An eye-catching product manager resume is key to achieving an attractive job offer. It’s the first impression recruiters have of you, and it’s also often the last thing they review before making a salary offer.
That’s why we recommend using a product manager resume template. Our templates make crafting your resume easy. They’ll walk you through selecting the ideal structure so you can highlight your skills, qualifications and experiences.
Even if you use a template, however, it’s important to tailor your resume to the job listing. Keep reading to discover how to write a product manager resume and customize it to your background.
General Tips for Product Manager Resumes
Before we explore what you should include in your resume, let’s cover some essential product manager resume tips.
Tailor your resume to the role and company in question. The job listing will contain important keywords for product manager resume, and you should use the exact same wording in your resume. This will help make sure that your resume isn’t discarded by an applicant tracking system.
Your resume’s formatting is also extremely important. A product manager resume sample, like our templates, will come with a professional and easy-to-read layout. If you’re not using a template, however, use standard line spacing and margin sizes, font size 11 or 12 and bullet points. Stick to Times New Roman or Arial.
When writing a resume, less is more. Instead of including every role and responsibility you’ve ever held, focus on your most relevant experiences and education.
Essential Components of a Product Manager Resume Template
Let’s break down a product manager resume sample so you can see exactly what you need to include in your own resume.
Ann Example
ann.example@gmail.com (123) 456-7890
Objective Statement
Diligent software product manager with 5+ years of experience and excellent A/B testing skills looking to move into social media apps.
Skills
- Product roadmap development
- A/B testing
- Data analysis
- Risk analysis
- Leadership
Education
California State University Northridge, 2018
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Experience
Product Manager, Lighthouse, Inc., October 2019–present
- Deliver app updates leading to 10% less downtime
- Manage team of 10 engineers
Certifications and Licenses
University of Davis, California, 2019
Data Wrangling, Analysis and AB Testing with SQL
Volunteer and Extracurricular Activities
Volunteer Product Manager, Your Local Mentor, September 2018–May 2019
- Created product roadmap for Your Local Mentor’s app
- Oversaw creation of app one month ahead of schedule
Tips for Writing Each Section of the Product Manager Resume Template
A product manager resume template, complete with the product manager resume examples above, will give you an excellent framework for crafting a resume that impresses recruiters. But for maximum impact, make sure to take the following tips into account.
Product Manager Resume: Objective Statement
The product manager resume objective statement tells the recruiter who you are and why you’re applying for the role. It should be concise and to the point. Try to keep it to three sentences or less, if possible.
Start each sentence with a verb or adjective rather than your personal pronoun, e.g. “experienced product manager” instead of “I am an experienced product manager.”
Not sure what to include in your objective statement? Here’s a cheat code for you:
- Two to three key skills or traits
- Your specialism
- Your experience level
- Your career goals
Product Manager Resume: Skills Section
The skills section should be a bullet-point list of the most relevant skills for the role you’re applying for. Common product manager resume skills include data analysis, leadership, A/B testing, coding and product roadmap development.
Make sure to include the skills mentioned in the job posting, too. Use the exact phrasing so that an applicant tracking system doesn’t discard your resume.
Product Manager Resume: Education Section
If you’re a new graduate, your education section should go beneath your skills section. Otherwise, move it below the experience section.
List your education in chronological order. For each qualification, include the title and your school. You don’t need to mention the year you graduated. As for your GPA, you should only mention it if you recently graduated and it’s higher than 3.5.
Product Manager Resume: Experience Section
Whether you’re writing an entry level product manager resume, a product manager intern resume or a senior product manager resume, the experience section needs to show that you have the skills required for the role. If you’re crafting a product manager resume with no experience, focus on transferable skills from previous positions.
Include the job title, company name and dates of employment for each position. Below this, add a bullet-point list of your accomplishments while in the role. Begin each point with a powerful verb, such as “spearheaded,” “delivered,” “increased,” or “resolved.” Add evidence of your accomplishments wherever possible, e.g. “delivered updates leading to a 15% growth in profits.”
Your resume should fit onto one page. If you’ve got a lot of previous work experience, you may need to cut some of the older or less relevant positions.
Product Manager Resume: Certifications and Licenses
If you have relevant certifications and licenses, include them here. Include the title, awarding body, the year you achieved them and, if relevant, the year they expire.
Product Manager Resume: Volunteer and Extracurricular Activities Section
This is an optional section that you can include if your hobbies and volunteering are relevant to the role. For example, if you’re applying for a position as a product manager at a language learning platform, you could mention your weekly Korean classes.
How to Customize Your Product Manager Resume Template for Specific Jobs
Customizing your product manager resume to the role is critical if you want to impress recruiters. Scan the job posting to identify the skills and qualifications the recruiters most want to see, and make sure to include them.
Make sure you’re adapting your resume to the company, team and role. Recruiters will expect to see different skill sets from a SAAS product manager resume versus a healthcare product manager resume, for example.
It’s worth looking at more role-specific product manager resume examples. If you’re applying for an IT role, then read an IT product manager resume sample or technical product manager resume examples. If you’re applying for a more junior role, then you could look for associate product manager resume examples.
The objective statement, skills and experience sections are where customization is most important. Let’s look at some examples of how you could do this.
- Digital product manager resume: emphasize your familiarity with UI design and digital tools in the objective statement
- IT product manager resume: list the IT systems you’re familiar with in the skills section
- Data product manager resume: state the data analysis models you’ve used
- API product manager resume: include your API experience in your objective statement
- Agile product manager resume: add keywords such as “collaboration” and “working in a fast-paced environment” to your experience section
- eCommerce product manager resume: focus your resume around your experience working for online stores
- Insurance product manager resume: include your knowledge of insurance law in the skills section
- Technical product manager resume: highlight your engineering degree
- Associate product manager resume: mention in your objective statement that you’re eager to learn and looking for more responsibility
- Software product manager resume: include the software coding languages that you’re familiar with, along with your GitHub profile
Additional Tips and Tricks for Crafting a Strong Product Manager Resume
By now, you’ve got a well-structured product manager resume that’s customized to the role in question. But before you begin applying for roles, there are still a few more things to do.
Review your resume for areas where you can add data or other proof of your impact, e.g. “managed a team of 15 people.”
Print off your resume in grayscale: is it still visually attractive and easy to read? You can find many polished product manager resume examples online, but be careful about picking something too flashy. They often aren’t machine-readable and look bad when printed out.
Proofread your resume, paying particularly close attention to your contact details and any numbers.
Finally, draft a follow-up message that you can send after applying. This will make you more memorable to the recruiter.
How to Apply for Product Manager Jobs
Begin your job hunt by using platforms such as LinkedIn and Indeed, as well as more niche websites specific to your specialism. Don’t overlook the value of networking, either. Professional events and even online forums can be great places to discover job opportunities. Keep an eye on your favorite companies’ social media accounts and newsletters, too.
Once you’ve found a role that interests you, begin adapting your product manager resume template to the company and position. Our product manager resume builder will talk you through this so you can do it in minutes.
Depending on the organization, you may also need to craft a cover letter. Use this space to explain what interests you about the role and why you’re the ideal fit.
Once you’ve sent off your application, it’s time to arm yourself with well-prepared responses to common interview questions. Be prepared to explain your experience of managing products from design to launch, how you handle setbacks and your methodology for making data-driven decisions. You can use the STAR framework — situation, task, action, result — to help you structure your answers.
With a well-crafted resume and solid interview preparation, you’ll be in an excellent position to impress interviewers and negotiate a strong starting salary.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How to Write a Product Manager Resume
Begin writing your product manager resume by choosing a professional template (Rocket Resume’s templates are recruiter-approved!). Then, tailor it to match your experience and skills, as well as the job in question.
How to Build a Resume as a Young Product Manager
When building a resume as a young product manager, you’ll want to emphasize your transferable skills from your previous work experience. Select a resume template that’s designed for entry-level product managers or recent graduates to help you make the most of your skills, education and experience.
What Should be on Product Manager Resume?
Your product manager resume should include your contact information and objective statement, followed by sections for your skills, experience, education and certifications and licenses. You can add another section for your volunteer experience or extracurricular activities if they’re relevant to the role you’re applying for.
What Makes a Good Product Manager Resume?
A good product manager resume is clear and easy to read, whether it’s a human or software program that’s reviewing your application. It should be customized to the role in question, as well as to your experience, education and skill sets. Make sure to use the keywords from the job posting, too.
What Skills to List on Resume Product Manager
Key product manager skills for resume include soft skills, such as communication skills, attention to detail, time management and leadership; and technical skills, such as product roadmap development and A/B testing.
What to List for Technical Skills Product Manager Resume
Technical skills that should appear on your product manager resume include product roadmap development and oversight, prototyping, A/B testing, data analysis and product research. Make sure to include all technical skills listed in the job posting, too.
Product Manager Resume: How Many Pages?
Your product manager resume should ideally fit onto one page unless you’re applying for international roles. If you have lots of experience, be concise and cut out less relevant roles from five or more years ago.
How to Format Product Manager Resume
The best way to ensure your product manager resume has the correct formatting is to use a product manager resume sample. It will have the ideal font size and layout so that you can guarantee that your resume is professional and can be scanned by computer software. All Rocket Resume templates are machine-readable.