume

2. Customize Your Chief of Staff Job Description

According to the ERE article, the first resume lands in a recruiter’s inbox within 200 seconds of a job ad posting. Tailor your resume to the job offer to ensure it gets noticed immediately. Do it by nailing the work experience section.

Here’s how to make this part of your resume shine:

• Use the exact job title from the job listing. This is crucial for ATS-friendly resumes that get noticed by hiring systems.
• List the company name and your employment dates.
• Include 3–6 bullet points for each role. Focus more on recent positions.
• Demonstrate your proficiency by showcasing achievements. The best resume accomplishments are quantified with metrics and KPIs.
• Kick off your bullet points with dynamic resume action words such as coordinated, designed, and prepared.

Chief of Staff Responsibilities for a Resume - Example

• Spearhead strategic initiatives, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives.
• Act as a key advisor to executives, providing insights for decision-making.
• Lead cross-departmental collaboration to enhance operational efficiency.
• Manage executive communications, maintaining transparency and clarity.
• Oversee budgetary planning and financial management to optimize resources.
• Facilitate the execution of complex projects, ensuring successful outcomes.
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with stakeholders to drive engagement.

Remember to use action verbs that convey your responsibilities and achievements effectively. Here are some action verbs for a chief of staff:

Chief of Staff Resume Action Verbs - Example

• Led
• Coordinated
• Analyzed
• Managed
• Developed
• Supervised
• Optimized
• Designed
• Facilitated
• Executed

Did you know a past promotion can land the interview? Read more: How to Show Multiple Positions on a Resume

3. Make Your Education Section Count

No resume education section should stop at the degree name and dates of attendance. It’s a missed opportunity. To boost your chances of impressing a recruiter, demonstrate how your education has equipped you with relevant skills.

Here’s how to do it right:

• Place your degree right after your work history for optimal resume degree placement.
• Include relevant coursework if you're starting out in your career to showcase your expertise.
• Even with experience, mention any scholarships, fellowships, or leadership roles as bullet points.
• Include Latin honors, making the Dean’s List, Phi Beta Kappa and other impressive academic accomplishments.

Read more: How to List Your Minor and Major on a Resume

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4. Prove the Chief of Staff Skills the Company Wants

Approximately 50% of chiefs of staff have backgrounds in strategy and operations, equipping them with the necessary skills to manage diverse tasks and projects effectively. Your task is to show those skills on your resume.

Here's how to do it right:

• The skills highlighted in the job posting are essential resume keywords. Integrate them into your resume's skill list.
• Avoid overloading your resume with too many hard and soft skills, as it can dilute the impact of the key ones.
• To boost your chances of an interview, ensure that the skills you list also appear in your job and education bullet points.

Chief of Staff Resume Skills

• Strategic Planning
• Leadership Skills
• Budget Management
• Organizational Development
• Project Management
• Data Analysis
• Interpersonal Skills
• Verbal and Written Communication Skills
• Problem-Solving Skills
• Time Management Skills
• Decision-Making Skills
• Negotiation
• Active Listening
• Conflict Resolution
• Teamwork Skills
• Adaptability Skills

Pro Tip: Try to combine your hard skills with your soft skills and your technical skills. That will give the recruiter a whole picture of your impressive abilities.

5. Add Other Sections to Your Chief of Staff Resume

Enhancing your resume with additional sections can give hiring managers insight into your personal attributes and interests. By incorporating elements that showcase your full potential, you can demonstrate your initiative and enthusiasm.

Here are some additional sections to consider adding:

• Highlight any certifications relevant to the role, demonstrating specialized knowledge or skills.
• List all authored articles in a publications section to establish your expertise.
• Show participation in professional associations to indicate your active involvement in the industry.
• Mention your volunteering experience, which is always an impressive addition to any resume.
• Show your language skills to highlight your ability to communicate across cultures

Read more: Should You List References on a Resume

6. Write a Chief of Staff Resume Summary or Resume Objective

Compelling a captivating resume introduction is the key to keeping your recruiters engaged in reading your resume. Reading it whole is your goal.

Start it with a resume profile, a concise statement that sums up your key qualifications and accomplishments. 

• If you have extensive experience, use a resume professional summary to highlight your job title, how you can benefit the company, and a couple of impressive achievements.
• If you're entering the workforce or transitioning careers, opt for a resume objective. Here, focus on how your educational or personal projects have prepared you for the role.

Read more: Summary of Qualifications

7. Write a Cover Letter for Your Chief of Staff Resume

Of course, you need a cover letter. It adds a personal touch to your application, proving your genuine interest in the position and the company. Unlike the generic approach many candidates take, a well-thought-out cover letter can significantly boost your chances of landing an interview.

Here’s how to create a cover letter:

• Use a professional cover letter structure with a header similar to your resume, a professional salutation and a business-ready signoff at the end.
• Format your cover letter to 3–5 paragraphs and less than a full page.
• Open your cover letter with your job title in the first sentence and an icebreaker that makes them continue reading.
• Highlight the biggest few achievements in the middle part of your cover letter.
• Write a cover letter conclusion that adds a few more skills and requests a conversation to discuss how you can help them.
• Send an application follow-up email weekly for a month. Make it super-short and attach your resume and cover letter PDFs.

Read more: How to Sell Yourself in a Cover Letter

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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Embrace the journey of crafting a chief of staff resume that truly represents your potential and opens doors to new opportunities. Thank you for reading, and feel free to leave any questions about creating a chief of staff resume in the comments.

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This article has been reviewed by our editorial team to make sure it follows Zety's editorial guidelines. We’re committed to sharing our expertise and giving you trustworthy career advice tailored to your needs. High-quality content is what brings over 40 million readers to our site every year. But we don't stop there. Our team conducts original research to understand the job market better, and we pride ourselves on being quoted by top universities and prime media outlets from around the world.

Sources

• Andrew Goodman, "Chief of staff: Anatomy of the role in eight charts"
• Dr. John Sullivan, "Why You Can’t Get A Job … Recruiting Explained By the Numbers"