Supervisor Resume Example for 2024 [Tips & Skills to Land the Job]

27 June
8 min read
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Supervisors play an important role in meeting organizational needs. 

They oversee other employees’ performance, provide guidance, and bridge the relationship between staff and upper management. 

That being said, leading people and proving that you have what it takes to be a leader are two different things. 

To do the latter, you have to write a supervisor resume that shows recruiters you are supervisor material - and that’s not always easy. 

For example, you have to convince recruiters that you can effectively connect with those you’ll be supervising, but also make them respect you and follow your instructions. 

And although you may have plenty of experience doing it, you might still be wondering what the best way to express it on your resume is. 

Well, you’re in the right place to learn exactly how to write the perfect supervisor resume. 

Here’s what this guide will show you: 

  • Supervisor Resume Example (To Draw Inspiration From)
  • How To Write a Supervisor Resume 
  • 15+ Supervisor Skills to Put on Your Resume

And more! But first, let’s look at a job-winning supervisor resume example:

Supervisor Resume Example 

Supervisor Resume Sample

Now let’s go through all the elements that make this supervisor resume a worthy example: 

  • Follows the chronological format. The chronological resume format is the most popular among recruiters worldwide.  
  • Lists relevant contact details. The supervisor resume example above leaves out redundancies like marital status or age and includes relevant information, like a LinkedIn URL. 
  • Has an attention-grabbing resume summary. In two sentences, the supervisor resume example lists the candidate’s years of experience and top relevant skills.
  • Features as many accomplishments as possible. To really highlight their candidate’s professional experience, the supervisor example lists achievements over responsibilities. 
  • Uses bullet points. The resume example above uses bullet points, which make the resume easy to skim for recruiters. Considering that recruiters have to review hundreds of resumes every day, this makes it more likely for them to read your resume in-depth. 
  • Keeps the education section basic. As a supervisor with years of experience under their sleeve, the candidate has allowed their work and skills sections to do the talking and kept their education short and to the point. 
  • Lists the right kind of skills. This supervisor's resume example doesn’t list every skill under the sun. Instead, they keep the section relevant by only listing skills required from a supervisor. 
  • It takes advantage of extra sections. Extra sections are the cherry on top of a perfect supervisor’s resume. The candidate’s certifications reinforce their skills, while foreign languages show they can even lead a multi-lingual team.   

How to Write a Supervisor Resume That Lands the Job

It’s one thing to look at an inspiring supervisor resume example and another to write one from scratch. 

But worry not! In this section, we’ll show you all the steps to create YOUR perfect supervisor resume. 

Starting with: 

#1. Format Your Resume 

Choose the chronological resume format for your supervisor’s resume, as it’s the most popular format among recruiters worldwide. 

Once you’ve picked the format, start working on your resume layout, which involves: 

  • Keep your resume one page in length. Recruiters receive countless resumes daily, so keeping your resume one page long is to your advantage. That said, if you’re a very experienced candidate with information that you just can’t leave out from your resume, then it might be acceptable to make your resume 2 or 3 pages long. 
  • Use clear section headers to identify your resume’s sections.
  • Pick the right font size and style, such as 11-12 pts for standard text and 13-14 pts for section headers. In terms of style, stay away from non-professional fonts (we’re looking at you, Comic Sans). 
  • Save your resume as a PDF file unless the company you’re applying to indicates otherwise. This will keep your formatting intact no matter what device or operating system opens your resume. 

Use Our Resume Templates 

Hardly anyone wants to deal with the formatting part of a resume!

For starters, there are way too many ways to mess with the layout. 

You may choose the wrong font style and size, set the wrong margins, or pick the wrong section headers... 

As a result, your supervisor resume might end up looking less professional, cramped with information, or unnecessarily long. 

The good news is, there’s a way to avoid all this trouble and at the same time, create a very compelling resume:

By using a resume template! By using one of our templates, the layout and formatting are already done - all YOU have to do is fill in the contents.

And the icing on the cake? Our resume templates look absolutely gorgeous:

best resume examples

#2. Add Contact Information the Right Way 

Once you’ve got the formatting out of the way, it’s time to talk about the contents.

Start filling in your resume’s contents by first listing your contact information

The contact information section consists of: 

  • Your name and surname.
  • Your professional title.
  • Your phone number.
  • Your email.
  • Your location (city and state/country).

If you are a certified professional or have a LinkedIn profile, make sure to mention them in this section. 

Here’s what a supervisor resume contact information section should look like: 

Example:

Sarah Lynn
Certified Product Manager
 

123-123-1234
sarah.lynn@gmail.com
New York, NY
linkedin.com/in/sarahlynn11

#3. Write a Powerful Supervisor Summary 

Your resume summary is your chance to prove to the recruiter, in 2-3 sentences, that they should spend more time on you as a candidate than the usual 6 seconds they spend scanning resumes.

The way to do that is by painting them a clear picture of:

  • Your role and years of experience 
  • Your key achievements 
  • Your most significant skills as a supervisor

Here’s what an attention-grabbing resume summary looks like in practice: 

Supervisor Resume Summary
  • Results-oriented Circulation Supervisor with 3+ years of experience in hiring and training circulation staff, conducting performance reviews, and overseeing all the library’s processes. In my previous role at the HenryCounty Public Library, I managed to decrease the number of overdue and damaged items by sending personalized reminders of return dates and fees. 

Want to learn all there is to know about writing a powerful resume profile and winning recruiters’ attention from the get-go? Give our guide a read! 

#4. Describe Your Professional Experience 

The work experience section is the most important part of any resume. 

That’s the first section recruiters will check to see if you have the right supervisory experience and skills to take up a new role. 

Here’s how you should format your work experience section on your supervisor resume:

  • Start with your current or most recent position and go backward in time from there. 
  • Begin each entry with your professional title, followed by the company’s name, the dates you worked there, and 3-5 of your accomplishments and responsibilities in bullet points.  
  • List fewer bullet points the further back you go into your work history and keep your work entries relevant (e.g. your experience as a server at a restaurant  10 years back won’t help you land the role of production supervisor). 

Simply listing out your work experience as a supervisor, though, isn’t enough. You need to write it in such a way that it’s going to convince the recruiter that you’ve got what it takes to do the job.

Here are some tips on how you can make this happen:

  • Achievements look much better on a resume than responsibilities, so list as many as you can think of (e.g. having only achievements and no responsibilities under each work entry is totally acceptable). 
  • Quantify your achievements whenever it is possible - numbers speak louder than words, sometimes. To do that, you can use the formula “accomplished [X] as measured by [Y] by doing [Z]” (or, start with a verb, numerically measure what you accomplished, provide a baseline for comparison, and detail what you did to achieve your goal.)
  • Have a hard time thinking up achievements? That’s totally fine. Your work responsibilities are also important and can look great on your resume if you use action words to describe them. 

Now, let’s see an example of a supervisor resume work section in practice: 

Supervisor Resume Work Section:

Retail Store Shift Supervisor

Urban Outfitters, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

05/2018 - Current

  • Improved customer service based on clients’ feedback and increased sales by 10% during the second shift. 
  • Maintained high employee satisfaction based on monthly team reviews. 
  • Ensured employees cooperate and work efficiently according to upper management needs. 

#5. Mention Your Education 

As a supervisor - especially one with plenty of work experience under your belt - your education section is less important than your experience and your skills. 

That doesn’t mean, however, that you should overlook this essential resume section. 

First things first, here’s how you should format your education: 

  • Add your latest (and highest) degree first and then list the university’s name, location, and years attended, in this specific order. 
  • If you have a second advanced degree, include it in your resume. 
  • Only include your high school education in your supervisor resume if you don’t have higher degrees. 

Here’s how the end result should look like: 

Supervisor Resume Education Section:

BA in Business Administration 
University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 
08/2013 - 05/2017 

If, however, you don’t have much supervisory experience to show for (e.g., you’re a recent Business Management graduate with only one work entry on your resume) then you can list relevant academic achievements and courses to back up your skills!

Here’s an example: 

Example:

BA in Business Administration 

University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 

08/2013 - 05/2017 

  • Graduated Summa Cum Laude 
  • Relevant coursework: Management Information Systems, People and Leadership, Principles of Management 
  • Senior Resident Assistant during senior year, when I supervised one floor of my dormitory 

#6. Include Relevant Skills 

Whether you’re applying for a low or mid-level position, you’ll be required to supervise people, work processes, and work efficiency - and that no doubt takes both soft & hard skills. 

So, after your work experience section, a relevant skills section is the second best thing that can convince recruiters you’ve got what it takes for the job! 

That said, the answer isn’t to list every skill you ever acquired—hard to imagine your horse-riding skills can help you land that supervisor position you’re after. 

Instead, you want to list relevant supervisory skills that are tailored to the job you’re applying for. Here’s how you can do that: 

  • Read the job description and identify the required skills (e.g. management, leadership, time-management). 
  • Think of all YOUR industry-related hard and soft skills
  • Include all the required skills that match your skills. 

15+ Supervisor Skills to Put On Your Resume

#7. Make Use of These Optional Sections

Want to take your supervisor resume to the next level and set yourself apart from the competition? 

Fill your resume with some of the optional resume sections such as internships or certifications. 

Such sections can: 

  1. Help you stand out from other applicants with similar work experience and skills 
  2. Make your supervisor resume more diverse and show recruiters your level of dedication. 

Here is a list of all the extra sections you can add to your supervisor’s resume: 

  • Certifications. Program certifications give your supervisory skills credibility, so if you have them, flaunt them. 
  • Volunteer work. While volunteering experience might not show off too much of your supervisor skills, they show that you’re passionate about helping others and dedicating yourself to a worthy cause (something employers love).
  • Languages. Over the last years, demand for bilingual employees has doubled in the US - and that includes both low- and high-skilled positions. So, foreign languages on your resume are a definite plus. 
  • Hobbies and Interests. You can use your hobbies and interests to show you’re a great leader outside of work too. Do that by adding relevant hobbies (e.g. heading weekly book club meetings, as opposed to, say, antiques’ collection). 

Here’s how some of these sections can look on a supervisor resume: 

Example Box:

Certifications 

  • Certified Supervisor (ICPM - Institute of Certified Professional Managers)
  • Certified Professional - Human Resource (IPMA - CP)

Languages

  • Spanish (Advanced)
  • Italian (Intermediate) 

#8. Attach a Cover Letter To Your Supervisor Resume  

Just like with any other occupation, when applying for a job, supervisors are required to submit a cover letter alongside their resume. 

Here are some tips on how to write a cover letter that meets this exact purpose:

  • Address your cover letter using the recruiter’s full name, last name, or professional title. Anything but the old-fashioned and way-too-popular “Dear Sir/Madam” and “To Whom It May Concern.”
  • Write an attention-grabbing introduction to start your cover letter
  • Describe your supervisory experience and qualifications in detail throughout your cover letter body. 
  • End your cover letter with a powerful closing statement and call to action. Give our guides on cover letter tips and cover letter mistakes a look to make sure your cover letter is nothing short of perfect.
cover letter structure for supervisor

Want your cover letter to match your supervisor’s resume? Choose one of Novorésumé’s cover letter templates and make the most out of your application. 

Key Takeaways 

And that’s a wrap! 

Now you know exactly how to impress the recruiters and land a supervisor position that you’ll love.

Before you go, let’s go over the main points we covered: 

  • Use your resume summary to give recruiters an overview of your career (e.g. the years you’ve worked, your main skills, and 1-2 of your accomplishments). 
  • Prioritize your professional achievements over your responsibilities and, if you can, make them as quantifiable as possible. 
  • When it comes to skills, choose quality over quantity. Fill this section with the supervisory skills you’re most confident in, not every skill you ever acquired. 
  • Enrich your supervisor’s resume with extra sections such as certifications, volunteer work, and hobbies and interests.