Management skills for CV: Soft and hard skills to include

When hiring for supervisory positions, employers search for management skills in CVs to judge whether a prospective hire can perform the duties of the position. The job demands efficient leadership, time management and communication skills, as supervisors often coordinate with other managers, teams of employees or specialists in the related field. Managers also understand the skills specific to their job and maintain updated knowledge of the intricacies of their industry. In this article, we discuss which soft and hard management skills you should include on your CV when applying for manager jobs.

Related: What does a manager on duty do?

Management skills for your CV

When applying for a management position, highlight the management skills for your CV that show your ability to lead a team and understand the needs of your industry. Good managers not only supervise their team but motivate and support them in their daily functions. They're efficient leaders who ensure their team stays on task and meets the company's goals, often through incentive programmes and performance reviews. They may make decisions concerning the hiring or training processes and provide mentorship or guidance to employees who wish to advance in the industry.

Managers run reports and evaluate the budget according to specific data, such as projected and actual costs or profits. They oversee the daily productivity of their team or several teams, measuring work output to the amount of time spent on those processes. They may also work with a marketing team or manage advertisement and social media interaction to increase visibility and awareness of their brand or company. You can divide your management skills into the soft and hard skills you use to effectively lead your team.

Related: Management skills: Definitions and examples

Soft skills for management

Soft skills are the various interpersonal traits and skills that determine the strength of a person's relationship with others. These are the abilities that you can apply to any job and can improve through experience working with other people. Soft skills for management that you can display in your CV include:

• leadership

• teamwork

• time management

• problem-solving

• prioritisation

• motivation

• communication

• conflict resolution

• empathy

Related: 11 top job skills: Transferable skills for any industry

Leadership

Employers want a manager who is confident in delegating tasks and guiding a team towards meeting the company's objectives. In short, they want a strong leader. Managers train, guide, oversee and support their employees. Examples of strong leadership skills include any of those that directly result in cohesive and smooth operation, often closely related to teamwork. By adding leadership skills to your CV, you offer a unique talking point for interviews to share positive leadership experiences.

Related: 14 essential operation manager skills

Teamwork

Alongside leadership qualities, employers prefer managers who can build productive and cooperative teams. This means that you have the skills to get people to work alongside each other and use team-building activities to create strong interoffice bonds among coworkers. A cohesive team is the foundation of peak efficiency and productivity of any business, and listing these skills on your CV shows your understanding of what makes a team great.

Time management

Strong managers understand that time is a valuable resource, just like money. Since many projects and tasks are time-sensitive, managers create realistic deadlines or goals for their employees. They also need to be understanding of sudden changes and be able to adjust to accommodate the needs of the company's time.

Related: Time-management skills: Definition, examples and tips for improvement

Prioritisation

Management requires an awareness of all projects and initiatives. Managers plan ahead and track the team's progress as they brainstorm new ideas for incentives. They're aware of current projects and tasks as well as future ones and often remain aware of proposed projects that may require adjustment to current schedules. Employers want a manager who utilises their ambition to drive the success of their team and the company at large.

Problem-solving

Critical thinking skills allow managers to address issues quickly and provide solutions for their teams. Management often provides challenges and obstacles that require flexibility and creativity to overcome. The changing nature of the job may offer different issues each time, and a strong manager accepts the challenge and finds a reasonable solution so their team can continue unhindered.

Related: Skills vs. Competencies: Understanding the key differences

Motivation

Managers should motivate their teams to increase employee morale and productivity. Motivational managers give employees positive feedback and incentives or even just by relating to them. Strong managers understand how to motivate employees through positive reinforcement and by leading the team with a positive outlook. Highlighting these qualities on your CV can catch the eye of employers who are currently struggling with low morale in their company.

Communication

Effective communication skills are the foundation of a productive professional relationship. Teams that communicate well with one another can overcome any obstacle in their path and the manager of that team sets the standard for communication between employees. Managers communicate the instructions of a new project, company objectives and changes in the workplace to their team through a written statement, conversation, staff meetings or announcements. Employers also prefer managers who provide open, professional and comfortable communication with their employees, in the event the employee needs to discuss a workplace issue or conflict.

Conflict resolution

Workplace disagreements and conflicts can impede company productivity and slow communication. Strong managers take this opportunity to not only resolve the initial conflict but to strengthen the team as a whole. They need to be understanding of everyone's viewpoint and suggest a compromise or solution for the situation that can help resolve similar conflicts in the future.

Related: How to mediate conflicts (With definitions and steps)

Empathy

Managers should be empathic with their team members. They should understand what a realistic workload is for a person and allow for breaks when appropriate. They also should understand when personal needs arise among employees and find ways to work with them. By being an empathic manager, employees may feel understood and comfortable sharing any feedback or concerns they may have. Displaying empathy on your CV may also indicate your flexibility and willingness to work with others for the best possible outcome.

Hard skills for management

Hard skills are the various technical skills you learn through your education, training or job experiences. These skills will be directly related to the industry you work in and the day-to-day duties of the job. They may include processes or methodology behind completing specific tasks or steps in a project. These skills are a measure of your technical prowess and working knowledge of the industry itself and are learned and developed through instruction and practice. Hard skills for management that you can display on your CV include:

• project management

• public speaking

• digital communication

• foreign languages

• spreadsheets

• point-of-sales systems

• programming languages

Project management

Projects specific to your industry can be simple or complex processes that include multiple steps or methods, and learning to effectively manage them requires training hours and years of experience on the job. Managers should have the knowledge and experience to train their employees and advise them with any issues they may face throughout the process. If you have project management skills, list them on your resume and include specific project management software or systems you know how to use.

Related: Project management skills and how to improve them

Public speaking

Depending on the industry, management may require the skills necessary to lead meetings or presentations with staff, other managers or specialists in the field. This is a primary skill for updating and directing staff and clients with any new information pertaining to the company or a specific project. Add public speaking skills to your CV to show that you are comfortable speaking in front of others and can effectively communicate ideas to your team.

Digital communication

Effective digital communication skills allow managers to efficiently relay information through digital mediums such as email and social media. They may use a mass mailing system to send important notifications or updates or use social media for advertising and promotion to their customers. Managers utilise a clear and concise writing style when using digital communication skills. Employers may prefer to have managers who have a current understanding of business communication and the digital world.

Foreign languages

Proficiency in foreign languages equips managers with effective cross-cultural communication, market expansion options, cost efficiency, and quicker decision-making by reducing reliance on language services. It enhances trust and credibility, and aids talent management, while also fostering personal growth and adaptability in a globalised business landscape.

Spreadsheets

Managers record and analyse data points related to their industry and their team's productivity. Nearly every industry uses spreadsheets for cash reconciliation, inventory, budgeting and many other processes related to business administration and human resources. Display your knowledge and experience with spreadsheets software and list the specific software you have used before.

Point-of-sale systems

Retail and food service industries require managers to have an intimate working knowledge of point-of-sale systems. Employers in this industry search for managers who can add to the company's efficiency with their experience with point-of-sale systems. List the point-of-sales systems you've used in the past and the various processes you are familiar with, such as menu creation, dining room orientation, inventory and ordering services or the basics of entering and closing orders.

Related: What are job-specific skills? (Plus how to identify them)

Programming languages

Information technology or computer science industries require managers to understand programming languages. Managers in this industry lead their teams by understanding the steps necessary to complete each function of the job and the issues they may encounter along the way. They help their employees troubleshoot problems and give advice on best practices for programming. List on your CV which specific programming languages you know, such as JavaScript or Python.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are affiliated with Indeed.

Related:

• 19 practical skills to learn to grow your skills set

• What are enterprise skills? (And how to improve them)