resume examples for job skills

100 Good Skills to Put on a Resume [Complete Guide]

Jeff Gillis 0 Comments

By Jeff Gillis

Updated 6/4/2022.

When you’re adding skills to a resume, you don’t just want to focus on what you’re good at. Instead, relevancy has to be part of the equation. After all, every job you’re trying to land requires a very specific skill set, one that you need to show that you have.

Choosing the skills to put on a resume when you’re applying to a role isn’t something you should do haphazardly. Instead, you want to use the job description, company mission, and company values as a guide, creating a sense of alignment.

Additionally, it never hurts to have a handy list of skills by your side, making it easier to explore your options. So, if you’re on the hunt for good skills to put on a resume, here’s what you need to know.

Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills

There are two basic types of skillsets that a job seeker can have and include on their resume: hard skills or soft skills.

Hard skills are the skills or abilities for a resume that are easily quantifiable…that can be learned through classroom work, apprenticeships, or other forms of learning. These include things like operating tools, computer programming, speaking foreign languages, or different kinds of technical prowess.

Soft skills are more subjective and harder to quantify and are often grouped together by what we know as “people skills.” Some examples of soft skills include communication, relationship building, self-awareness, and patience.

Which Skills Are More Important?

The debate rages on about which of these two types of skills is more important.

According to executive consultant and Forbes contributor Naz Beheshti , “…There is an ongoing debate about the relative importance of soft and hard skills that imply a competition between the two. However, they are both necessary and complementary to one another.”

On the one hand, job seekers with proficiency in a specific hard skill may get hired more quickly. Many employers want to hire people that can deliver value with fewer resources (ex., the need for training, etc.), making hard skills their priority.

However, we are also seeing that many hiring managers are choosing to hire candidates with highly developed soft skills.

In the end, as Indeed puts it, “soft skills are necessary to create a positive and functional work environment.” Plus, hiring managers feel that they can always train the candidate in the hard skill that is required to complete the job, but soft skills are often skills that cannot necessarily be taught.

So, what does this mean for you? Mainly that you can’t simply just pick one or the other and cross your fingers. Instead, the best strategy is to take a balanced approach and make sure that your resume contains both hard and soft skills.

How Do You Choose the Skills to List on a Resume?

Here’s the deal; there’s a good chance you know what you’re good at in a professional sense. Often, you can use your experience, duties, training, and education as a guide, giving you a strong foundation. Then, it’s about diving a bit deeper, looking at traits that could help you stand out, and comparing it all to the job description.

By using a simple process, you can make progress faster. Here’s a quick way to get started.

1. Make a List of the Skills You Know You Have

As mentioned above, the easiest way to get a grip on your current skills is to reflect on your academic and professional experiences. Consider the tasks you’ve taken on, the training you’ve completed, and the courses you had in school. In most cases, that’ll give you some solid ideas about your hard skills.

After that, it’s time for soft skills. Here, you want to think of traits or capabilities that help you engage with others and navigate professional relationships. Often, these are reflections of your personality, so use that as a jumping-off point.

2. “Mine” the Job Descriptions for Must-Have Skills

The next step is to take a look at the job description for the position you are applying for and make a list of the required skills it includes. Then, compare it to your capabilities. Are any of the skills on both of the lists you just created? If so, these are must-haves for your resume.

Now, notice if there are any skills on the job description that you don’t have. If there aren’t any, great!

But if there are…don’t panic. There are things you can do, which we’ll dig into shortly.

If you’re dealing with a vague job description, you aren’t stuck either. Here is a link to a ton of job descriptions that can give you an idea of the skills needed.

3. Tailor Your Skills to the Company/Position

As you may have read in our other blog articles, it is always very important to “tailor” your resume to the company and position you want to land. For an in-depth look into how to make that happen, check out our Tailoring Method article.

If you want a quick overview, the idea is to focus on capabilities the company wants to find. Every job requires a unique skill set, and you want to show you have it. As a result, it is absolutely essential that skills from the job description make an appearance on your resume.

However, you also want to dig deeper. Spend some more time researching the company, including going through all of their various web properties, such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages.

Why? Because they will leave clues about the types of people they hire. That gives you more ideas about the best skills to put on a resume to land a job there, particularly when it comes to soft skills you may not find in a job description.

100 Resume Skills Examples

If you’re struggling with coming up with a list of skills based on your past experience, it can be easier if you have existing resume skills lists to work with. You don’t have to think up every possible skill; you can simply review the list and find the matches.

Here is a list of resume skills examples, divided into hard skills and soft skills, that you can use when applying for a job.

Hard Skills for a Resume

Advanced Bookkeeping
Appointment Setting
Automotive Repair
Cold Calling
Computer Programming
Conversion Testing
Copywriting
Customer Engagement
Customer Service
Data Analysis
Digital Marketing
Electrical Engineering
Environmental Cleanup
Forklift Operating
Graphic Design
Heavy Machinery Operation
Installation
Landscaping
Mathematics
Medical Coding
Paid Online Traffic
Patient Care
Photo Editing
Picking and Packing
Project Management
Schedule Management
Search Engine Optimization
Server Maintenance
Social Media
Spanish Fluency
Statistical Analysis
Systems Analysis
Technical Support
Telecommunications Systems
Travel Booking
Video Editing
Website Design
Word Processing

Soft Skills for a Resume

Accountability
Active Listening
Adaptability
Brainstorming
Business Etiquette
Collaboration
Communication
Conflict Resolution
Contextualizing
Critical Thinking
Decision Making
Emotional Intelligence
Flexibility
Goal-Setting
Handling Pressure
Influencing
Insightfulness
Interpreting
Negotiation
Open-Mindedness
Organization
Prioritization
Problem Solving
Relationship Building
Reliability
Resource Management
Responsibility
Self-Confidence
Strategical Thinking
Strong Work Ethic
Time Management

What If I Don’t Have the Required Skill?

Whether you need to possess a specific skill depends on the job and the skill in question. Usually, here’s where you have to be honest with yourself. If the skills required are part of the core competencies of doing the job, you may want to reconsider your application.

For example, if a golf course posts a job posting for a golf pro, you probably shouldn’t apply if you’ve never swung a golf club.

However, you will come across situations where what you bring to the table is close. In this case, moving forward might be okay.

You need to be able to demonstrate, using examples from your past, that you are capable of doing the required skill, even if you haven’t specially done it. So, go over your work history with a fine-tooth comb and try to come up with a few examples of you doing something in the right ballpark.

They are going to ask about it in your interview, so don’t think you can just wing it, and everything will be fine.

Also, many job descriptions have “nice-to-have” skills on the list. If you happen to possess them, great. But if not, don’t assume you shouldn’t apply if you have the must-have skills. In the end, those capabilities aren’t outright requirements, so don’t screen yourself out based on them.

How To List Skills on a Resume

There are a few different schools of thought when it comes to deciding where to put (or how to list) the skills on your resume.

According to our friends over at online resume-builder Zety.com , “…skills are so very, very important that they should show up all over your resume. Not just in the resume skills section.” In other words, it is imperative that there are elements of your skills throughout your resume, including your resume objective/summary and experience sections.

In addition, there isn’t one right answer for where to include your skill section because that depends on the industry, company, and position you’re trying to land. For example, for a job where technical competencies are of the utmost importance, it is often beneficial to list the skills closer to the top of the resume, right underneath the resume objective or resume summary statement.

However, if through your research you determine that the hiring manager will put more weight into your experience, you may want to lead with your experience. Then, put the skills section further down your resume.

At the end of the day, the selection of the skills themselves is the most important thing. After all, most hiring managers will easily find your skill section regardless of where it is on your resume.

What About Skills for My Job Application?

When you’re looking for skills to put on a job application, you do have to treat it a little differently than skills for a resume. Usually, you’re working with a finite amount of space on an application, not just in an overall sense but in each applicable section.

Since that’s the case, you need to lean heavily on the job description. Look for any capabilities that are listed as must-haves or that are repeated through the job ad. Then, make sure those skills are featured prominently in several areas, including in work history descriptions and skills areas.

If you have to answer essay questions, discuss those skills there, too, whenever possible. Use any other relevant capability as a supplement, treating it as supporting information instead of the primary point you’re sharing.

However, if an essay question asks about a skill that’s not in the job description, feel free to dig in a bit. It’s a capability that’s clearly on the hiring manager’s mind, so touch on it occasionally to show you shine in that area.

Putting It All Together

If you were wondering, “What are some good skills to put on a resume?” you should now have a solid answer. The most important thing to remember is to select skills that are relevant to the position you are interviewing for and, more important than that, skills that your company puts a tremendous amount of value in.

Once you get your skills straightened out, you should make sure that the rest of your resume is congruent with the skills you just selected, namely, that your experience shows that you both used those skills in a work environment and developed the skill with on-the-job tasks.

Co-founder and CTO of TheInterviewGuys.com. Jeff is a featured contributor delivering advice on job search, job interviews and career advancement, having published more than 50 pieces of unique content on the site , with his work being featured in top publications such as INC , ZDnet , MSN and more.

Learn more about The Interview Guys on our About Us page .

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101 Essential Skills to Put on a Resume in 2024 [For Most Jobs]

Listing skills on your resume is fairly easy.

Listing the right skills in the right way is a little bit trickier.

Are you mentioning the right skills for the job, or are you boring the HR manager with irrelevant information?

The hiring manager for the software development team couldn’t care less about your expertise in marketing. What they’re dying to know, though, is your skill level in Python and how you get along with the team.

In this guide, we’re going to walk you through the process of putting skills on your resume from start to finish. We’ll explain how to identify the right skills and how to list them in a way that catches the hiring manager’s attention!

Here’s what you’re going to learn:

Hard Skills Vs Soft Skills - What’s the Difference?

Why Should You List Your Skills on a Resume?
8 Best Skills to Put on a Resume
How to List Skills on a Resume
120+ Skills to Put on Your Resume (For 10+ Fields)

New to resume-making? Give our resumes 101 video a watch before diving into the article!

Skills are divided into hard skills and soft skills .

To create an effective job application, catch the hiring manager’s attention, and land your next job, you should mention both hard and soft skills in your resume.

But what exactly is the difference?

Hard skills involve the technical knowledge or know-how one can gain through experience, training, or education. For example:

Machinery skills. E.g., operating a road roller, pallet-stalker, forklift, etc.
Software skills. Depending on the field, you need to know how to use different software, such as the Adobe Creative Suite for graphic designers or the Ableton Live Suite if you’re a DJ.
Tools. Say you’re a digital marketer . You’ll need to know how to use tools like Stethoscope, Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Ahrefs, and the sorts.
Multilingualism. The more customers you can communicate with, the more valuable you are as an employee. Some sought-after languages today include German, Chinese, Spanish, and Arabic.
Computer skills . If you’re a web developer, your hard skills will likely include coding languages such as Python, C++, etc. Even if you’re not though, most jobs will require that you have at least some basic computer knowledge in MS Office and G-Suite, emailing and presentations, etc.
Techniques. E.g. frequency analysis, Crystallization.
Mathematics. Many professions, such as accounting and finance, require mathematical skills.
Data analysis. Businesses are always looking for professionals who can gather and analyze data for various stakeholders, which makes data analysis a very in-demand hard skill.

…and just about any field-specific skill. While hard skills are essential to complete tasks in about any job, they’re also teachable and easily measurable.

Soft skills , on the other hand, are attributes and habits that describe how you work individually or with others. They are typically not job-specific but rather transferable skills that indirectly help you adapt to the work environment and company culture.

Some examples of the most in-demand soft skills include:

Communication
Problem-solving
Organization
Adaptability

Like hard skills, you can also learn how to develop soft skills, although it’s significantly harder.

While you can acquire computer skills through a technical course, you’ll need to work much harder to develop, say, your communication skills.

In the workplace, for example, you’d need to practice active listening , learn how to notice nonverbal cues, and practice your oral communication skills as much as possible.

What’s the Difference Between Hard Skills and Soft Skills

Here are the two main differences between hard skills and soft skills:

How you obtain them. You can obtain hard skills through work experience , education, training, and certification. Soft skills, on the other hand, can be gained through life experience, both on and off work.
How you use them. You apply hard skills directly to the job, whereas soft skills come into play indirectly and may often complement your hard skills. For example, you may be a communicative marketer or an office manager with great leadership qualities.

Why Should You List Skills on Your Resume?

The skills section is one of the 3 most important resume sections , with the other two being work experience and education sections.

If written correctly, the skills section looks something like this:

By now, you’re probably thinking “ how hard can this be, right? All I have to do is list all my skills and call it a day! ”

Well, not exactly. The process of putting skills on your resume is a bit more nuanced than that, and we’re going to tell you why.

Most companies nowadays use Applicant Tracking Systems to help them go through the hundreds and thousands of resumes they receive every day.

This software scans your resume for keywords relevant to the job you’re applying for, and if it doesn’t find them, the software automatically rejects the resume.

Say, for example, the job you’re applying to requires an Expert level in Java. If you haven’t mentioned Java as a skill on your resume, your resume can automatically get discarded.

In fact, 70%+ of resumes are rejected at this stage, never having even been seen by an HR professional.

And, even if the company doesn’t use an ATS, there’s a good chance that the HR manager is going to skim through your resume looking for the right skill set.

So, whether you’re doing this for the ATS or the HR, it’s important to mention the right skills .

Below, we’re going to explain just how to do this in the best way possible.

But first, let’s cover some of the best skills to mention in any resume, regardless of your profession.

8 Best Skills to Put on a Resume

Every profession requires some role-specific hard skills if you want to do it properly. An accountant, for example, needs to know math to do their job right, just like a photographer needs to know how to use photo editing software like Photoshop.

In most cases, it’s easy to identify such skills and understand whether you’re qualified enough for the job.

The right soft skills for a job may be harder to point out, but they’re just as essential in today’s job market - 93% of employers say “ soft skills play a critical role in their decision about whom they want to hire. ”

To give you an example, if you’re a project manager, you will need to have excellent organizational skills in addition to your project management skills. Or, if you’re a developer, you need to also be an apt problem solver.

You can find lists of field-related, relevant soft and hard skills later in the article, but for now, here are the top soft and hard skills valued by hiring managers in most professions :

#1. Communication skills

There are very few, if any, jobs out there that don’t require at least some level of communication skills.

Whether you’re a writer who needs to communicate a message to your readers, a marketing specialist who needs to communicate an advertising campaign to your client, or an office worker who must communicate with a colleague to complete a task, communication skills are vital.

Communication is a multi-faceted skill that includes several skills, such as:

Oral and written communication
Non-verbal communication
Active Listening
Presentation
Public-speaking
Negotiation

#2. Computer skills

By 2016, over 70% of US jobs required medium-to-high-level digital skills.

This means that computer and technical skills are priceless assets even if your job isn’t centered around technology. As such, computer skills are almost always a great addition to any resume.

Here are some valuable computer skills for every professional:

Office suites (MS Office, iWork)
Social media
Database management
Web (Internet savviness, basic HTML, CMS)
Troubleshooting
Equipment installation and configuration
Fast Typing

#3. Management skills

Management skills are usually associated with management positions, but in reality, that’s not usually the case. Any type of professional can benefit from strong management skills.

In a nutshell, management skills involve being able to effectively handle people, resources, and processes, including your time, plans, projects, and so on.

Here are some of the most in-demand management skills:

People management
Project management
Time management
Risk management
Action planning
Conflict Resolution

#4. Problem-solving skills

Problem-solving means you’re able to identify problems successfully, find the root cause behind them, and come up with creative solutions.

Considering there isn’t a single job where you won’t face problems in one way or another, problem-solving skills are a great asset to have. When it comes to managerial, professional, and technical positions , problem-solving skills are essential.

Problem-solving is a set of skills that includes:

Research skills
Analytical skills
Critical thinking
Decision-making skills
Attention to detail

#5. Organizational skills

Organizational skills are a set of soft skills that help you keep track of information, materials, and even your time in such a way that you can tackle short and long-term tasks efficiently.

Organizational skills are among the top skills recruiters are looking for in 2022, primarily because they help employees be more productive, save companies time and money, and facilitate a more positive work environment.

Here is what organizational skills consist of:

Physical organization
Prioritization
Goal setting

#6. Leadership skills

Leadership includes both the ability to manage and inspire others. Managers are not always great leaders, but leaders almost always make good managers.

People who’re good at leading are emotionally intelligent, good communicators, and natural-born influencers. They can motivate others to reach their full potential and work together towards common goals. This makes leadership another great skill to have for many professions out there.

Some important soft skills related to leadership include:

Relationship-building
Strategic thinking

#7. Customer service skills

A big part of jobs out there involve dealing with customers.

From customer support representatives to cashiers, customer service skills are a great asset to have in 2024. Particularly, that’s because it encompasses a number of other valuable skills, such as:

Persuasion skills
Product knowledge

#8. Interpersonal skills

Interpersonal skills refer to how well you can understand and get along with other people.

It goes without saying that they’re extremely useful for team-oriented or customer-facing roles, as a big chunk of the work involves communicating with other people.

Such skills, however, are also useful for roles where you don’t get to interact as much with people.

Take, for example, writers. To be a really good writer, you need to be able to:

Understand and communicate with your audience
Collaborate with your publishing team
Understand what people are like

Just like most other transferable skills on our list, interpersonal skills are multi-faceted. Here is what they consist of:

How to List Skills on a Resume (And Stand Out)

Now that you have a clear understanding of how important skills are - and how some are more relevant than others - let’s talk about how you should list them on your resume.

There are several things you need to do to stand out:

#1. Tailor Your Skills to the Job

Relevance is key; the customer service skills you acquired working as a server during college won’t come in too handy when you start work as, say, a data analyst .

So, the first thing you should remember is to only list skills that are useful for the job you are applying for . To find out what these skills are, you should scan the job listing.

Job ads usually list a set of requirements or skills they expect a good candidate to have. Make sure you don’t leave any of those out on your resume.

For example, imagine you are applying for a line cook position in a restaurant:

“Here at ‘ABCD’ we are committed to creating a one-of-a-kind experience for our guests . Our French restaurant is looking for a professional line cook for the summer season to work directly under the supervision of our chef. Responsibilities include prepping and cleaning food, creating and cooking meals, and cleaning up the working area . Impeccable attention to detail in food cooking and presentation is needed.”

The underlined bits in this job description are the role’s responsibilities. By paying a closer look, you can understand that ABCD is looking for someone who:

Is committed to excellence and is highly professional
Works well under supervision, and with others
Can prep, clean, and cook food
Pays great attention to detail in cooking and presentation

Based on this, some of the skills you should definitely mention in your resume can include teamwork, attention to detail, communication, food prepping, and culinary skills.

As a given, you wouldn’t mention anything that isn’t directly related to the job. As a line cook, you’re not going to be using a lot of tech, so you wouldn’t include your computer skills in your resume (even though such skills are relevant for a ton of other jobs).

#2. Create a Skills Section

Once you’ve identified all the right skills to add to your resume, create a “Skills” section to list them under. This way, the hiring manager will be able to check whether you have the right skills more easily and the ATS software won’t disqualify your resume.

Here’s what you should remember while making this section:

Be specific. “Verbal and written communication” sounds significantly better than “communication.”
Sort your skills by relevance. Order your skills based on how critical they are for the role. More important skills go on top, and the nice-to-have ones go on the bottom.
Don’t lie or exaggerate. It goes without saying that you should never, ever, lie about your skills. The employer will know you lied the moment you have to work on a task that requires that very skill.

#3. Match Each Skill With Your Proficiency Level

For each skill that you list on your resume, use the competencies proficiency scale to show your proficiency level:

Beginner. You are just starting to learn or have not practiced the skill through experience (usually fresh graduates that only understand concepts through theories or classroom experience).
Intermediate. You have applied the skill in practice, and require assistance with it on rare or special occasions. You still have room to grow.
Advanced. You know your stuff! You don’t need help with the skill anymore. You can also teach beginners how to use it.
Expert. You are a recognized authority on this skill, the go-to person if anyone has any questions. You have consistently proved to be excellent in this skill. You could even write a whole book about it!

#4. Back-Up Your Skills in Other Resume Sections

Listing your skills in a separate section will only get you so far. After all, everyone else is also doing exactly the same thing.

To take your resume from good to great, you want your most critical skills to “pop” from the get-go and to prove to the hiring manager that you actually possess them.

Here is where the resume summary and work experience sections come in.

The resume summary is a short, 2-3 sentence-long summary of your resume that, done right, shows hiring managers your strongest points as a candidate the moment they lay eyes on your resume.

Positioned right under your contact information section , this is the first place where you can mention that you possess one or two of the most role-critical skills listed in the job description.

Here’s how the resume summary of the line cook example we mentioned above would look in practice:

Detail-oriented line cook with over 5 years of experience prepping and cooking over 200 Mediterranean cuisine recipes. Collaborative professional who puts the needs of the team first. In my last position, was able to help the chef handle rush hour work of over 100 tables with 100% accuracy and approval rate from our customers.

Once you’ve grabbed the hiring manager’s attention by including your top skills on your resume summary, it’s time to prove that you have them .

The best way to do that? List some accomplishments in your work experience section and explain how utilizing a particular skill helped you achieve them.

Here’s how that would look like in practice:

Prepped and helped cook food for over 500 customers in the past two years, receiving high praise and positive recommendations for the restaurant continuously.
Helped restaurant to receive positive reviews for 3 years in a row from Gastronomica magazine for attention to detail and food aesthetics and presentation.

#5. Put Transferable Skills to Use

If you’re an entry-level candidate or if you’re switching careers , you should definitely put transferable skills to use. Transferable skills are not directly related to the job you are applying to but are still useful, as well as relevant to most jobs.

Let’s say, for example, that you’re going for a career change from sales to copywriting. You can benefit from listing at least some of the skills acquired in sales in your copywriter resume , such as:

Written communication. Both roles involve communication via text. A salesperson needs to send cold emails, while a copywriter has to write newsletter emails.
Persuasion. A copywriter needs to create copy that drives sales, while a salesperson needs to be persuasive in person.
Computer skills. Both jobs require some degree of computer knowledge. For a salesperson, that’s using Customer Management Software, while for a copywriter, that’s publishing content online.

150+ Must-Have Skills (for Every Field)

Are you still not sure which skills to mention in your resume? We’ve got you covered.

We compiled a list of some of the most relevant skills on the market in 2024, for all sorts of different fields!

If you happen to possess some of these skills, make sure to mention them in your resume. If not, it’s never too late to learn something new!

#1. Soft Skills

Soft skills are essential for just about any job out there. While they’re not necessarily critical to doing your job well, they ensure that you get along with your coworkers and foster a positive work environment.

When evaluating two candidates with equal hard skills, the hiring manager is always going to pick the one that has better soft skills.

So, it’s very important to mention your soft skills in your resume.

Here are some of the most in-demand soft skills today:

Effective communication
Emotional intelligence
Conflict management
Teamwork skills
Stress management
Productivity & Organization

#2. Marketing Skills

With new technologies developing faster than ever, it becomes essential to move beyond the basics of traditional marketing. Here are some of the most relevant marketing skills these days, including both cutting-edge online tools, as well as classic marketing skills:

Data analysis
Web analytics
Email marketing
Web scraping
CRO and A/B Testing
Data visualization & pattern-finding through critical thinking
Search Engine and Keyword Optimization
Project/campaign management
Social media and mobile marketing
Paid social media advertisements
B2B Marketing
The 4 P-s of Marketing
Consumer Behavior Drivers
Brand management
Copywriting
Storytelling

#3. Management Skills

As a manager , you need to have the right mix of soft and hard skills.

Below are the management skills needed to not only get the job but to also enhance employee and company productivity in the long run.

Six Sigma techniques
The McKinsey 7s Framework
Porter’s Five Forces
Emotional Intelligence
Dealing with work-related stress
Task delegation
Technological savviness
Business Development
Strategic Management
Negotiation
Proposal writing

#4. Sales Skills

The art of selling has stayed the same despite technological advancements. Humans still strive for contact with other humans. Despite channels of communication becoming digital, communication and empathetic skills take priority in the sales industry.

A comprehensive must-have skill list for salespeople includes:

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Cold-calling
Public speaking
Lead generation
Buyer-Responsive selling
Buyer engagement
Effective communication and sociability
Social media/digital communication

#5. Design Skills

Today, knowing the basics of design does not suffice anymore. To get hired as a designer, you must know how to create killer branded content for the web and for social media channels.

Some of the most important design skills for your resume are:

Adobe Creative Suite: Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop
Dreamweaver
Infographics
Photo Editing
Typography: spacing, line height, layout, choosing fonts
Storyboarding
Targeting and marketing through visual communications
Logo creation
Digital printing
Integration of visual communication in social media platforms
Attention to detail & aesthetics
Interactive media design
Color sense & theory
Active listening

#6. Basic Technical Skills

These are skills that almost everyone working in an office should know. You can put these skills on your resume if you are applying as a secretary, office clerk, or any other type of office employee.

The basic technical office skills include:

Microsoft Office Pack: Word, Excel, Access, Publisher, Outlook, Powerpoint
Filing and paper management
Bookkeeping through Excel or TurboTax
Research and data analysis
Basic knowledge of user interface communication
Technical writing
Cloud networking and file sharing

#7. Accounting & Finance Skills

Goodbye, filing by hand. Hello, countless platforms and apps. Accountants and financial specialists should familiarize themselves with these skills in order to have a successful career:

Microsoft Excel (Advanced)
Enterprise Resource Planning
Big Data Analysis & SQL
Know Your Customers (KYC)
Cognos Analytics (IBM)
Visual Basic
Accounting Software
Revenue recognition
Anti Money Laundering
Clear communication
General business knowledge
Numerical competence

#8. Education Skills

How many times have you witnessed a 50-year-old honorary doctor with three PhDs struggle to play a YouTube video during undergrad or grad school? Teaching methods have evolved, and so have the required skills to be part of the education industry.

Some of the most essential educational skills are:

Updated curriculum knowledge
Research & Data analysis
Educational platforms (software like Elearn)
Technological & digital literacy

#9. Web Development Skills

It seems like there’s new technology popping up every other second now, a good enough reason for web developers to keep updating their skills.

That said, if you are proficient in HTML, CSS, and Java, you pretty much have a leg up on the competition. All other skills on this list derive from or build upon the three basic programming languages. You can learn or improve your web development skills here.

CSS preprocessors
Graphic User Interfaces (GUI)
Git/Version control (Github, GitLab)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Application Programming Interface (API)
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign
Content Management Systems (CMS)
Testing/Debugging
Responsive design principles

#10. Business Analytics

BAs are very in demand right now by businesses, and for a good reason! They perform an almost magical task of analyzing past and present data to give future predictions. To perform their magic, they need some analytical spells:

SQL (a must) and Hive (optional)
Programming language (R, Python, Scala, Matlab)
STATA, SPSS, SAS
Data Mapping
Entity Relationship Diagrams
Big Data tools
Microsoft Visio
Agile Business Analysis
Machine learning
System Context Diagrams
Business Process Modeling
Technical and non-technical communication

#11. Nursing & Healthcare Skills

More than any other profession, healthcare professionals need to stay constantly updated with new technologies, medicine, and techniques. The skills nursing requires are countless and specific, but the most basic ones boil down to:

Mathematics
Patient care and assistance
Paperwork/record-keeping abilities
Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
Physical endurance
Infection control
Surgery preparation

Bonus Infographic: Skills to Put on a Resume

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you still have some questions about what skills you should put on your resume (and how)? Check out the answers below:

1. What kind of skills should I include in my resume?

Your resume should include a combination of two types of skills: hard skills and soft skills .

Hard skills involve job-specific skills that are acquired through education, training, or work experience, while soft skills involve personality traits that can be indirectly useful at the workplace and help you adapt to the company culture better.

Depending on your industry, some examples of hard skills you can list on your resume include copywriting, database management, graphic design, multilingualism, public speaking, SEO, etc.

Meanwhile, examples of soft skills are communication, creativity, leadership, teamwork, time management, conflict resolution, etc.

2. What top skills do employers look for?

The top hard skills recruiters are on the lookout for include blockchain development, SEO, virtual reality development, data analysis, artificial intelligence, business analysis, Java development, affiliate marketing, UX design, machine learning, project management, video production and editing, sales, and business development.

The top soft skills hiring managers are looking for , on the other hand, are creativity, collaboration, persuasion, adaptability, and emotional intelligence.

3. How can I identify my skills?

Some effective ways to identify your skills before adding them to your resume include:

Consider your achievements. Did you ever get recognized for a specific achievement? What skills helped you do it? You are probably still skilled in those areas.
Ask friends and coworkers. Sometimes, it’s easier for others to recognize the strengths that you don't see. Colleagues can definitely be of help but if you’re fresh into the professional world, former professors and classmates can also give you some insight.

4. Where do skills go on a resume?

Skills go under a separate ‘Skills’ section on a resume, typically placed right below, or on the side, of the work experience section.

That said, you can further prove that you possess the skills you list in this section, by weaving the most relevant skills for the job in other resume sections, such as the resume summary and the work experience sections.

5. How many skills to include in my resume?

The number of skills to add to your resume depends on the job you’re applying for, as well as your level of expertise and work history.

If you’re a seasoned professional with plenty of work-related skills, you should definitely include them in your resume. Also, if the job you’re applying for requires a number of skills you possess, it’s safe to include them all in your resume.

As a rule of thumb, listing up to ten skills on your resume is typically a safe choice, as long as they don’t make your resume spill over to page 2 .

6. What are the best skills for a candidate with no experience?

Candidates with no experience and few job-specific skills can benefit from adding transferable skills to their resumes. These are skills that can be applied to many jobs across several industries.

Some examples of good skills for a no-experience resume include communication, organization, problem-solving, teamwork, adaptability, work ethic, and computer skills.

7. What’s the best way to list skills on a resume in 2024?

To really impress with your skills in 2024, don’t just list some random skills under a separate section and call it a day! Instead, make them more credible by:

Finding out more about the company culture.
Tailoring your skills to the job description.
Mentioning the most critical skills on your resume summary or resume objective .
Using your achievements to explain exactly how you used your skills to your advantage.

Key Takeaways

Let’s sum up everything we’ve learned about putting skills in your resume:

You must have a section in your resume devoted entirely to your skills. This helps you pass through applicant tracking systems and get noticed by the HR manager.
The differences between hard skills and soft skills are in the way they are applied (directly vs. indirectly) and the way they are obtained (through education and practice vs. personality traits and experience)
On your resume, list only skills that are relevant to the job, scan the job listing for must-have skills and list those (if you have them), pair each skill with a responding proficiency level, back up your skills with other resume sections, and mention transferable and universal skills.

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Resume and Cover Letter
17 Best Skills to Put on Your...

17 Best Skills to Put on Your Resume (with Examples)

20 min read · Updated on March 27, 2024

Everything you need to know about adding the right skills to your resume

Whether your resume has been through 19 revisions lately or you're just revisiting it for the first time in years, spending some time taking stock of your skills section can generate more interest in your candidacy and be the key to winning interviews.

However, there's a lot of conflicting information online and in books about maximizing the effectiveness of this section.

Do you simply list all of your key skills on the resume?

What are the right skills to put on a resume?

What order is best?

How will a jumble of technical qualifications help you stand out?

And what about those soft skills ?

Let's tackle those questions one at a time and learn the 17 best skills to put on your resume – starting at the beginning.

Why is the resume skills section there in the first place?

The number one reason to spend a fair amount of time crafting your skills list is employability. Being employable means that you have the right skills – academic skills, applied knowledge, technology skills, vertical and lateral thinking abilities, and interpersonal skills – that employers value and are willing to pay you for.

When the hiring manager picks up your resume to determine whether you're a fit for the role they have open, one of the first things they'll look at is your skill level. Having the right skills on your resume is also important to ensure your CV pops up in recruiter searches.

There are three key reasons to include the skills section in your resume and to organize it well:

To list your skills and abilities in one place for easy reference and scanning

To highlight the match between your background and the job requirements for the position you're interested in

To get your well-crafted resume through keyword screening by applicant tracking systems

The right mix of resume skills will get you past the first hurdle and towards a conversation. Here's a blueprint for making the most out of your skills section:

Relevancy is critical

Including a jumble of skills on your resume, beefed up with some basics that pretty much everyone knows (like Microsoft Office, as an example) won't help you to stand out. In fact, listing out skills that are considered to be a common baseline can actually hurt your candidacy by making you look like you're scrambling to establish credibility.

PRO TIP: As a general rule, basic user-level proficiency with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and email applications is assumed to be a given . However, if you have advanced Excel skills (expert-level proficiency with macros and advanced analysis capabilities, for example), you should list those.

Rather than go back to basics, you'll want to focus only on skills that look good on a resume.

So how can you tell that a skill is relevant? That's easy! Read the job description .

Interpret the job description

As you dissect the job description to learn what will be required of you if you're hired for the position, pay special attention to the “requirements” and “qualifications” bullets, as that's where you'll find the majority of the keywords your resume will need. Again, the goal is to ensure that your resume speaks to that particular job so you can impress the hiring manager.

Let's say you're applying for a job as an Account Manager. You may see these bullets under the “requirements” part of the job description:

Build lasting relationships with new and existing clients

Maintain client records, including contract renewals

Develop sales plans to meet key performance indicators

Understand product offerings to meet customer needs and upsell when available

The keywords you need to focus on in each bullet are:

Client relationships

Client records and contract renewals

Sales plans and KPIs

Product offerings, customer needs, and upsell

The question you then need to ask yourself is, “Do I have the skills to back up these keywords?” If the answer is “Yes,” then these skills should appear on your resume.

This is called tailoring your resume and should be done with every job that you apply to. For example, if you are applying to be a Floor Manager at a store that sells musical instruments, your proficiency with inventory management and your ability to play guitar would both be relevant for the job.

The four main types of skills for your resume

As a human being, you have technical and interpersonal skills in a broad range of areas. You might be an expert whitewater rafter, or maybe you have advanced a World of Warcraft character all the way to level 80. Both of those accomplishments require dedication, practice, and technical proficiency, but they're probably not going to help you land a job.

The general recommendation on standout skills for a resume is to only list skills that will, directly or indirectly, help you to be more effective in your job.

To do this, you have to understand the different types of skills that employers look for.

1. Hard skills for a resume

These are learned abilities that you've picked up during your career, either through education, training, or experience. They can be honed over time. When you add hard skills to your resume, you'll want to include numbers – measurable accomplishments – as often as possible.

2. Soft skills for a resume

Soft skills are characteristics you possess that improve your ability to get along with others, solve problems, and communicate effectively. You'll find that hiring managers love soft skills.

No matter how technical your position is, it will require interacting with people, dealing with deadlines, and adapting to change. It's not as easy to quantify soft skills as it is hard skills, but employers still want you to prove that you possess these traits.

While most skills can be categorized as hard or soft skills, there are other types of skills, too!

3. Transferable skills for a resume

In addition to hard and soft skills, you might consider whether you have any transferable skills. This becomes especially important if you're changing careers, as they allow you to provide tangible proof of your ability to adapt to new circumstances and use lateral or vertical thinking to apply knowledge about one thing to something else.

When you're leaning on transferable skills to sell your qualifications to the hiring manager, you must take the time to relay how those skills will benefit them and their new team. So, rather than saying that you have good time management skills, prove it by demonstrating what you do to manage time and how this has benefitted previous employers.

4. Adaptive skills for a resume

You can also show resiliency through skills in your resume if you're not changing careers. Let's face it, if there's one thing that's certain in life and work, it's that things change. If you're the type of person to leverage change as a learning opportunity, then you should definitely be highlighting your adaptability on your resume.

When you talk about adaptive skills on your resume, be sure to provide specific examples as they can be the powerhouse statements that win you an interview .

The 17 best skills to put on your resume

Now that we've defined what types of skills you can use on your resume, let's explore some specific examples of different skills you can include.

1. Computer skills and programming languages

When the job description wants you to prove that you possess programming skills, you can add “ Proficiency in Python, Java, or HTML, ” for example. This signals to employers that you can do everything from coding to automation and makes you a valuable candidate in the tech space.

Some roles that require an understanding of computer languages include:

Software Engineer

Computer Scientist

2. Data analysis

Saying that you possess data analysis skills allows you to demonstrate that you can interpret raw data and draw actionable insights to fuel change. It's adaptable across industries and can be easily backed by quantifiable data.

Some roles that require an understanding of data analysis include:

Data Scientist

Marketing Consultant

Senior Accountant

3. Project management

You don't have to be a Certified Project Management Professional to include an ability to manage projects on your resume. If you're good at leading, organizing, and delivering successful outcomes, then you should add that you know how to manage projects.

Some roles that require an understanding of project management include:

Construction Contractor

Industrial Engineer

IT Project Manager

4. Creativity

Creativity is one of the most highly sought-after skill sets. Not only can you leverage it to create tangible marketing pieces that connect with target audiences, but it can also be used to solve problems and bring fresh perspectives to projects. Creativity also signals that you're adaptable to dynamic environments.

Some roles that require you to be creative include:

Graphic Designer

Digital Marketing Manager

Brand Manager

5. Languages

The world gets smaller every day, so being able to speak more than one language is a skill that you should definitely include on your resume. Adding multiple languages to your application makes you highly valuable in a globalized, connected working world.

Some roles that require you to be speak other languages include:

International HR Director

Foreign Exchange Investment Banker

Some Teacher roles

6. Communication

Every job everywhere requires employees to have good communication skills. But instead of simply saying that you are a good communicator, be prepared to demonstrate that you understand the value of everything from active listening to properly articulating complex concepts.

Some roles that require great communication include:

Sales Representative

Public Relations

Nurse Practitioner

7. Teamwork

A lot of people will throw the word “teamwork” into the skills list on their resume without giving it much thought. However, given the vast amount of hybrid and remote working environments, teamwork is more important than ever. A happy team that works together reduces burnout and increases morale.

Some roles that require good teamwork include:

Sports Fitness Coach

Product Manager

Scrum Master

8. Leadership

If you're applying for a role that will involve guiding others, then including leadership skills is a must. When you add leadership to your resume, you highlight that you're not afraid to take the initiative to make decisions that drive outcomes.

Some roles that require you to be a leader include:

Director of IT

Sales Manager

9. Critical thinking

When you're known for making well-informed decisions by analyzing information and evaluating situations objectively, you possess critical thinking skills. You may see this pop up in job descriptions where the employer is seeking someone with high emotional intelligence. Basically, if you can navigate your way logically through problems, then critical thinking is probably something you should add to your resume.

Some roles that require critical thinking include:

Data Engineer

Telecommunications Professional

10. Cultural competence

Diversity, equity, and inclusion have become buzzwords in today's workforce. People want a voice and value having a psychologically safe place in which to get things done. This is even more true when you have people coming together from different cultures.

Some roles that require you to have cultural competence include:

Military-to-Civilian

11. Quality assurance

Quality assurance has implications across a number of fields, including software development and cybersecurity. There is an emphasis on quality assurance in roles that require you to maintain compliance with regulations or particular guidelines and best practices.

Some roles that require an understanding of quality assurance include:

Aviation Mechanic

Cyber Security Specialist

12. Time management

Ranking right up there with creativity as far as top-rated skills go, being able to properly manage time is critical in today's workforce. It's not only something that's found in professional settings, but across industries and jobs worldwide. A simple search of job descriptions will reveal that the majority of them want people who can meet deadlines, at the minimum.

Some roles that require good time management include:

Administrative Office Assistant

Finance Director

Project Manager

13. Conflict resolution

Being able to de-escalate situations with irate clients by demonstrating empathy and clearly defining options for a resolution means you're probably good at conflict management. However, conflict management isn't only demonstrated in client interactions. You may also be able to showcase conflict resolution skills if you've solved problems within team environments, too.

Some roles that require conflict resolution skills include:

Retail Merchandising

Insurance Agent

Information Technology

14. Sales and upselling

Sales is all about employing active listening to ascertain customers' needs, to sell the right product or service at the right time. Whether you're connecting with target audiences to get them to buy something through a digital marketing campaign or you're trying to sell someone a product, meeting client needs is critical to demonstrating that you're good at sales and upselling.

Some roles that require you to be able to sell and upsell include:

Marketing Manager

Consulting Manager

Real Estate Manager

15. Data entry

As you progress in your career, showcasing that you're good at data entry will become less and less important, however, there are still some roles that value candidates who can quickly and accurately input data into a system.

Some roles that require data entry include:

Recent Graduate

Mid-Career Professionals

16. Tech-savviness

Being tech–savvy means that you're always on the cutting edge and consistently keep up with emerging technologies. It helps you to deliver innovative solutions that help your company remain competitive in the ever-changing IT landscape.

Some roles that require candidates to be tech-savvy include:

DevOps Engineer

Technical Project Manager

Senior Software Engineer

17. Continuous learning

Today's employers value job seekers and employees who are fastidiously committed to ongoing education and skill development. Most even provide some sort of knowledge bank or in-house professional development courses to allow you to engage in continuous learning.

Some roles that value a commitment to continuous learning include:

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Electrical Engineer

Mechanical Engineer

How to add skills to your resume

Keep your skills specific and clear.

A common pitfall when it comes to resume skills is to list broad categories of abilities without going into sufficient detail. The problem with that approach is that it won't get your resume found in keyword searches, because they are looking for specific proficiency statements.

So, instead of writing “familiarity with accounting software,” list “Quickbooks, Quicken, Sage, and Xero.”

Use numbers and descriptive words where appropriate –

How many projects have you managed using Teamwork Projects?

How many people have you trained to use Salesforce?

A few well-placed quantifiers can position you as a serious candidate with supported qualifications.

Organize your skills list

When creating a long list of skills for a resume, consider how you organize everything. Ordering your skills strategically will make your resume easier to read and call the right attention to the right skills in the right place.

This is especially true considering that our brains look for patterns. A well-organized skill section on your resume will improve the aesthetics and help the hiring manager to skim through it to find just what they're looking for.

PRO TIP: There isn't a hiring manager alive who is reading your resume. They're scanning through it in just a few seconds . This makes keeping things organized all the more important.

Another organizing tip is to list the most important skills for the job first. Specifics will vary by industry, but think through the critical technical skills that will drive your effectiveness and success in the role and put them at the top.

When you're starting to group your skills list together, deciding which is most important depends on the job description. While most employers want employees who are good communicators and can solve problems, you have to take the industry and employer preferences into consideration.

Job relevance: This goes back to tearing the job description apart to find the relevant keywords

Industry trends: Stay on top of things that may be changing in your industry and highlight any new skills that come into demand

Employer preferences: Take some time to research the company and learn what they do, why they do it, and for whom – this will help you to get a feel for their company culture, so you'll know which soft skills will impress them the most

The best place to put skills on your resume

The placement of the resume skills section itself on the page is up to you. Many people prefer to have it positioned near the top of their resume, but it works at the bottom too.

PRO TIP: If you have a lot of skills to list, consider breaking them up (for example, technical skills at the top and additional skills at the bottom).

No matter where you place the skills section, the layout is critical in catching the eye of hiring managers and showcasing your qualifications in a way that helps you to stand out from the crowd.

At the top of your resume

Technically speaking, your skills list shouldn't be at the top. The first things on your resume should be your contact information , headline , and summary paragraph . So, when we say “at the top of your resume,” we mean beneath the summary paragraph.

When you put your skills list at the top of your resume, you call immediate attention to some key selling points. It's an effective technique if you have a strong set of skills that directly align with the job requirements.

Here's what a skills list at the top of your resume would look like:

FIRST NAME, LAST NAME

City, ST 12345 • LinkedIn URL • [email protected] • 111-222-3333

REGIONAL MANAGER

Operations Management | Project Management | Sales Management | Business Analysis

Innovative and ambitious executive-level management professional offering extensive experience and an accomplishments-driven career in sales, marketing and operations, and key account management. Leverages an entrepreneurial spirit to orchestrate tactical business plans that challenge the status quo, allowing for reformation of process. Intuitive business acumen and skilled strategist who uses the most up-to-date business practices to create, implement, and oversee business continuity. Naturally assumes leadership roles to oversee and achieve organizational success.

Business Development • Executive Leadership • Strategic Business Planning • Data Analysis • Team Training & Development • Policy & Procedure Development • Marketing & Territory Expansion • Procurement, Sourcing, & Negotiation • Relationship-Selling • Customer Relations

This resume example actually has two skills lists. One just beneath the title and then the regular one beneath the summary paragraph. It's an effective way to separate out the skills that are most important – the specialized abilities that you want to call immediate attention to. However, if you do it like this on your resume, the skills listed beneath the title should only be one to two lines max!

At the bottom of the resume

If you've reached a point in your career where your work history and career achievements outshine your skills, then it's a good idea to place the skills list at the bottom of your resume.

Here's what your skills could look like at the bottom of your resume:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

[List your career history in reverse-chronological order, starting with the most recent and working backward about 10 years]

[List the degrees you've earned and the schools where you obtained your degrees. You can also mention any professional development classes you've taken and certifications or licenses you possess]

Core proficiencies:

Soft skills:

Team Leadership | Coaching | Persuasion | Creative Problem Solving | Negotiation

Technical skills:

English | Spanish | French

Throughout your resume

Since your resume is more than a list of skills, you should know that your master list of abilities and the keywords you've culled from the job description aren't limited to being placed only in a skills list. You can – and should – include hard, soft, adaptive, and transferable skills throughout your entire resume.

After your contact information, the first thing that should appear on your resume is a headline. A lot of people will simply put a title, but if you take a moment to spruce it up and turn it into a headline, you'll be able to inject a few keywords on the top line of your resume.

For example, if you're applying for a role as a Real Estate Broker, here's the difference between a title and a headline:

Title: Real Estate Broker

Headline: Real Estate Broker with Expertise in Property Valuation and Team Management

Put yourself into the shoes of a hiring manager and ask yourself, which of those would give you more information about the job seeker? The headline not only indicates which role you want, but also includes two keywords – property valuation and team management.

Summary paragraph

As you move on to write your career summary, that appears just beneath the headline, you'll want to continue adding relevant skills from your career that are mirrored in the job description. Doing this will ensure that your resume presents a cohesive and powerful message that your experience and achievements will serve the new company well.

In sticking with the example of Real Estate Broker, perhaps you find that the new company wants you to coordinate marketing events and client activities, write weekly reports, and have a solid understanding of the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) platform for listing properties.

The keywords to include in your profile paragraph would be:

Marketing events

Client activities

Multiple Listing Service (MLS)

Thus, your profile paragraph could look like this:

Veteran real estate professional with a strong background in orchestrating impactful marketing events for single and multi-family residences. Specializes in managing client activities that turn passive consumers into active clientele. Proficient in maximizing MLS to enhance property visibility and streamlining documentation and reporting processes. Known for creating a culture of excellence and client satisfaction by maintaining an open-door policy that encourages communication among team members.

As you can see, the profile paragraph isn't a long and drawn-out diatribe of things you've done in your career. Rather, it's a short paragraph that matches your skills to the job you're applying for.

Work experience

Let's move on to the meat of your resume - the part the hiring manager is going to spend the most time on – your career history . You may be wondering how you can put future-facing keywords into the historical part of your resume, but all it takes is a bit of finesse.

For example, if you have a history of closing multi-million-dollar deals in high-end neighborhoods, you could work a few keywords into an achievement bullet like this:

Closed 5 multi-million-dollar property sales per month by leveraging MLS for property exposure

While you could stop after you say how many multi-million-dollar deals you closed, because that's a great achievement statement, expanding the bullet to include a keyword makes your overall resume all the more compelling.

TopResume wants to do more than write your resume. We want to give you the tools you need to succeed in your job search and career. Click on the following link for more resume and career advice .

Stand out from the crowd

When you master including the best skills in your resume, you reach a level of job search preparedness that propels your resume to the top of the pile. The whole idea is to make it easy for potential employers to see how you'll fit within the folds of their organization and team. That's where tailoring the skills on your resume comes in – wherever you include them.

Want to see how your resume stacks up? Try out our free resume review today!

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100+ Key Skills for a Resume in 2022 (Examples for any Job)

Learn how to professionally and efficiently list your skills on a resume.

How to List Skills on a Resume

Your skills are just as important as your work experiences. Skills show a recruiter what you can do for the company -- without taking up too much space in your resume.

Skills can be anything from “creativity” (a soft skill) to “JavaScript” (a hard skill). It’s important to include a mix of both on your resume.

Don’t know what skills you have? Read on to learn the difference between “soft” and “hard” skills, or skim our 250+ skills for each industry to jump right into the resume writing process.

Beautiful resume templates to land your dream job

Soft Skills vs Hard Skills

“Soft” skills are those that are not quantifiable, such as leadership. These skills also cannot be learned, but are rather a facet of your personality. Nevertheless, soft skills are still critical to have, for they demonstrate that you are personable and competent.

Top Soft Skills to include on your resume

‍ Tip: Use some of the soft skills as adjectives when writing your profile summary . For example, try “enthusiastic entrepreneur,” “empathic childcare worker,” “organized nurses’ aid,” “supportive administration assistant” or “detail-oriented sales associate.”

The resume below is for a Childcare Worker and includes many soft skills that companies look for, including Creativity and Organizational skills.

In contrast, “Hard” skills are those that are learned -- either in school or through a certification program. These skills are quantifiable and can be continuously expanded upon through further education. Today, most hard skills have to do with computer technology, such as SEO, CSS/HTML, or Microsoft Suite. Even if you aren’t tech-savvy, chances are you still have a few hard skills.

Top Hard Skills to include on your resume

Tip: Be specific about your hard skills. Instead of listing “Programming Languages,” specify which ones you know -- Python, Java, C, etc. Same with photo editing software and any other platforms you are familiar with.

The resume below is for a Content Marketing Associate, and includes manyhard skills that companies in the marketing industry look for, including experience with Social Media tools. Remember, it's important to be specific in terms of defining and listing what softwares you know.

How to List Your Skills

Whether you’re a jack of all trades or a master of one, you absolutely must list some skills on your resume. Skills offer additional insight into what you can offer the company as an employee, and may just push your resume over the edge and into the interview pile.

Only list relevant skills . If you’re applying for a position as an engineer, don’t brag about your marketing abilities. Instead, save the space to list the software and programming languages that you know.
List around 5 Skills . Writing too many skills on your resume can be an overwhelming experience for the recruiter. He or she may not fully register your skills, and instead just blankly skim the long list. Conversely, listing too few skills is only selling yourself short. You definitely have more than two skills -- no matter your experience level! So shoot for around 5 skills, with a little wriggle room.
Include both hard and soft skills . Even if your profession seems to rely on soft skills more than hard skills -- or vice versa -- including both makes your resume stronger. For example, if you’re applying to work as a laboratory assistant, list soft skills such as “teamwork,” “problem-solving,” “time management,” or “organization.” If you’re in a more creative field, hard skills include softwares such as “Adobe Creative Suite” and talents such as “photography,” “writing & editing,” or “videography.”
Note your experience level . With each skill, specify whether you are a “beginner,” “expert,” or somewhere in between (using words like “intermediate” and “moderate”). Our resume templates have bars beneath each skill that you can toggle to reflect your expertise.

The resume below is for a Human Resources Manager, and includes all of the above tips.

250+ Skills for Each Industry

Although we’ve split these skills up by industry, please note that many skills are applicable to a variety of careers. For example, someone working in marketing might find knowledge of JavaScript just as useful as someone working in the computer science field.

Let’s jump in!

100+ Key Skills to include on your resume infographic

Office and Administrative Job Skills

Answering Phones
Bookkeeping (Excel, Turbotax)
Office Equipment
Welcoming Visitors
Calendar Management
Organization
Time Management
Problem Solving
Attention To Detail
Adaptability
Written Communication
Email Platforms (E.G., Gmail And iCloud Mail)
Word Processing Software (E.G., Google Docs)
Spreadsheet Software
Digital Calendars
Prioritization

Sales, Retail, and Customer Service Job Skills

Product Knowledge
Lead Qualification
Lead Prospecting
Customer Needs Analysis
Referral Marketing
Contract Negotiation
Self Motivation
Increasing Customer Lifetime Value (Clv)
Reducing Customer Acquisition Cost (Cac)
CRM Software (Salesforce, Hubspot, Zoho, Freshsales)
Cashier Skills
Knowledge Of Products And Services
Customer Service
Communication (More Specifically -- Verbal Communication Skills, Listening Skills, Interpersonal Skills, Written Communication Skills, Public Speaking Skills, Presentation Skills)
Math Skills
Negotiation
Persuasion
Diplomacy
Cold Calling
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Lead Generation
Buyer-responsive Selling
Buyer Engagement

Nursing and Healthcare Job Skills

Patient Assessment
Taking Vital Signs
Patient Care
Recording Patient Medical History
Wound Dressing And Care
Urgent And Emergency Care
Record-keeping
Patient Education
NIH Stroke Scale Patient Assessment
Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
Medicine Administration
Blood Pressure Monitoring
Rehabilitation Therapy
Hygiene Assistance
Use Of X-ray, MRI, Cat Scans
Glucose Checks
Electronic Heart Record (EHR)
Decision-Making Ability
Critical Thinking
Leadership
Thorough Understanding Of HIPPA And Privacy Policies
Ability To Take And Record Vital Signs
CPR And First-Aid Certifications
Perform And Evaluate Diagnostic Tests
Maintain Patient Charts

IT Job Skills

Programming Languages
Web Development
Data Structures
Open Source Experience
Machine Learning
Front-End & Back-End Development
Cloud Management
Agile Development
CSS Preprocessors
Graphic User Interfaces (GUI)
Git/Version Control (Github, gitlab)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Application Programming Interface (API)
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign
Content Management Systems (CMS)
Testing/Debugging
Responsive Design Principles
Mobile and Web Development (e.g. iOS, Android)

Engineering & Technical Job Skills

STEM Skills
Prototyping
Troubleshooting
Project Launch
Lean Manufacturing
Workflow Development
Computer Skills
Technical Report Writing
Programming Languages HTML, CSS, CRM tools

Advertising & Marketing Job Skills

SEO (SEMRush, WordPress, and Ahrefs)
SEM (i.e., Google Adwords)
CRO and A/B Testing
Social Media Marketing and Paid Social Media Advertising
Sales Funnel Management
CMS Tools (WordPress, Weebly)
Graphic Design Skills (Adobe Creative Suite)
Email Marketing (MailChimp, Constant Contact)
Email Automation
Data Visualization
Print Design
Photography and Branding
Communication
Creativity
Data Analytics (Google Analytics )
Web Analytics
Email Writing
Google Adwords
Social Media And Mobile Marketing
Paid Social Media Advertisements
Consumer Behavior Drivers
Brand Management
B2b Marketing
Writing Advertising Copy
Soliciting Feedback From Customers
Cutting Costs
Leadership skills
Task Delegation
Strategic Management
Proposal writing
Problem-solving
Problem solving
Website Management
Social Media Outreach
Video Production
Campaign Management
Photo Editing
Logo Creation
Digital Printing
Interactive Media Design
Color Sense & Theory
Social Media Publishing
Storytelling
Financial Analysis
Consumer Research
Statistical Analysis
Videography
Technical Writing

General Management and Project Management Job Skills

Agile Project Management (Kanban)
Managing Cross-Functional Teams
Scrum Management
Performance Tracking
Financial Modelling
Ideation Leadership
Feature Definition
Forecasting
Profit and Loss
Scope Management
Project Lifecycle Management
Meeting Facilitation
Risk Management
Cost Management
Data Analysis
Collaborative
Collaborative Programs (Slack, WhatsApp, Dropbox)
Adobe Creative Suite

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How to List Skills on a Resume (Real Skill Examples)

This essential resume writing article is about how to list skills on a resume. For more resume writing help, visit our job seeker resource center .

EdgeWater Pharmacy just posted an opening for a Sales Associate right down the street from your home. You think you are the perfect fit for the job, so you submit your resume, but so do 30 other candidates.

Do you know who is going to get called in for an interview?

The job seeker who looks like they have the most relevant skills for the job.

Make sure you’re getting the callback for an interview from a hiring manager by reading how to list your skills on a resume.

This essential job seekers’ guide will walk you through how to add the skills a hiring manager wants to see on your resume, along with 50+ real resume examples of skills you can use.

This article on how to include key skills on a resume covers:

What are professional skills?
Why are skills important on resumes?
Different types of skills for job seekers
Where and how to incorporate skills on a job application
Top 50+ skills hiring managers want to see on your resume
Fastest ways to gain new skills to get hired

What Are Skills? Why Are Skills Important?

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a skill is:

“the ability to use one’s knowledge effectively and readily in execution or performance”

“a learned power of doing something competently : a developed aptitude or ability”

When it comes to job hunting, your skills are what set you apart. Every human on earth has a set of skills that is unique to them. Likewise, every professional position has a unique set of skills that is required for performing the job.

Finding the perfect alignment between these two ideas is the key goal for every hiring manager.

If a hiring manager finds someone that already possesses the skills needed for their job, they won’t have to spend so much time and money on training. It also means that their new employee will be able to pull their own weight more quickly, providing a quicker return on their hiring investment.

But how do hiring managers know who has what it takes to perform well on the job?

The first and most important place hiring managers look is at your resume. On average, a hiring manager spends 6 seconds reviewing a resume and during that time they are scanning the pages to see if the skills required for the job jump out at them.

If they find what they are looking for, you get called in for an interview. If they don’t quickly see what they are looking for, your resume will most likely be discarded.

As a job seeker, it is your responsibility to make sure you know what skills hiring managers are looking for.

Once you identify those skills, it is also your responsibility to make sure those relevant skills are incorporated into your resume in a way that stands out.

If you do these two things accurately, you will be the one getting called in for an interview and will be that much closer to landing a new job.

Types of Professional Skills (Real Resume Examples)

Skills can be broken down into four main categories:

Hard skills
Soft skills
Transferable skills
Job-related skills.

Before you start writing your own list of skills, let’s go through each of these skill categories to see what the difference between them is.

Hard Skills vs Soft Skills

Hard skills are specific, teachable, and tangible. They can be measured and tested using assignments and assessments. Hard skills are learned, either through on-the-job training or through school, rather than coming naturally.

Examples of hard skills for a resume:

Soft skills are intangible and are harder to measure. They are personality traits and interpersonal skills that come naturally to humans, rather than being learned through school.

People are born with soft skills. These soft skills grow and develop over time from your upbringing, education, and experiences.

Examples of soft skills:

Contrary to popular belief, hiring managers often care more about soft skills than hard skills, though both hard and soft skills contribute to your appeal as a candidate.

Hard skills, such as computer programming or accounting, can be taught using a combination of curriculum and hands-on practice. Whereas soft skills, such as a positive attitude or punctuality, are harder to teach.

Regardless of your background, hiring managers are usually flexible with teaching you the hard skills needed for their job, as long as you already have the right attitude along with the aptitude to learn.

Transferable Skills vs Job-Related Skills

Transferable skills can be carried with you from one job to the other. These skills can be a hard skill or soft skill, as long as they can be used in any type of role, regardless of the industry, company, or position.

Examples of transferable skills:

Job-related skills are usually always hard skills. These job-related skills are specific to a certain type of role or position.

Examples of job-related skills:

How And Where To List Skills On Your Resume

Skills should be included throughout your resume, rather than confined to one area.

While scanning your resume, hiring managers will be looking over each resume section, starting with the top. Because of how people read resumes, you need to make sure they see your skills immediately.

Guarantee hiring managers will see your skills by listing them in four key areas of your resume:

Resume header
Professional summary
Summary of skills
Work Experience section

If you are writing a resume from scratch, try using this free and easy-to-use resume builder from Resume.com. The sections and formatting are already created for you, so all you need to worry about is filling in the blanks to finish a free printable resume.

1. Resume Header

At the top of your resume, directly below your name, write your job title along with the three most relevant skills you have as a candidate.

This is the first section hiring managers will be reading, so it is important to draw their attention using bold and large lettering.

If you’re using this resume builder , the ‘ Blue Skies ’, ‘ Three Blocks Digital ’, and ‘ van Deco ’ resume templates already have a header section included, which will make finishing your resume easier.

When writing your header, it is crucial that you customize the job title and skills to each job you’re applying for. Your job application needs to be consistent – you can read more about consistency in this article .

For example, if you write Java Developer in your resume header, but are applying for a .NET Developer position, a huge red flag will go up for the hiring manager.

When writing your top three skills in your header, make sure they align with the required skills listed in the job posting.

If you’re applying for a job at a large company or corporation, or you’re applying through a job board, it’s helpful to keep applicant tracking systems (ATS) in mind. Make sure your resume makes it past ATS software by listing your skills using the same wording as the job posting.

Example of skills in the resume header:

2. Professional Summary

Below your header and contact information, you will have a professional summary section. A professional summary used to be called an ‘objective’, but the modern resume writing approach is to replace your objective with a professional summary section.

Your professional summary should give an overview of your background, years of experience, and the top skills that set you apart. The skills in your professional summary should be written in sentence form, rather than listed out.

If using the resume builder , the ‘ My Employment ’, ‘ Apple Green ’, and ‘ Side Panel ’ resume templates have professional summary sections that are sure to draw attention to your most relevant skills.

Example of skills in the professional summary of a resume:

resume example of skills in professional summary

3. Summary of Skills

Below your professional summary, include a ‘summary of skills’ section. Alternative titles for this section could be ‘core competencies’, ‘key skills’, ‘professional skills’, or ‘relevant skills’.

If you have less than 10 skills, you can list them out in columns.

Summary of skills resume example (less than 10 professional skills) :

resume example of skills in summary of skills

Summary of skills resume example (more than 10 professional skills) :

For your skills section, your skills should be listed, rather than written out in sentence form. This formatting choice helps hiring managers to pick out the key words quickly, which they can read about in more detail in the experience section after.

4. Experience Section

The ‘experience’ section usually comes after your summary of skills on a resume. Depending on your background, this could also be called ‘professional experience’, ‘work experience’, or ‘relevant experience’.

Your experience section is the perfect place to back your skills up with real-life examples of when you have used your skills, in addition to the results you have achieved.

When writing your experience section, give specific details about where, when, and with whom you have used your skills. When possible, use numbers and metrics to quantify your achievements.

Example of how to list skills in the experience section of a resume:

how to list skills in work experience resume example

How to List Skills On A Resume – Finding Relevant Skills For You

To figure out what skills you should include on your resume, follow these three simple steps.

Step #1: Create a master list of skills

Go through each category and create a master list of the skills in your toolbox. Don’t be afraid to list things that seem obvious, like computer skills or customer service.

Although they might seem like a given in your profession, many hiring managers still want to see these skills listed.

Never include skills that you are no longer familiar with. If you write a skill on your resume, hiring managers will be expecting that you can deliver on that activity.

If you are worried that a hiring manager will over or underestimate your level of proficiency, feel free to write ‘beginner’, ‘intermediate’, or ‘proficient’ next to each skill listed.

Step #2: Figure out the skills needed for the job

When applying for jobs, it is important to identify the set of skills that are needed. Picking out the needed skills will help you determine if you are a good fit for the role. It will also help you tailor your resume skills to the specific job you are applying for.

There are two main ways to determine the skills needed for a job.

The first is to dissect job descriptions and job postings that are posted on career websites and job boards. To do this, go through a job description and highlight each quality that describes the candidate the company is looking for.

For example, here is a job posting for a cashier position:

how to find relevant skills in job posting for resume

Then create a list of all the qualities described, making sure to write each skill using the same wording that is used in the job posting.

The second way to figure out what skills are needed for a job is to search for people on LinkedIn who are already performing the role.

By searching for a certain job title in the search bar, you can find a list of professionals who are already in that job and then search through their profile to see what skills they have listed, both in their summary and experience sections.

Step #3: Match your master list with the skills needed for a job

The skills you write on your resume should be whatever overlaps between your master list and the list of skills you created from researching jobs.

By using this technique, you will be making sure that the skills you have listed on your resume are relevant to the jobs you are applying for.

A general rule of thumb is to never include skills that aren’t important for the job you are applying for.

For example, if you are applying for a project manager position, there is no need to list that you know yoga or CPR.

Top 50+ Skills Hiring Managers Look For On Resumes

A lot of research has been done as to what hiring managers look for on a resume. Many of the skills they seek are job-specific, while others are transferable.

To increase your chances of getting called in for an interview, include these top skills throughout your resume.

These professional skills are divided by category to help you find the skills that are relevant to you.

Soft Skills

Basic computer skills, customer service, project management, art & design, human resources, fastest ways to obtain new skills.

Are you looking for your first job? Are you missing some of the required skills on a job posting? If so, don’t worry. There are a range of ways for you to obtain the needed skills quickly.

If you are in need of a hard skill, this task is much easier. Hard skills are learned, so you can typically find an online resource, school, or curriculum to pick up the needed skills.

If you don’t have enough time to attend class in person, there are a number of online learning platforms with courses that you can take online, in your spare time. Some examples of popular eLearning platforms include Lynda, Udemy, and Skillshare.

Learning soft skills are a little trickier. These interpersonal and personality traits are hardwired into humans, so the only way to get better at them is to practice, practice, practice.

If you can’t practice soft skills while on a job, try to find some day-to-day activities that you can practice these skills during.

For example, if you need to work on punctuality, set a goal to arrive 5 minutes early wherever you need to be, no matter if it is for class or for coffee. Or if you need to work on your professionalism, pick up a volunteer job based in a professional, office setting.

Skills to Put on a Resume: 100 Best Examples of Hard & Soft Skills

Hannah Yang

If you’re applying to jobs, you’ll need to craft a resume that showcases your most valuable skills.

Your resume will be a document that represents you throughout the recruitment process, from your initial application to your final interview .

Hiring managers are looking for specific skills on your resume that will demonstrate your ability to succeed in the role.

So how do you choose the right skills to include?

This article will explain the most important skills to include on your resume, and some resume skills examples.

Where Do I Include Skills on My Resume?

Why is it important to include the right resume skills, what’s the difference between technical skills and soft skills, how do i decide which skills to put on my resume, best hard & soft skills for a resume (with examples).

Most resumes are organized into the following sections:

Contact information
Resume summary / objective (optional)
Work experience
Hobbies / interests (optional)

The purpose of the skills section of your resume is to provide a concise list of the abilities you can offer.

In the skills section, you can mention each of the skills you have that might be relevant to the job, from language fluency to coding abilities.

You can also use a scale to show your level of expertise for each skill (e.g. beginner, intermediate, advanced, expert).

Here’s an example of what that might look like in your skills section:

Programming languages: C (expert), Java (expert), Python (advanced)
Leadership skills: people management (expert), Agile methodology (advanced)

But here’s the twist: your key skills should be included throughout the resume, not just in the skills section.

To really impress your hiring manager, you should mention your key skills in your work experience section, along with numbers to back them up.

Show the specific instances you’ve used those skills and how they’ve brought value to your previous employers.

Here’s an example of what that might look like in your work experience section:

Led an Agile team of 12 software developers to build an innovative music education app using Java and Python

Choosing the right skills to include in your resume is important because employers are looking for specific skills that you’ll need to succeed.

Many companies use ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to screen applicants’ resumes before passing them on to the hiring manager.

The software looks for specific keywords, and if you have those in your skills section, you can get past the screening.

If you don’t, your resume will get discarded without ever being seen by human eyes.

Even if the company still uses a traditional system, the hiring manager will likely only look at your resume for seven seconds before making the decision of whether or not you progress to the next step.

Having the right skills in a prominent position will get you an interview, or maybe even the job.

Technical skills, also known as "hard skills," are skills that you’ve learned through practice and training.

You can measure your proficiency with a technical skill by taking a test or passing a class.

Examples of technical skills include:

The ability to speak French
The ability to fix a car engine
Familiarity with ProWritingAid software

Soft skills are skills that you gain from life experience rather than formal education or work experience, such as communication skills and interpersonal skills.

Soft skills are harder to test, since they’re more qualitative than quantitative.

Examples of soft skills include:

Problem-solving

As a general rule, you should include more technical skills than soft skills on your resume.

Since soft skills are harder to measure, they tend to make less of an impact on your resume, even if they’re just as important in the workplace.

Anyone can claim that they’re excellent at teamwork, but this skill is hard to confirm or deny in a quantifiable way.

On the other hand, someone who claims they can fix a car engine is more likely to be able to measure that ability, and to back it up with a certification or with experience fixing cars.

You might be tempted to copy and paste the hottest keywords, but that will make your resume look generic at best and inaccurate at worst.

Your goal is to give the hiring managers an accurate picture of what you can do and how your abilities can bring value to the role.

Every skill you include on your resume should have the following three traits:

It should be relevant to the role you’re applying for
It should be a skill you’ve demonstrated repeatedly
It should be a specific skill, not a generic one

Let’s take a closer look at each of these traits.

Choose Resume Skills that Are Relevant to the Role You’re Applying for

You should always tailor your skills to the specific role you’re applying for.

Even if you’re a world-class photographer, that skill won’t make a difference to hiring managers if you’re applying for a job with no photography involved.

So how do you find the job skills that will bring value to the role?

One great place to look for relevant skills to demonstrate is your job description.

Most likely, your job description will mention specific skills that they’d like to see from candidates. Look for keywords and phrases that require specific abilities.

For example, say you’re a graphic designer and the job description you’re looking at includes the following sentence:

The perfect candidate for this job will have experience with Adobe Creative Suite and Dreamweaver. Experience with logo design is a plus.

Looking at this sentence, you can pick out some of the top skills your position needs: Adobe Creative Suite, Dreamweaver, and logo design.

Here’s how that might look in your skills section:

Adobe Creative Suite: Photoshop (expert), Dreamweaver (expert), Illustrator (advanced), InDesign (advanced)
Art: logo design (expert), color theory (advanced), typography (intermediate)

In addition to looking at the job description you’re applying for, you can also look at the job description for a similar role at a different company.

It will most likely mention other relevant skills that you can consider including.

Another tip is to look at related LinkedIn profiles. LinkedIn is a great resource for useful skills, as many people will list their job skills on their profiles.

Choose Resume Skills that You’ve Demonstrated Repeatedly

Your skills section shouldn’t feel separate from the rest of your resume.

Instead, it should work cohesively with your education and experience sections to highlight the abilities you’ve demonstrated in the past.

Each skill you list should be supported by evidence.

One way to do this is to look through your work experience section and see which skills stand out.

For example, if you led a team project at your past company using Agile methodology, you can consider including Agile methodology (a hard skill) and team leadership (a soft skill) in your skills section.

If you need to narrow down your list, you can rank all your skills as beginner, proficient, advanced, or expert. Prioritize the ones in the advanced or expert categories.

You might be applying to a role that’s different from the roles you’ve had before. In that case, it’s useful to look for transferable skills from your previous experiences.

For example, if you’re applying to a health insurance job and you’ve worked in car insurance before, you can pick out the skills that are related to insurance, not the ones that are related to the transportation industry.

That way, your skills section can help tie your past experiences to your new role.

Choose Resume Skills That Are as Specific as Possible

The last criterion for choosing your job skills is specificity.

Some skills are universal and can apply to almost any role, such as problem-solving skills, communication skills, and familiarity with Microsoft Office.

You can include these if you’d like, but they don’t tell the hiring manager as much as more specific skills do.

For example, "communication skills" is a vague soft skill.

Use ProWritingAid’s Word Explorer to help you make this vague skill more specific. The common 2-word phrase suggestions are particularly useful in this situation.

Instead of "communication skills," you can say "personal communication," "verbal communication," or "mass communication."

Similarly, "programming languages" is a vague hard skill. Instead of "programming languages," you can say "Javascript," "Python," "HTML" or the other specific programming languages you’ve used in the past.

If you’re looking for more skills to include in your skills section, you’re in the right place.

We’ve compiled a list of professional skills for each of the following job sectors:

Data analysis
Finance / Accounting
Software development

Relevant Skills for a Data Analysis Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a data analysis role:

SQL and Hive
Programming languages (R, Python, Scala, Matlab)
STATA, SPSS, SAS
Data Mapping
Entity Relationship Diagrams
Big Data tools
Microsoft Visio
Machine learning

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a data analysis role:

Problem-solving skills
Technical and non-technical communication
Analytical ability
Time management
Attention to detail
Capacity for innovation

Relevant Skills for a Design Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a design role:

Adobe Creative Suite: Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop
Dreamweaver
Infographics
Color sense & theory
Photo editing
Typography: spacing, line height, layout, choosing fonts
Interactive media design
Targeting and marketing through visual communications

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a design role:

Eye for aesthetics
Communication
Active listening
Persistence
Storytelling

Relevant Skills for an Education Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for an education role:

Updated curriculum knowledge
Foreign languages (Spanish, Mandarin, etc.)
Research & data analysis
WebCT or Blackboard Teaching skills
File management
Electronic presentation skills
Video conferencing skills (software like Zoom)
Educational platforms (software like Elearn)

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for an education role:

Organization
Imagination
Conflict resolution
Critical thinking

Relevant Skills for a Finance / Accounting Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a finance role:

Microsoft Excel (Advanced)
Enterprise Resource Planning
Big Data Analysis & SQL
Know Your Customers (KYC)
Cognos Analytics (IBM)
Visual Basic
Accounting Software
Cash flow management

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a finance role:

Clear communication
Business knowledge
Numerical competence

Relevant Skills for a Healthcare Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a healthcare role:

Paperwork / record-keeping abilities
Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
Infection control
Surgery preparation

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a healthcare role:

Patient care and assistance
Physical endurance
Flexibility

Relevant Skills for a Management Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a management role:

Data management and analytics
Agile project management
Six Sigma techniques
The McKinsey 7s Framework
Porter’s Five Forces
Proposal writing

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a management role:

Emotional intelligence
Task delegation
People management
Negotiation

Relevant Skills for a Marketing Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a marketing role:

Search engine optimization (SEO)
Conversion rate optimization (CRO)
A/B testing
HTML & CSS
Social media and mobile marketing
Email marketing

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a marketing role:

Multitasking

Relevant Skills for a Retail Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a retail role:

Loss prevention
Product knowledge
Visual merchandising
Window displays
Cash registers
Point of sale (POS) systems

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a retail role:

Customer service skills
Resolving complaints
Friendliness

Relevant Skills for a Software Development Role

Here are some of the hard skills you could include for a software development role:

Programming languages (R, Python, Java, Javascript, C)
Object-oriented design (OOD)
Software testing and debugging
Git/Version control (Github, gitlab)
Graphic User Interfaces (GUI)
Application Programming Interface (API)
Content Management Systems (CMS)
Responsive design principles

Here are some of the soft skills you could include for a software development role:

Problem solving

The Most In-Demand Technical Skills Right Now

Finally, we’ve also researched the skills that are most in demand right now.

The need for different skills evolves quickly, and the ones employers are looking for have changed a lot over the years.

A 2020 LinkedIn Talent blog survey found that ten of the top technical skills today are:

Cloud and Distributed Computing
Statistical Analysis and Data Mining
Middleware and Integration Software
Web Architecture and Development Framework
Software Revision Control Systems
Data Presentation
SEO / SEM Marketing
Mobile Development
Network and Information Security

If any of these hard and soft skills might be relevant to your role, it could be a great idea to include them on your resume.

Don’t worry, however, if these skills aren’t applicable to the role you’re applying for.

Employers won’t care about skills that aren’t relevant. You should focus on the ones that are most useful for you.

The Most In-Demand Soft Skills Right Now

According to The Ladders , the seven soft skills employers are looking for are:

Adaptability

Given the pandemic, adaptability is likely to be a key skill. Companies are looking for employees who are flexible and can roll with the punches.

Emotional intelligence includes empathy, motivation, and self-awareness. These are increasingly important in the workplace today.

Mentioning some of these soft skills on your resume could show your hiring manager how well you’d fit into the company culture.

Final Words

There you have it: a complete guide for choosing which skills to include on your resume.

Let us know in the comments if there are any important skills you’d recommend including. Best of luck with your job search!

Want to learn more great business writing hacks? Download this free book now:

Business Writing Hacks for Flawless Communication

Writing is an essential element of nearly every profession today. strong communications help colleagues and clients understand your ideas. errors and awkward writing make you lose credibility., download this guide to learn the techniques professional writers use to write clearly and persuasively..

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

Hannah Yang is a speculative fiction writer who writes about all things strange and surreal. Her work has appeared in Analog Science Fiction, Apex Magazine, The Dark, and elsewhere, and two of her stories have been finalists for the Locus Award. Her favorite hobbies include watercolor painting, playing guitar, and rock climbing. You can follow her work on hannahyang.com, or subscribe to her newsletter for publication updates.

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17 Best skills to put on your resume to stand out

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Explore effective job search techniques, interview strategies, and ways to overcome job-related challenges. Our coaches specialize in helping you land your dream job.

The best resume immediately answers a hiring manager's most pressing question: “Does this person have the necessary skills?”

You don’t have much time to answer this question, either. Recruiters scan a resume in just seven seconds to form a first impression and decide whether they’ll offer an interview.

You must understand the key skills for each job application and express your proficiency quickly to get ahead. We’ll discuss how to choose skills for a resume and add them effectively.

What is a resume skill?

A professional skill is a knowledge, ability, or competency to perform specific tasks or respond to challenges. Each skill is either a hard or soft skill . Hard skills or technical skills refer to our ability to perform knowledge-based tasks, like proficiency with a graphic design program.

Interpersonal skills , or soft skills, refer to our interactions with others, like our ability to tap into our emotional intelligence to manage a team or our leadership communication skills .

Learning new skills relevant to your job or reskilling to start a new career is crucial preparation. Every industry and job role requires proficiency in a wide range of job skills, so it's critical to know the most relevant ones for your profession and target the company and highlight them in your resume.

Hard skills for your resume

Hard skills are specific, teachable abilities or knowledge that are often quantifiable and job-specific. Hard skills are gained through experience, practice, and education. They can be measured straightforwardly by our ability to perform a technical task. Hard skills are crucial for performing tasks and functions within a particular field or industry.

Here are a few hard skills you could include on your resume:

Foreign languages
Project management
Marketing fluency, like SEO or SEM
Computer skills
Software management, like CRM
Coding languages, like CSS or Python
Design, like Photoshop or Illustrator
Data analysis

Soft skills for your resume

Soft skills are non-technical abilities that relate to how individuals interact with others and navigate social situations. These skills encompass qualities and attributes that shape one's emotional intelligence, communication style, and overall interpersonal effectiveness. They inform how we approach a task or challenge and are unique personal attributes that make us stand out and succeed as employees and leaders.

Unlike hard skills, soft skills are not job-specific but are universally valuable across various roles and industries. Soft skills play a critical role in building strong relationships, collaborating effectively with colleagues, and enhancing overall workplace dynamics.

Here are a few soft skills you could include on your resume:

Problem-solving
Communication
Time management
Attention to detail
Collaboration

Soft and hard skills often complement one another. Speaking a foreign language is a hard skill requiring specific vocabulary, diction, and grammar knowledge. The communication skills needed to speak this language effectively — knowing how to work through a concept, tell a story, and keep an audience engaged — are soft skills.

How many skills should you add to a resume?

In general you'll want to have 10 to 15 skills listed on you resume. But this varies depending on your level of experience, the specific job you're applying for, and the resume format you're using . Here are some general guidelines to help you determine how many skills to include:

Relevance : Focus on skills that are directly relevant to the job you're applying for. Tailor your resume by carefully reviewing the job description and identifying the skills and qualifications the employer is seeking. Highlight the skills that align with the job requirements.
Balance : While it's important to include relevant skills, it's equally important not to overwhelm your resume with an excessively long list of skills. Aim for a balance that showcases your key strengths without making your resume too lengthy .
Prioritization : Prioritize the most important and sought-after skills . Place the most relevant and impressive skills towards the top of your resume, particularly in the skills section. This ensures that the hiring manager sees your strongest qualifications early in the document.
Quantify : Where possible, quantify your skills or provide context. For example, if you are proficient in a programming language, you can mention the number of years of experience you have with it or highlight specific projects where you applied that skill.
Quality over quantity : It's better to emphasize a few highly relevant and valuable skills rather than listing a wide range of skills that may not be as important for the job. Hiring managers often appreciate depth and expertise in key areas.
Consider resume length : If you have many years of experience and a lot of relevant skills, you may have a longer resume. However, for most applicants, a one-page or two-page resume is typically sufficient. Ensure that your skills section doesn't dominate the entire document.
Group skills : You can group similar skills together to save space. For example, you might create categories like "Technical Skills" and "Soft Skills" to organize your skills more effectively.
Keep it honest : Only list skills that you genuinely possess and can confidently discuss in an interview. Exaggerating or fabricating skills can lead to problems during the hiring process.

businessman-checking-his-watch-resume-skills-for-resume

Types of skills to add to your resume and cover letter

To show your versatility, try including a diverse set of skills on your resume. Choose a couple from each of the three main categories below:

1. Transferable or functional skills

This covers your competency to perform an action and apply that skill to different tasks, job roles, and industries. Your aptitude to perform a transferable or functional skill is measured by your ability to optimize this skill to various situations.

Transferable or functional skills include:

Organization and time management skills
Critical thinking and problem-solving skills
Writing
Project management
Active listening and communication
Customer service skills

2. Personal skills

This covers personality traits, behaviors, or perspectives that guide your approach to a task or situation. These are likely interpersoanl skills you’ve developed since childhood through different life experiences.

Personality skills include:

Assertiveness
Independence
Detail-orientedness
Strong emotional intelligence
Ability to perform under pressure
Relationahip-building skills

3. Knowledge-based skills

This includes a theoretical or practical understanding of a specific task or process learned through consistent work experience or education. These are often industry or career-specific and, depending on the expertise required for a particular position, the most in-demand.

Knowledge-based skills include:

Computer skills, including programming languages, web development, or experience with specific programs like Microsoft Office, Excel, or Quickbooks
Analytical skills, including data analysis, strategy, or economic forecasting
Industry-specific skills, including a content creator with social media apps or marketing skills or a software engineer with specific expertise in Python or HTML

Top 3 skills to put on a resume

We recommend choosing transferable, knowledge-based, and personal skills relevant to the job description and the company’s values. When in doubt, you can’t go wrong using these three top skills on your resume:

1. Managerial skills

If you have any managerial experience, add it to the relevant job description. Good managers can see the bigger picture, organize their teams around a common goal, and demonstrate effective communication techniques.

This experience also shows you’re willing to take on more responsibility and can handle different personalities.

Expressing your management skills might look like this:

15 years of experience developing multiple teams to [name accomplishment]
Ideated and managed [project] and increased revenue by [percentage]
Certified in Conflict Resolution from [institution's name]

2. Communication skills

Strong communication skills are essential at every professional level. These skills include actively listening, speaking effectively, observing people and situations, and empathizing and supporting our co-workers, colleagues, and managers.

Expressing your communication skills might look like this:

Thrives on constructive criticism
Four years of public speaking experience
Certified in Non-Verbal Communication at [institute name]

3. Computer skills

Expertise in various technologies or the ability to learn new ones are great hard skills to advertise. These include knowledge of hardware, software, work platforms, or coding languages.

Computer skills might include:

Type 145 words per minute
Fluency in CRM and CSM
Knowledge of Python, Javascript, and HTML
Experience with project management softwares like Monday, ClickUp, and Notion
Adobe Photoshop

businesswoman-working-with-important-document-resume-skills-for-resume

17 of the best skills to add to your resume

In addition to the three above, here are some of the most important skills to add to your resume skills section. When updating your resume, be sure to include the most relevant skills for the job you're applying to. Social media marketing, for instance, is more of a must-have skill across various marketing roles but fewer project management roles.

1. Conflict resolution

Conflict resolution involves mediating disputes and finding mutually acceptable solutions. This skill is crucial for maintaining a harmonious work environment and productive relationships among team members.

2. Adaptability

Adaptability is the ability to adjust to new circumstances and challenges. In today's rapidly changing world, individuals who can quickly learn and adapt to new technologies, work processes, or environments are highly valuable.

3. Negotiation

Negotiation skills are essential for reaching agreements that benefit all parties involved. Whether in salary negotiations or business deals, effective negotiation can lead to favorable outcomes.

4. Creativity

Creativity involves thinking outside the box to generate innovative ideas and solutions. It's particularly valuable in roles that require problem-solving and innovation, such as marketing or product design.

5. Strategic planning

Strategic planning is the process of setting long-term goals and developing a roadmap to achieve them. This skill is crucial for leaders and managers responsible for guiding an organization's direction.

6. Public speaking

Public speaking is essential for presentations, pitches, and effective communication with large audiences. Confidence and clarity in public speaking can enhance your professional image.

7. Mentoring and coaching

The ability to mentor and coach others in their professional development is valuable for leadership roles and fostering a positive workplace culture.

8. Crisis management

Crisis management involves responding effectively to unexpected and high-pressure situations, minimizing damage, and maintaining business continuity.

9. Risk management

Identifying and mitigating risks is vital in fields such as finance, insurance, and project management to protect against potential losses.

group-of-colleagues-in-a-meeting-resume-skills-for-resume

10. Data privacy and security

With increasing concerns about data breaches and privacy, knowledge of data security measures and compliance with regulations is essential, especially in IT and healthcare industries.

11. Foreign language proficiency

Proficiency in a foreign language can open up opportunities in international business, diplomacy, and global organizations, enhancing your marketability.

12. Sales and marketing

Sales and marketing skills involve promoting products or services and persuading customers to make purchases. These skills are vital in sales and business development roles.

13. Conflict management

Conflict management focuses on identifying, addressing, and resolving conflicts within teams or organizations to maintain a productive and harmonious work environment.

14. Research and data analysis

Strong research and data analysis skills are valuable in fields like market research, academia, and policy analysis, enabling evidence-based decision-making.

15. Digital Marketing

Digital marketing skills, including SEO, social media management, and online advertising, are crucial for businesses looking to expand their online presence and reach.

16. Problem-solving skills

Problem-solving skills are vital for identifying, analyzing, and creatively resolving challenges. They enable individuals to make informed decisions, find innovative solutions, and adapt to changing circumstances.

17. Project management skills

Project management skills involve planning, organizing, and coordinating resources and teams to achieve specific goals within set constraints. Effective project managers excel at goal-setting, task breakdown, and timeline management. They ensure projects stay on track, meet deadlines, and stay within budget, making them highly sought after across industries.

man-sitting-with-laptop-an-a-dog-resume-skills-for-resume

How to add skills to your resume

There are endless resume templates to choose from when designing your resume, and most offer a skills section. We’ve outlined four tips for adding skills to catch a recruiter's attention with resume skills examples to help you get started.

1. Choose wisely

Study the company by visiting its website, LinkedIn profile , and other public sources. What values do they promote? Which team members do they highlight and why?

Read through the job ad and take note of the responsibilities, job requirements, and skills listed by the employer. Use this research to choose skills for your resume. It’s a good idea to list skills the job posting specifically seeks.

Here’s an example of how to translate a job responsibility into skills when describing work experience on your resume:

Responsibility: Fact-check, proofread, and edit content for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Skill on resume:

Eight years of copy and content writing experience with brands and PR agencies
Wrote objective-oriented, SEO-driven content for brands
Versed in workflow apps, Google Office, and grammar platforms

2. Include a skills section

If a hiring manager spends just seven seconds on a resume, make sure yours is readable. Design the resume to direct the reader's eye to critical information, and include a skills section close to the start. Use relevant action verbs to sell your experience and describe your skills from the beginning.

Don't over-clutter — insufficient white space will deflect the eye rather than attract it. This section should include bullet points with concise information.

3. Subtly mention skills in other sections

Sneak skills throughout your resume, including in the summary and work experience sections. Frequently referencing them will help show the hiring manager you really do possess the skills.

Here are two examples of a writer's position:

Resume summary with a mixture of transferable and personal skills:

Curious, creative, and self-motivated journalist and content writer with six years of experience working independently for agencies and publications.

Work experience section with a mixture of technical and interpersonal skills:

Digital Content Writer, [Company name], [time frame]

Experience in Google Workspace, Surfer SEO, and workflow platforms
Responsible for writing 10 1500-word SEO and keyword-driven articles weekly
Detail-oriented and personable — never missed a deadline and facilitated feedback calls with clients directly

4. Be specific about your proficiency level

Always be clear about your level of expertise. You’ll likely be asked to showcase some of your skills in an interview, so it’s best to be upfront.

Here are a few examples:

Languages spoken:

English, native
Spanish, fluent
Japanese, intermediate conversation and listening comprehension, beginner written
High-level expertise in Python and Java
Mid-level expertise in CSS

Feel confident about the skills on your resume

Building a good resume takes a lot of work. You have to read through the job description and tailor resumes to each post to make sure your profile best aligns with what the recruiter is looking for.

But the effort is worth it. You've spent your entire career learning and nurturing new skills — show them off in your resume and you'll be one step closer to getting the job. You’ve worked hard to get where you are, and listing the right skills will help hiring managers see that.

Maggie Wooll, MBA

Maggie Wooll is a researcher, author, and speaker focused on the evolving future of work. Formerly the lead researcher at the Deloitte Center for the Edge, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. Maggie is passionate about creating better work and greater opportunities for all.

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300+ Resume Skills to Use on Your Resume in 2024

Wondering what skills to put on your resume? Dive into our list of 300+ resume skills we’ve extracted from analyzing over 1,000,000 resumes, learn how to include them in yours, and increase your chances of landing a job interview.

3,908 happy customers shared their experience.

Our resumes get people hired at top companies:

Skills are great but…

Making a resume is more than just skills. Use our resume builder and let us take care of the design while you focus on your skills and experience!

Have you considered how difficult it is to select the right skills for your resume ?

You have to curate resume skills that:

reveal as many details about your proficiency; without going over the two-page limit .

Writing about your skills seems daunting - like you're fighting an uphill battle.

Yet, the potential wins are worth it: from landing an interview to getting a job offer.

So, here's our explicit guide on how to write about your skills on your resume:

Over 150 popular niche skills for over 15 industries.

The difference between hard skills and soft skills

Recruiters look for both hard and soft skills in a job application.

Before we get into the details of what both types of skills imply, we'd like to focus on how the skills are acquired, used, demonstrated, and measured.

Skill acquisition

Hard skills are attained via on-the-job experience, education, training, or certification.

While soft skills are obtained in a more intangible manner: via life or work experience.

Skill usage

Hard skills are used directly within your role - you need them to complete specific tasks.

Soft skills are most often related to how your flexible mindset is able to adapt, communicate, and excel within a new (potentially unfamiliar) work environment.

Skill showcase

It's easy to demonstrate your hard skills through various resume sections - showing recruiters what you're capable of.

Soft skills often complement your hard skills, thus providing unique value to your professional resume.

Skill measurement

Hard skills can be quantified based on your achievements, certifications, proficiency level, etc.

While soft skills could be a bit more difficult to pinpoint and could mainly be understood via your resume highlights.

Now, for a more brief definition of the two types of skills.

Hard skills comprise of the technical know-how and capabilities you possess: they are learned through studying and can be measured based on your performance.

Some of the more popular hard skills include:

Foreign Languages - opening doors to more international opportunities.

Soft skills are transferable skills: characteristics and habits that are most associated with you as a person. They indicate to recruiters just how well you will adapt, perform, and grow within a new environment.

Recruiters are constantly on the lookout for these types of soft skills:

Presentation

Why listing skills is important.

Your skills are one of the most important sections, as they help your potential employers to identify whether you would be a good fit for the role.

Consider the whole recruitment process from the recruiter's point of view.

You have a thousand applications for the same role.

You’ll either briefly skim the document to identify relevant skills. Or work with an Applicant Tracker System (ATS) to identify relevant keywords .

So, including a separate skills section, gives recruiters the opportunity to familiarize themselves with:

the specific (or unique) potential you'll bring with your in-demand, rare, or relevant skills.

Lack of relevant skills (keywords), placed at the top of their resume, often leads to a rejection from the ATS.

To avoid this, include this separate skills section to hint that:

you can bring the desired skill set to the table.

The best skills to put on your resume

Building your skills section would very much depend on the role you're applying for.

For example, say you’re applying for a Cloud computing architect job. In this case, your ability to implement relevant technologies are a prerequisite for recruiters.

But if you do include instances where you've had to present information to stakeholders, this would set you apart from other candidates.

Software Development and Programming

With the rise of technologies, these will continue to be one of the most in-demand hard skills for the next decade or so.

Demonstrating your software development knowledge could be via various resume sections - as long as you've noted the outcome of your use of the particular skill.

As this is a pretty vast field that includes numerous abilities - Web and Mobile Development; Version Control; Various Frameworks and Databases; Agile Methodologies; Software Testing and more - we've listed some of the most popular technologies:

Data Analysis and Statistics

Data has become one of the most valuable assets - those with the ability to understand and interpret it will discover many opportunities ahead.

This field again includes various hard skills, from Data Manipulation and Mining to Big Data and Machine Learning.

Discover a list of some of the most popular Data technologies:

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

With the rise of ChatGPT and similar platforms, one thing is evident - AI will continue to expand into uncharted territories.

And as a skill set, both AI and ML will continue to be in demand and take over multiple industries.

So, brush up on your:

Cloud Computing

Your knowledge of cloud platforms could land you the dream job in a dynamic environment.

Make sure you constantly upgrade your skill set with the most recent certificates , as this field is ever-evolving.

Meet job requirements by demonstrating your knowledge of:

Azure Functions
Cybersecurity

As a cybersecurity professional, it’s important to show on your resume not just your relevant certification, but adaptability in particular skills.

Referencing experience to project labs you’ve experimented with in your free time, can show your knowledge of the industry.

Here is a list of popular cybersecurity hard skills for your resume:

Digital Forensics

Project Management

Project management includes a combination of both hard and soft skills you'll need to be able to showcase via your resume.

While the end results are important, highlight instances where you've had to use any of these skills for successfully delivered projects:

Project Closure and Evaluation
Digital Marketing

Digital marketing encompasses many different roles, responsibilities, and industries.

Our advice is to highlight the skill set that would be most useful for your chosen career path.

For example, if you’re applying for a role in social media, include on your resume your experience with different channels and how your communication strategy succeeded.

Digital marketing skills may include:

Influencer Marketing

Graphic Design

While imagination and creativity may be at the center of the graphic designer's work, there are plenty of technologies that are important to success.

The list of graphic design skills includes:

UX/ UI Design

UX/UI design contains multiple skills from research, architecture, and wireframing to design and analysis.

Discover our top picks for your resume:

Accessibility Design

Financial Analysis

Plain and simple, financial analysis skills are focused on understanding data to make informed decisions.

They integrate an abundance of hard and soft skills, such as:

Data visualization tools

Foreign Languages

When listing foreign languages on your resume, it’s vital you explain your capabilities via your proficiencies and specializations.

It’s not enough to say you know a certain language - you need relevant certification or at least some widely-accepted reference as to your reading, comprehension, listening, and speaking skills.

Make sure to note your:

Interpersonal Communication
Communication

Perhaps your ability to communicate is one of the most important soft skills you'd need to show to recruiters - for any role.

Make sure that your communication efforts are always linked with relevant achievements.

Popular communication skills include:

Cultural awareness
Collaboration

Collaboration is your ability to participate within a team environment with the end goal of success.

While collaboration also covers various communication soft skills, here's the list of some other abilities you could list within your resume:

Problem-Solving

Problem-solving requires demonstrating your analytical abilities and shows the way you think in certain situations.

Can you take time-sensitive decisions or under pressure?

Skills that are linked with problem-solving include:

Systematic thinking
Critical Thinking

Like problem-solving, critical thinking is another must-have cognitive skill recruiters are on the lookout for.

Apart from your projects , you could also demonstrate your approach by incorporating various achievements through your resume as a result of your critical-thinking skills.

Showcase some of these skills to further prove your critical-thinking abilities:

Effective Communication

Adaptability

Within the past three plus years, it has become more and more evident that individuals who can navigate through dynamic environments (and thrive) become the most sought-out professionals.

Showcase you can adapt to new challenges on your resume via these skills:

Effective leaders are able to enable their teams to progress while creating a work environment with a vision.

While your leadership approach may be more evident during the interview stage of your application process, it's a good idea to note cases where you've shown some of the following skills:

Fostering a culture of growth

Organization

If you're apt at maintaining an organization's efficiency, definitely list your skills within your resume.

Organization skills hint at your abilities as a manager, but also, include:

Adaptation to technology
Negotiation

Navigating complex discussions, reaching agreements, and building relationships - that's what the ultimate outcome of your negotiation skills is.

Include as many of these relevant soft skills to highlight your negotiation abilities further:

Relationship building

The ability to think outside the box, while driving forward-facing initiatives, is surely impressive.

Highlight innovation on your resume with these soft skills:

Growth mindset

Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills help you to build positive relationships with others: whether those be third-party vendors, stakeholders, or team members.

Demonstrate your interpersonal skills via these abilities:

Valuing contributions

The ability to deliver information in a manner that's informative, engaging, and persuasive is one that leaves a lasting impression on recruiters.

Hone your presentation abilities with these soft skills:

Visual and verbal communication alignment

Within the next section of this guide, discover more practical advice to writing your resume skills.

How to list skills on your resume

To list skills on your resume, consider what works in light of the job requirements and will match your authentic skill set (and voice).

We've discovered six best practices that highlight strategy, space, and thought process, so you could make the most of your resume skills.

Find skills the company is looking for

First, read the advert job description.

It is most often the case that recruiters include all relevant keywords under the requirements or qualifications section.

As a final step to your research process, check out the company's website for even more gold nuggets related to what the company is all about.

This way, you'll be able to identify if you'll be a good match for the company culture (and vice versa - if it'll match your expectations).

What if the job advert you have doesn't provide enough information?

Search on other popular recruitment platforms for the job advert. The missing link is out there somewhere - you just need to find it.

Another option, in this case, will be to reach out to recruiters on LinkedIn - ask them just a few questions about the desired, specific skill set.

Match your skill set with the company's ideal profile

The ugly truth is that when every single company is hiring, they have an ideal candidate profile in mind. They might make a couple of compromises for an "out of the blue" Cinderella, but...

... practice goes to show that skill alignment is no fairy tale.

Here's where you have to learn to read between the lines of the advert.

Not just because you have to consider the technical capabilities as described, but also because you have to look deeper into the tone of voice, soft skills, and preferred culture.

Aim to synthesize this information for yourself, so you can better understand what is it that the company needs from the specific candidate:

A nod to the future - what would my potential be in the job?

Ultimately, your application shouldn't be set to just fill in a tangible (or not) vacancy but it should answer your and the company's expectations.

Here's an example with a job description for a UX Copywriter. We've highlighted the hard skills in green, while the soft skills are in blue. This exercise should help you better understand the preferable skill set of the ideal candidate.

Collaborate with Product Managers, UX Designers, UX Program Managers, and other key stakeholders to develop online device setup instructions and engagement pieces.
Maintain brand voice and alignment with packaging through copyediting.
Create and maintain editorial style guides and master copy documents.
Ensure the highest standards of style and writing (e.g., grammar, spelling, syntax, diction, punctuation, brand alignment).
Help improve processes for how content is created, delivered, and maintained.
Proofread all final documents before print.
Work closely with the subject matter experts, advocating for product and documentation innovation on behalf of the customer.
Pursue automated content development.
Create and maintain standards/guidance for localized translations.
3 years of design experience.
An available online portfolio.
Degree in English, Technical Writing.
Experience in writing and editing technical documentation.
Strong written and verbal communications skills.
Ability to earn trust, engage, and influence people and teams at every level in the organization.
Experience with content management systems and project management tools.
Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.

Want to make your resume stand out even further? Always match each skill with precise role accomplishments.

This would give social proof that you're adept at the skill and that your application is as close to the ideal candidate profile as it can be.

Use the STAR methodology to talk about your skills and experiences

The STAR method is one of the recruiters' favorite tools during behavioral-based interviews.

The acronym stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result(s).

Apart from the interview stage, you can also use the S-T-A-R methodology to describe specific achievements which really stand out.

Results or final outcomes: highlight precisely what “fruit” did your efforts bring in? BONUS: if you can add numbers and data to the results stage, then this will make quite an impression on recruiters.

Here are six more reasons why recruiters are huge fans of the STAR method.

These types of responses:

show how you'd handle similar situations.

The STAR method also brushes up on your reflection skills - as any professional should be able to look back on their work and highlight what worked.

So, even when writing your resume, it's helpful to think about various situations or projects where you can apply the STAR method .

The outcome should be strong, evidence-based answers that highlight your suitability for the position. Check out this example:

Situation : a DevOps engineer for a finance website

Task : eliminate poor website performance during peak hours (stock opening hours)

Activity : migrated the existing website's database to a more optimal noSQL solution

Result : reduced complaints rate to 3% and 100% website uptime during peak visit hours

Communicate your skills proficiency

Which one sounds more professional to you, when listing your language skills - "French C2" or "French"?

Adding your level of proficiency helps employers better understand just how good you are at using that particular skill.

Building trust with the organization from the get-go with transparency and honesty about your unique skill set.

But how can you - all by yourself - evaluate your skill set proficiency?

A popular framework that's used is the National Institutes of Health one; here's how it classifies the different experience levels:

Expert - with unparalleled knowledge that surpasses that of most professionals, you're recognized as a thought leader in the industry. With experience that spans years (or decades) on end, you've mastered various challenges and situations to always achieve an outcome. You're able to mentor others to achieve even higher peaks in their skill set.

There are many ways to map your skill proficiency. Our practice has shown us that some of the best ways include visual level bars and charts, used in more creative resumes , and simple labels, used in most modern resumes .

Make a separate resume skills section

A separate skills section serves to improve your score with the ATS - and also helps recruiters understand whether you have the expertise they're searching for.

First, consider the skills that are listed closer to the top of the advert. Those will be most vital for the role.

Next, reflect upon your skill strengths - those should also be listed within the dedicated skills section with more prominence.

Don't forget about including a couple of soft skills - this will help you align your profile even further with the ATS.

If you want to take this activity a step further, create a separate, niche skills section. One that could list, for example, your technology proficiency or specific soft skills.

Back up your skills in other sections of your resume

The more you can integrate skill keywords within your whole resume, the better you’d meet recruiters’ requirements. Here are five other sections that could include your skill set.

List accomplishments and skills in the experience section of your resume

Your experience bullets are the perfect opportunity to provide recruiters with some proof of your skill capabilities.

By quantifying your expertise with achievements (and possibly data), you'll provide them with the necessary background to better understand your skill set.

The more impressive your achievements were, the closer they should be to the top of your list (under each experience item).

Also, do consider what the requirements are for the job and use those to qualify your experience and skill set.

For example, if the role requires you to be able to apt in community management, your resume could list that you:

"Implemented communication strategies to attain a feeling of closeness amongst community members to attain a 107% growth and 65% more structured community management"

Let's take a look at a well-structured experience section that communicates the relevant skills of the applicant.

• Significantly reduced past due receivables from $7M to $5M within four months, accelerating cash flow
• Reduced company costs 50% through centralized purchasing
• Trained and supervised more than 4 summer interns each for a period of 3 weeks

Write a summary of qualifications

Going back to the top one-third of your resume, we have the summary and headline .

The resume summary - those brief three-to-five sentences - is the best chance you'd get to integrate your skills.

Once again, go back to the advert at hand and select up to five skills that you feel most confident in (that are important for the job). Use those to structure your resume summary.

Here's an example from our practice:

With your resume headline, you could also make a lasting impression.

Even though it should be short and simple, while matching the job requirements, the headline could integrate one-to-three skills.

Both of these sections provide you with an opportunity to further "stuff" your resume with skill keywords. But you don't want to go over the top with that.

Use the limited space you have wisely to demonstrate your highlights, achievements, and unique skill set.

Use certifications and courses

The hidden gem of the certifications and courses resume sections is that they allow you to further expand on your skill set. They are also a must in certain industries, such as cybersecurity.

Including a certification section on your resume will:

showcase your professional recognition.

A courses section is recommended for entry-level roles, where certifications (or more experience) are yet to be attained.

The courses could once again highlight the skills you've learned via your education or in your free time.

Showcase your transferable skills if you’re switching between career fields

Transferrable skills are universal skills you can easily apply from one role or responsibility to another.

They are basically what makes your experience unique and show that you can thrive within any work environment.

150+ Must-Have Skills (for Every Field)

Soft resume skills

Including this category of skills within your resume showcases the transferable skills and unique value you’d bring about as an applicant.

Work Under Pressure
Flexibility
Independent
Analytical Thinking
Collaborative
Strong Work Ethic
Decision Making
Detail Oriented
Organizational
Problem Solving
Responsibility
Interpersonal
Team Leadership
Time Management
Coordinating
Reliability
Multi-Tasking
Creative Thinking
Strategic Thinking
Dealing with Ambiguity
Emotional Intelligence
Active Listening
Transferable
Fast Learner
Public Speaking
Conflict Resolution
Willingness to Learn
Dealing with Objection
Creating Good Rapport
Resource Allocation
Goal-Oriented
Remote Work Skills

Computer skills for your resume

Computer skills are your technical competencies - basically, your ability to use various computer software and applications.

Microsoft Access
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Office
Data analysis and interpretation
Database management (e.g., SQL, Oracle, MySQL)
Programming languages (e.g., Python, Java, C++)
Web development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
Front-end frameworks (e.g., React, Angular, Vue.js)
Back-end frameworks (e.g., Node.js, Django, Laravel)
Cloud computing platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, Google Cloud)
Networking protocols (e.g., TCP/IP, DNS, HTTP)
Cybersecurity principles and best practices
Virtualization and containerization (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes)
Data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI)
Machine learning and data mining
Artificial intelligence (AI) concepts and frameworks
Natural language processing (NLP)
Big data technologies (e.g., Hadoop, Spark)
Statistical analysis software (e.g., R, SAS, SPSS)

Design resume skills

With design skills, you have to be able to showcase to recruiters that you’re able to use an array of technology (and/or software), yet also have a creative vision.

Perhaps the strongest asset you have that demonstrates your graphic design skills are your past projects and portfolio. Make those easily discoverable by recruiters with links within the resume header .

Videography
Graphic design
User interface (UI) design
User experience (UX) design
Branding and identity design
Print design
Mobile app design
Layout design
Illustration
Icon design
Logo design
Visual communication
Color theory
Composition
Motion graphics
Video editing
3D modeling and rendering
Infographic design
Data visualization
Art direction
Photo editing and retouching
Virtual reality (VR) design
Augmented reality (AR) design
Game design
Brand guidelines
Style guides

Business and management resume skills

Show that you’re the top candidate by featuring the right skills on your resume. Explore a list of the most popular business and management skills in 2022 below.

Client Relations
Stakeholder Management
Team Management
People Management
Procurement
Contract Management
Implementation
Fundraising
Sustainability
Client Management
Crisis Management
Manufacturing
Performance Management
Quality Management
Microsoft Project
Event Management
Report Writing
Inventory Management
Relationship Management
Risk Management
Lean Six Sigma
Process Improvement
Quality Assurance
Faciliation
Vendor Management
Financial Modeling
Asset Management
Customer relationship management
Supply chain management
Key performance indicator (KPI) tracking

Accounting and finance resume skills

Accounting and finance skills could open your doors to opportunities within various sectors. Your proficiency and technological capabilities would be a definite must for some roles.

These are also transferable skills, as they focus further on growing your analytical thinking and the ability to back up your decisions via data.

The more numbers that pinpoint results you could integrate (e.g. that show how your financial decisions have brought about a 56% increase in ROI), the better you’d be able to demonstrate your success.

Budget Management
Financial analysis
Financial reporting
Financial modeling
Tax preparation and planning
Risk management
Cost accounting
Managerial accounting
Financial statement analysis
Cash flow management
Revenue recognition
Accounts payable
Accounts receivable
General ledger management
Financial planning and analysis (FP&A)
Internal controls
Financial systems and software (e.g., QuickBooks, SAP, Oracle)
Compliance and regulatory knowledge (e.g., GAAP, IFRS)
Financial statement preparation
Variance analysis
Investment analysis
Capital budgeting
Treasury management
Financial risk assessment
Cash management
Financial operations management
Cost control and reduction
Financial reconciliation
Financial statement consolidation
Financial data analysis and interpretation
Microsoft Excel proficiency (advanced functions, pivot tables, macros)
Financial forecasting and planning
Inventory management and costing
Financial controls and procedures
Debt management and financing
Forecasting

Engineering resume skills

Engineering skills encompass various fields - from mechanical and chemical engineering to aerospace and civil engineering. It's no surprise that there's an array of skills that you could demonstrate across your resume.

Once more, remember to select the ones that are most relevant for the job you're applying for. In this industry, it'll be very often that your technical competencies would serve as your base for getting the job.

Soft skills are also a very good at showing not only your people skills but that you're adaptable to growth.

Prototyping
Technical drawing and drafting
Engineering design and analysis
Mathematical modeling and simulation
Technical documentation and reporting
Risk assessment and management
Quality control and assurance
Materials selection and testing
Manufacturing processes and techniques
Electrical circuit design and analysis
Mechanical design and analysis
Structural analysis and design
Thermodynamics and heat transfer
Fluid mechanics and hydraulics
Control systems and automation
Systems engineering
Environmental sustainability in engineering
Engineering ethics and professionalism
Root cause analysis
Failure analysis and prevention
Statistical analysis
Geotechnical engineering principles
Engineering

Marketing resume skills

Marketing encompasses many different activities (e.g. social media, content creation, PPC strategies) all aiming to bring brands closer to audiences.

It's an ever-evolving sector that presents opportunities for professionals with different levels of proficiency.

One of the best things you could do, if you're looking to grow into the field, is to get as much hands-on experience as possible and always stay up to date with relevant technologies.

Lead Generation
Content Management
Storytelling
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Social Media Management (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.)
Content Marketing
Email Marketing
Online Advertising
Mobile Marketing
Video Marketing
Affiliate Marketing
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
Google Analytics
Social Media Analytics
Marketing Automation
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Marketing Strategy
Marketing Campaign Management
Market Research
Competitor Analysis
Consumer Insights
Brand Development
Brand Positioning
Brand Messaging
Brand Management
Copywriting
Content Creation
Website Copy
Community Management
Public Relations (PR)
Event Planning
Customer Acquisition
Customer Retention
Customer Segmentation
Customer Experience (CX)
A/B Testing
User Experience (UX)
Landing Page Optimization
Marketing Analytics
Data Analysis

Sales resume skills

Demonstrate your sales skills with the actual achievements of your role, like maintaining a 95% positive customer feedback score or the number of units you've sold.

Your resume should also showcase the technology you feel comfortable using (e.g. Salesforce) and put a particular focus on your communication skills.

As in the words of Jeff Gitomer, "Great salespeople are relationship builders..."

Telecommunications
Cold Calling
Product Knowledge
Customer Service
Prospecting
Sales Process Knowledge
CRM Software
Territory Management
Sales Forecasting
Team Collaboration
Goal Orientation
Consultative Selling
Rapport Building
Objection Handling
Value Proposition Development
Competitive Analysis
Strategic Account Management
Cross-Selling
Solution Selling
Qualifying Leads
Pipeline Management
Relationship Development
Relationship Marketing
Customer Satisfaction
Sales Presentations
Sales Funnel Management
Closing Techniques
Contract Negotiation
Sales Analytics
Relationship Building
Business Development
Customer Engagement
Sales Training
Key Account Management
Territory Planning
CRM Administration

IT and Data management resume skills

Data has become the most valuable asset across our digital-driven world. That's why professionals with expertise in data management and information technology will be presented with a multitude of chances for professional growth.

IT careers allow professionals to experience versatile industries with ever so many rising challenges that require a new, more adaptive skill set for creative problem-solving and innovation.

But, as a starting point, make sure you can demonstrate how you can use your knowledge in the real world with projects , experience items , and technical skills .

Active Directory
Database Management
Data Management
Penetration Testing
Data Warehouse
Technical Support
Mathematics
Machine Learning
Integration
Artificial Intelligence
Software Testing
Data Modelling
Data Collection
Data Center
Statistical Analysis
artificial intelligence
data center
data management
data collection
data modelling
machine learning
microsoft access
penetration testing
software testing
microsoft office
data warehouse
statistical analysis

Office resume skills

These skills are indispensable in any industry (or sphere) as they prove your ability to communicate and how you handle some office software.

If you're looking to find an admin role, definitely showcase your office skills, supported by relevant strengths, within your resume.

This particular skill set is also a nice-to-have for more entry-level candidates and candidates with less ( or no ) professional experience.

Documentation
Administrative
Data Entry and Management
Office Equipment Operation
File Management
Record Keeping
Calendar Management
Office Supply Management
Office Space Planning
Office Decorum and Etiquette
Document Sharing and Collaboration Tools (e.g., SharePoint, Google Drive)
Presentation Software (e.g., PowerPoint, Keynote)
Task Management Tools (e.g., Trello, Asana)
Web Conferencing Platforms (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams)
Customer Complaint Resolution
Risk Assessment
Performance Tracking
Data Reporting
Workplace Ergonomics
Employee Relations
Knowledge of Labor Laws and Regulations
Benefits Administration Support
Recruitment and Onboarding Coordination
Workplace Culture Enhancement
Employee Engagement Initiatives
Employee Recognition Programs
Workplace Wellness Initiatives
Diversity and Inclusion Support
Business Correspondence Etiquette

Food service resume skills

Bring your A-game to the table with your previous experience and food service skills.

The food and beverage industry allows professionals to grow a multitude of unique (and transferable) skills, from customer service to system operations and creativity.

On a side note, your patience and active listening skills should be at a superior level.

Food Safety and Sanitation
Menu Knowledge
Order Taking
Food Preparation
Food Presentation
Cash Handling
POS Systems
Menu Specials Promotion
Food Handling Equipment
Cleanliness and Organization
Knowledge of Dietary Restrictions
Menu Planning
Inventory Ordering and Management
Quality Control
Culinary Skills
Recipe Development
Food Cost Analysis
Portion Control
Knife Skills
Food Sourcing and Procurement
Food Plating Techniques
Food Styling
Beverage Service
Wine and Beer Knowledge
Coffee Brewing Techniques
Cash Register Operation
Cross-selling
Table Setting
Dining Etiquette
Special Event Catering
Buffet Setup and Management
Food Allergies and Dietary Restrictions
Safe Food Handling and Storage
Menu Engineering
Health and Safety Regulations
Food Service

Medical and healthcare resume skills

From patient care to managing various software, creating a separate resume section to showcase your medical and healthcare skills is always a good idea.

Take the time to consider which medical skills would be most relevant for the job and align those with your experience .

Also, include your healthcare skills within various parts of your resume. This should also be done to showcase your commitment to the industry and the steps you've taken to ensure that you're the most up-to-date with recent R&D.

Patient Assessment
Administering Injections
Patient Care
Taking Vital Signs
Medical Administration
Recording Patient Medical History
TB Test Clearance
Teamwork Abilities
Medical Procedures
Electronic Medical Records (EMR)
Medical Terminology
Diagnostic Testing
Infection Control
Surgical Assistance
Medical Equipment Operation
Clinical Documentation
HIPAA Compliance
Medical Ethics
Emergency Response
Patient Education
Quality Improvement
Cultural Competence
Healthcare Regulations
Patient Advocacy

Legal resume skills

All rise for the honorable legal resume skills!

While the skills may encompass various roles within the legal system, the field of regulatory compliance has been gaining more traction in the past decade or so.

The best way to highlight your legal capabilities (apart from the dedicated skills section ) is also to boost your relevant legal certification and trial/ jury/ job success.

Contract Law
Civil Litigation
Legal Writing
Legal Research
Commercial Litigation
Criminal Law
Legal Analysis
Case Management
Contract Review and Negotiation
Litigation Support
Legal Document Preparation
Legal Terminology
Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility
Oral Advocacy
Legal Citations
Client Counseling
Legal Due Diligence
Legal Compliance
Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Legal Software and Technology
Courtroom Procedures
Document Drafting and Editing
Contract Drafting
Deposition Preparation
Legal Brief Writing
Trial Preparation
Mediation Techniques
Legal Research Methodologies
Legal Research Databases (e.g., Westlaw, LexisNexis)
Discovery Process

Customer service resume skills

Anyone who's ever had a customer-facing role, can let you know one thing - the experience teaches you so many personal skills in handling communications.

It's all about taking the time to understand the party opposing you, to find ways to show them both empathy and compassion, and - in the end - have a tangible outcome.

The STAR methodology could be a great way to showcase your customer service skills on your resume within the projects section .

Another good idea would be to create a supplementary experience section that focuses more on your soft and customer service skills.

Dispute Management
Oral Communication
CRM Systems
Technical Expertise
Knowledge of Policies and Procedures
Complaint Handling
Follow-Up and Resolution
Telephone Etiquette
Customer Feedback Analysis
Customer Service Training
Problem Escalation and Resolution
Customer Retention Strategies
Upselling Techniques
Customer Satisfaction Enhancement
Customer Needs Assessment
Service Recovery
Social Media Customer Service
Customer Service in Multilingual Environments
Professional Phone Etiquette
Knowledge of Industry Regulations
Customer Education and Training
Product Demonstrations
Technical Troubleshooting
Knowledge Base Creation and Management
Continuous Improvement
Service Level Agreement (SLA) Management
Customer Success Management
Voice of Customer Analysis
Service Recovery Strategies

Warehouse resume skills

There's an array of warehouse resume skills that entangle various aspects of operations. Those include third-party vendor communications and logistics to operating equipment and workplace health and safety procedures.

Your resume allows for a multitude of opportunities to list these skills - so don't miss your chances to include them, for example within your headline . Thus, optimizing it for the ATS and recruiters.

Look no further for inspiration as to your warehouse resume skills.

Cleaning Equipment
Forklift Operation
Loading and Unloading Trucks
Record-Keeping
Lifting Heavy Items
Warehouse Operations
Order Fulfillment
Shipping and Receiving
Warehouse Organization
Safety Compliance
Physical Stamina
Problem Identification
Vendor Coordination
RF Scanner Usage
Warehouse Safety Training
Lean Principles
Warehouse Software Proficiency
Cycle Counting
Stock Replenishment
Hazardous Materials Handling
Inventory Auditing
Cross-Docking
Shrinkage Prevention
Material Handling
Workflow Optimization
Reverse Logistics
Space Utilization
Stock Rotation
Returns Processing
Freight Management
Customs Compliance
Container Unpacking and Consolidation
Inventory Forecasting
Routing and Scheduling
Warehouse Layout Design
Supplier Negotiation
Supply Chain Management

Human Resources (HR) resume skills

If you're apt at working with people and supporting the acquisition functions (or funnel) of an organization - this next list is especially for you.

Demonstrate your abilities to support one of the most crucial areas of the business - that is talent management - with an array of hard and soft skills that support your understanding.

Have you implemented any changes that have improved the lives of individuals or perhaps increased interest in the organization? Make sure you dedicate a special section to those, and also quantify the impact your decisions have made.

Human Resource Management (HRM)
Applicant Screening
HR Strategy Creation
Career Coaching
HR Reporting
Recruitment and Selection
Employee Onboarding
HR Policies and Procedures
Training and Development
Compensation and Benefits
Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) HR Systems
Employee Engagement
Labor Law Compliance
Diversity and Inclusion
Employee Performance Improvement
Employment Law Knowledge
Compliance Reporting
Ethics and Confidentiality
Employee Wellness Programs
Employee Performance Evaluation
Succession Planning
Employee Benefits Administration
Organizational Development
Employee Engagement Surveys
Employee Coaching and Development
HR Policy Development
Workforce Planning
Compensation Analysis and Benchmarking
HR Training and Facilitation
Talent Acquisition and Retention
Human Resources

Technical resume skills

Technical skills have to do with the specific technologies that are a must to complete a job.

The best way to showcase your technical expertise, of course, is by showing the skills' practical side with on-the-job experience, projects, and relevant certification.

The more results of your technical skills you can include, the better it'd be for recruiters to understand precisely your understanding of the given technology.

Speaking of which - in some cases - it could be good to also note your proficiency level.

Lean Manufacturing
Payment Processing
Linear Regression
Programming Languages (e.g., Python, Java, C++, Ruby)
Web Development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
Database Management (SQL, Oracle, MySQL)
Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC)
Version Control Systems (Git, SVN)
Agile/Scrum Methodologies
Network Administration
System Administration (Windows, Linux)
IT Troubleshooting
Cloud Computing (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud)
DevOps Tools (Docker, Kubernetes, Jenkins)
Scripting Languages (Shell Scripting, PowerShell)
Big Data Technologies (Hadoop, Apache Spark)
Data Analysis and Visualization (Excel, Tableau, Power BI)
Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
Natural Language Processing (NLP)
Data Mining
Internet of Things (IoT)
Mobile App Development (Android, iOS)
User Interface (UI) Design
User Experience (UX) Design
Web Frameworks (React, Angular, Django)
Object-Oriented Programming (OOP)
Test Automation (Selenium, JUnit)
Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
Data Structures and Algorithms
Data Warehousing
Mathematical Modeling
Embedded Systems
Computer Vision
Operating Systems (Windows, Linux, macOS)

Hospitality resume skills

In spite of the global pandemic, the hospitality sector continues to thrive and be an indispensable part of people's lives.

With that being said, perhaps one of the most important skills within hospitality is the ability to adapt (and accept) change.

By managing customers' expectations and experiences of the given hospitality service, you've surely also attained a variety of other soft, transferrable skills.

Even if a certain skill doesn't seem that important to you, yet it's a must-have on the job advert, and you have relevant, result-driven experience of it - make sure you dedicate some resume space to quantify your experience.

Hotel Management and Operations
Maintenance and Cleaning
Staff Management
Central Reservation System “CRS”
Event Planning and Coordination
Front Desk Operations
Property Management Systems (PMS)
Sales and Marketing Knowledge
Housekeeping Coordination
Concierge Services
Wine and Beverage Service
Event Setup and Breakdown
Venue Management
Guest Satisfaction Enhancement
Time-sensitive Issue Management
Venue and Room Management
Staff Training and Development
Revenue Management
Hospitality

Key Takeaways

Frequently asked questions about resume skills, what are the top skills to list on your resume.

There are no "top" skills, but rather ones that answer two-part criteria.

The first is the job requirements, and the second - is your capability and practical knowledge of using particular skills.

Now, both criteria could be met by both:

soft skills - transferrable, personal traits that showcase the unique value of working with you as a professional.

How many skills should I list on my resume?

It's not a question of how many, but rather which skills showcase you as the best fit for the role and also prove your unique expertise and knowledge.

Asses what are the key skills for the job advert (select between five and ten) and align those with the five to ten skills you're best at.

Remember to strike a balance between hard and soft skills, and to make use of every section of your resume to demonstrate your achievements.

Can I list soft skills on my resume?

Of course - soft skills are hints of how you'd adapt and grow within new work dynamics and environments.

Soft skills support your experience and tell a further narrative: that you've grown up both as a professional and a person.

They make a fantastic first impression on more experienced recruiters who are on the lookout for more than just the check-box-fitting candidate.

Should I tailor my skills to the job description?

This is perhaps the best strategy out there for creating your professional resume. First, take notice of what skills are important to the role, recruiters, and subsequently the organization.

If from the get-go you take the time to target your skills section to the advert at hand, this would go to show that you're ready to take the next steps and subsequently - are more than prepared for the role.

As you know, the whole job application process is one of meeting expectations and aligning visions.

How do I showcase my skills on my resume?

Make use of all the resume space (or real estate) you have to highlight your versatile skill set.

What this means is that you shouldn't just limit this to a dedicated skills section. You could also talk about these capacities within your resume:

niche/specific skills section.

It's entirely up to you to choose which sections of your resume would best fit your skill set.

When talking about your hard and soft skills, remember to also quantify your achievements.

Instead of saying you're apt at using "AutoCAD", note that you've "created 65+ full building plans in AutoCAD that have helped make the design 35% more understandable and efficient for contractors".

You could also use the STAR methodology (situation, task, action, result), when talking about your skills.

Can I include skills I learned outside of work?

If those skills are relevant to the job you're applying for and fully support your application, there isn't a reason why you shouldn't include them.

For example, you could further build your education, certifications, or hobbies section to detail those specific skills.

Test labs that you've done in your free time or side-projects that have taught you a specific skill could also work in showcasing your capabilities.

Your dream career awaits, make your move.

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150 Top Skills for Your Resume + How to List Skills in 2024

Best General Skills

Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills

How to Include Skills on Your Resume
Job-Specific Skills
Skills FAQs

When it comes to your resume skills, the more specific you can get, the better. That’s why we broke down the most in-demand job skills by career type .

Still, it can be helpful to start by looking at the skills employers generally might be wanting right now.

We analyzed countless job descriptions across all careers and identified 150 of the most sought-after and widely applicable skills you can put on your resume (like this one) in 2024.

Software Engineer Resume

or download as PDF

20 Good Skills to Put on a Resume

Young man in front of his laptop reading his resume

While we’re going to give you plenty of job-specific resume skills you can add to your AI cover letter and resume, there are some that work across just about any field. These can add value for candidates who either lack work history or are creating an entry-level resume .

Data Analysis
Problem-solving
Collaborative
Detail-oriented
Written Communication
Public Speaking
Critical Thinking
Multi-tasking
Interpersonal Skills
Time Management
Accountable
Results-oriented
Project Management
Compassionate/ Empathetic

A PC monitor and laptop showing well written resumes.

Before we jump into which skills to put on your resume, we need to get some definitions out of the way:

Hard skills are the tools and software you use to get your job done. Excel and QuickBooks are examples of hard skills.
Soft skills are those that are hard to measure or prove expertise in. “Communication” is a textbook example of a soft skill.

Quickly distinguish between hard and soft skills by asking, “Is there a specific tool or software associated with the skill?” If “yes,” you’re likely dealing with a hard skill. If not, you’re talking about a soft skill.

As we explained earlier, companies often use an ATS to filter out job applicants based on whether they include the right skills on their resumes.

The ATS filters are looking primarily for hard skills; they want to be sure the people they end up hiring know the right tools and software needed to succeed.

This doesn’t necessarily mean you should exclude soft skills from your resume. Why? After the ATS approves your resume, it’s passed on to the human hiring manager. They’ll likely want to see soft skills depending on the kind of industry and role you’re applying to.

Try out this quick guide to determine whether to put soft skills on your resume:

Should I include soft skills on my resume?

If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, you should likely include soft skills on your resume (we’ll detail how in the next section).

Technical roles are those primarily dominated by hard skills (software engineering, data science, accounting, etc.)
Just listing soft skills on your resume isn’t as impactful as showing how you used them to do your job .
For example, if you’re in sales or customer service, you need the ability to communicate persuasively with customers!

Examples of hard skills according to industry

Predictive Modeling (Finance)
eQUEST (Energy)
Crop Rotation (Agriculture)
eZee Frontdesk (Hospitality)
Google Classroom (Education)
X-ray Diagnostics (Healthcare)
Mailchimp (Marketing)
AutoCAD (Engineering)

Examples of soft skills

Self-starter
Conflict Resolution
Attentive to Details

How to List Skills on Your Resume

Young man sitting behind his computer screen happily typing away.

Now that you know whether you should put hard skills, soft skills, or a combination on your resume, how do you actually include them?

When it comes to your resume skills, the presentation can matter just as much as the content!
Before we get to structure, a word of warning :

Don’t list too many skills in your skills section! While it’s all right to dump all sorts of skills into your resume outline , it’s a big red flag to the hiring manager if they see a resume where an applicant lists 15+ skills.

First, it might mean the applicant is exaggerating their skillset (a big no-no). Second, a hiring manager would rather hire someone who’s a master of a few skills than a novice in many.

Different resume formats may display your skills in various ways, but regardless of the layout you choose, there are three places you should mention your most important skills :

In your resume objective or resume summary (if you include this section)
In a dedicated “skills” section on your resume
In your work experience or projects ( show how you used your skills to do your job)

Your resume objective should only be two to three sentences , so you should include your top one to two skills most relevant to the job you’re applying for here. In addition to our objective sample below, we’ve got plenty more great examples of how to mention your best skills in your resume objective or resume summary .

Organized, considerate administrative assistant with a history of remaining cool under high-pressure situations where multiple priorities are managed. Genoa Telepsychiatry is doing invaluable work for underserved housing populations, and I would be an asset in enabling Ms. Garcia to focus on that mission by alleviating her organizational burden.

How to organize skills on your resume

When it comes to skills for a resume, there are a couple of ways you can structure them:

By skill category (technology type, soft skills vs. hard skills)
Experience level

These kinds of breakdowns aren’t mandatory. You can just list all of your skills in your skills section, provided you keep the number to under 10.

First, you can break up your skills by category . This is most appropriate if you’re applying for a technical role since you can group different technologies you use by type.

For example, as a data analyst, you might want to divide your skills by the different facets of your job (programming, modeling, and data visualization).

This breakdown of your skills can also work well if soft skills are your biggest strength. For example, you can chunk your soft skills into categories like leadership, customer service, communication, etc.

Another way to classify your skills on your resume is by your experience level . Convey your expertise either in terms of years of expertise with that skill or by a rating you choose (beginner, intermediate, expert, for instance).

Here’s an example of this skills breakdown in action:

And again, you can also just list all of your skills without categories like the example below if there are fewer than 10:

Let your work experience vouch for your job skills

Now that you’ve got your top one to two skills in your resume objective and a dedicated skills section, it’s time to talk about how you’ve used your skills in your previous roles and projects.

This is especially important for soft skills. Put yourself in the shoes of the hiring manager .

Does seeing that someone described themselves as “attentive to detail” in their skills section mean much without seeing that skill in action?

It’s much more valuable if you highlight a time you were attentive to detail in a previous job. So, if you’re an administrative assistant, you might say you “re-organized thousands of customer contacts in HubSpot without losing any customer data.”

Remember, it’s one thing to say you have a skill, but showing your knowledge of that skill in a work or personal project carries far more weight in the eyes of the hiring manager.

Let’s make this practical with an example: This software engineer lists NodeJS and Django in her resume skills list.

This won’t be the last we see of these skills, though. Take a look at this job seeker’s work experience at MarketSmart. For instance, see how she weaves NodeJS into improving CTR? And even her intern experience shows how Django played a role in increasing reporting speed.

Software engineer skills in resume work experience

Pro tip: Try starting with specific work experience and then work backward to determine which skills you used instead of the other way around.

Regarding technical skills, try to be specific about what you did with the tool/ software you’re describing. Microsoft Excel is a program that can be used for many different applications, for example. Discuss specifically which functionality you used to accomplish your task (pivot tables, vlookups, etc.).

Match your resume skills to the job description

How can you identify the most common skills for the industry or role you’re applying for? The best way is to look at job ads for positions that grab your attention.

Try this two-step process to list skills on your resume:

Look across 5-10 different job descriptions for roles you’re interested in and identify the 10-15 most common skills in those job listings.
For each specific role you apply to, choose the 5-7 skills from your list that are most relevant to that job .

Yup, this means you’ll have to customize your resume for each role. Customizing your skills section, however, will vault you into the top five percent of applicants and is the quickest way to increase the number of interviews you get!

Let’s walk through an example of how to customize your skills for a specific job.

Say you’re looking for a position as a digital marketer, and after looking at some job descriptions, you notice the most common skills employers are looking for are the following:

CRM: HubSpot, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, Pipedrive
Web Analytics: Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, Mixpanel, Heap
General Tools: Microsoft Excel/ Word/ PowerPoint, Google Sheets/ Docs/ Slides
Optimization: A/B testing, customer segmentation, attribution modeling
Paid Ads: Facebook, AdWords, LinkedIn, Google Display Network, retargeting
Social Media: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn
Email Marketing: Mailchimp, ConvertKit, Drip
SEO: Content creation, keyword research, backlink building

Now, you’re specifically interested in a digital marketing role at Barnes and Noble with the following job description:

Digital marketing manager

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Develop and execute data-driven marketing strategies and campaigns with a strong focus on driving acquisition, engagement, and retention across multiple channels (e.g., SMS, mobile, email, social media, etc.) on time and on budget.
Aim to generate revenue and deliver on key business objectives, ROI, and KPI targets.
Own, measure, deliver, and optimize key metrics and reporting on marketing activities across channels and platforms.
Identify trends and insights, optimize segments, spend, and performance based on data.
Utilize strong analytical ability to evaluate end-to-end customer experience across multiple channels and customer touchpoints and work cross-functionally to drive qualified traffic, improve conversion, and identify new opportunities to boost user engagement and retention through A/B and multivariate testing.

REQUIREMENTS:

Minimum 5-7 years of digital marketing experience with a minimum of 3 years demonstrated success in mobile, email, social media, PPC, and SEM marketing from concept to completion with a proven track record of success.
Results-driven mentality with exceptional detail orientation and knowledge of metrics, A/B testing, and ROI analysis.
Experience with testing and optimization platforms.
Strong track record of distilling actionable insights from data to improve multi-channel marketing strategies.
In-depth familiarity with email service providers and knowledge of marketing automation platforms.
Solid understanding of website analytics tools (Google Analytics, Amplitude, Appsflyer), email systems (Sailthru, Salesforce Marketing Cloud), and ad-serving tools (Adroll, Facebook.)

Finally, we cross-reference our list of 10-15 skills with the skills this specific job is looking for (underlined above). This leaves us with the remaining five key skills:

Optimization: A/B Testing, Segmentation
CRM: Salesforce
Web Analytics: Google Analytics
Paid Ads: Facebook
Social Media: Email Marketing

There you have it! These skills are what will make up your skills list for this specific role. Don’t forget to include the seemingly most essential skills in your resume objective (for this position, we’d say those are optimization and A/B testing) and mention relevant work experience where you used some of these skills.

Remember, it’s important to be truthful about which skills you know and which you don’t. A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself whether you’d be comfortable being interviewed about a skill. If the answer is “yes,” then include it. Otherwise, it’s best to leave it off your resume.

And for the grand finale to this digital marketing example: Check out how this resume integrates key skills into the career objective, skills section, and work experience.

Digital Marketing Manager Resume

Why this resume works

Starting with the most obvious section—the skills section—Giselle lists skills important to Barnes & Noble, grouping them in easy-to-read categories.
Don’t be deterred, even if you lack experience in an area or two! Demonstrating a willingness to learn is highly valuable.
The work experience section is a prime opportunity to showcase skills in action. Like Giselle, start with active verbs to show how you used skills, software, and tools to impact the company positively.

Job-Specific Resume Skills

We promised an extensive list of resume skills, organized by profession, and we’re not ones to break our promises!

Below, you’ll find countless role-related skills you can put on your resume, along with informational tidbits for each profession.

Remember that honesty is critical when building your resume , so we stand behind a shorter list of genuine skills rather than a slew of half-truths you’ll blush over later in an interview.

Web developer skills for your resume

Web developers build the web apps we interact with in our everyday lives. From banking to transportation to Netflix, it’s hard to find a facet of life that isn’t touched by web development.

We did an extensive analysis of the top web developer skills employers are looking for in 2024, and below are the results in order of those most in demand.

Top web developer skills

JavaScript (React, Angular, Vue)
SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, Oracle)
Cloud Storage (GCP, AWS, Azure)

Data analyst skills for resume

Companies are currently swimming in large pools of data. Marketing, product, engineering, and executive teams all rely on data to make the most effective decisions in the face of uncertainty.

That’s where data analysts come in. To be a successful data analyst, you need the right skills to clean, organize, visualize, and make actionable recommendations from data.

We analyzed over 100 job openings and determined the most in-demand data analyst skills needed to get a data analyst position in 2024. Below are the results in order of the most popular skills.

Top data analyst skills

Business Intelligence Tools (Tableau, PowerBI, Qlik, Looker)
Excel/ Google Sheets
Python (Pandas, Matplotlib, Scikit-learn, Numpy)
R (Dplyr, ggplot2)

Marketing skills for resume

No matter how great a product or website—unless a successful marketing campaign drives customers to that product, it won’t succeed.

Marketers must strike a balance between creativity and science to reach the right people at the right time to make them customers.

To do this successfully, marketers need a wide range of skills.

Top marketing skills

CRM: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, Pipedrive, HubSpot
Web Analytics: Adobe Analytics, Mixpanel, Heap, Google Analytics
General Tools: Google Sheets/ Docs/ Slides, Microsoft Excel/ Word/ PowerPoint
Optimization: Customer Segmentation, Attribution Modeling, A/B Testing
Paid Ads: AdWords, LinkedIn, Google Display Network, Retargeting, Facebook
Social Media: Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter
Email Marketing: ConvertKit, Drip, Mailchimp
SEO: Keyword Research, Backlink Building, Content Creation
Direct Mail

Customer service skills for resume

When a customer has a problem or a question, they need to get a prompt and accurate answer to ensure they remain a customer.

More than that, a strong customer service representative will build relationships with customers to help identify potential new features or directions to take a product.

To do this successfully, you need a potent blend of people skills while also knowing the tools of the trade.

Top customer service skills

Strong Communication & Interpersonal Skills
Curious, Empathetic, and Professional
Willing to Learn
Goal-oriented
Enterprise Software
Experience with Business Processes
Microsoft Excel
Zendesk, HubSpot, Helpscout

Management skills for resume

No matter how effective a person is as an individual contributor, management is an entirely different job that requires an altogether different skill set.

To be an effective manager, you must first understand and relate to your employees while ensuring company initiatives are hit on time. To get this done, you need a mix of different skills.

Top management skills

Financial Analysis
Self-motivation
Conflict Resolution & Management
Managing Career Growth
Performance Reviews
Ability to Motivate
Foster Team Environment
Ability to Work Under Pressure
Result-driven

Accounting skills for resume

Accountants are the unsung heroes of any well-oiled company. A company is only as successful as it can demonstrate through its financial reports.

Accountants need to be wizards with reporting and data while maintaining a culture of rigorous organization. Accounting is a field that requires knowledge of particular hard skills.

Top accounting skills

Financial Reporting
General Ledger Accounting
Quarterly Close Processes
Quarterly Financial Statements
Tax Accounting
GAAP Accounting Principles
Expense Reporting
Accounts Payable & Receivable
Account Reconciliation

Project manager skills for resume

Project managers keep the trains on the rails. To be a successful project manager, you must know how to ensure deadlines are met on time and on budget.

In this role, you’ll need the ability to communicate with diverse teams and technical knowledge to help engineers remove roadblocks they encounter that will prevent them from getting their job done.

Top project manager skills

Project Management Software (Jira, Trello)
Microsoft Office/Google Suite (Excel/Google Sheets, PowerPoint/Slides)
Project Management Frameworks and Methodologies (Agile, Scrum, Waterfall, Kanban)
Programming Languages and Frameworks (JavaScript, Node.js, Python, Django)
CRM Experience (HubSpot, Salesforce)
Digital Marketing

Sales skills for resume

An effective salesperson can form meaningful relationships with new sales prospects very quickly.

To be able to sell a new customer on your product or tool, you first need to intimately understand their pain points and what they’re trying to solve.

In addition to solid soft skills, you need to know the technical tools to track and manage prospects through the sales pipeline.

Top sales skills

Strong Communication
Negotiation
CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce)
Presentation Skills
Lead Generation (LinkedIn, Email)
Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

Administrative assistant skills for resume

When it comes to a career as an administrative assistant, there’s no skill more valuable than organization. How can you help others be at their best without ensuring all ducks are in a row?

Of course, other skills are needed to succeed as an administrative assistant, and we’ve analyzed numerous administrative assistant job openings to determine the most in-demand skills for this career.

Top administrative assistant skills

Microsoft Excel/Google Sheets
Microsoft Word/Google Docs
Microsoft PowerPoint/Google Slides
Scheduling (Microsoft Outlook/Google Calendar)
Words per Minute you Type
Languages you Speak
Database Management
CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot)
Personable and Welcoming

Nursing skills for resume

The value of nurses in our society has never been more apparent than during the COVID-19 crisis.

A good nurse must have a rigorous understanding of the medical procedures and documentation they need to complete while also maintaining the soft skills necessary to build trust and understanding with patients.

It’s a very tricky balance to strike. To help you pursue a new job in nursing, we compiled the most popular skills employers are looking for across a wide range of nursing disciplines.

Top nursing skills

EMR Systems
Ambulatory Care
Emergency Care
CPR Certified
Best Practices
Long-term Patient Care
Compassionate
Organized & Reliable
Infant & Child Care
Medical Documentation

Teacher skills for resume

With the shift to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the skills required to be an effective teacher from afar are also changing.

Teachers now need to be more in tune with the technologies used for remote learning to reach students.

Still, there are some skills required to be a great teacher that haven’t changed. Based on our analysis, here are the top skills schools want when they hire teachers.

Top teacher skills

Lesson Planning
Blackboard/Moodle
Google Apps (Gmail, Sheets, Slides)
SMART Boards
Remote Teaching (Zoom)
Safe, Supportive Classrooms
Accountability
Communication with Parents and Students
Organization
Focused on Student Performance

Software engineer skills for resume

Software engineer is a broad, all-encompassing term. There are hundreds of specific disciplines within this umbrella that require different skills.

Still, there are fundamental and common skills that all developers must have. First and foremost, you need to be able to program!

We collected the most in-demand skills for software developers to help you make the best resume possible.

Top software engineer skills

Python (Django)
Java (Spring)
Ruby (Ruby on Rails)
PHP (Laravel)
JavaScript (Node, React, Vue, jQuery)
SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL, NoSQL)
AWS, GCS, Azure

Business analyst (BA) skills for resume

Business analysts combine skills from many areas to help drive outcomes that materially improve a customer’s core metrics.

A BA is a great communicator, a robust data analyst, and an effective project manager. After a project is complete, the BA then has to be able to communicate the outcomes to the executive team.

Top business analyst skills

SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, SQL Server)
Excel, Google Sheets
PowerPoint, Google Slides
Tableau, Looker, Chartio
Salesforce, NetSuite, HubSpot, Pipedrive
A/B testing, Linear Regression, Logistic Regression
Project Management (JIRA, Trello)

Student skills for resume

When you’re a student, it can be challenging to know which of your skills you should highlight when applying for your first job or internship.

It varies depending on the position, but at this point in your career, hiring managers don’t expect you to be an expert in all the tools you’ll need for the job.

The key is to mention which skills you have some familiarity with and express an openness to learning on the job.

Top student skills

Microsoft Outlook/Gmail
Hard-working
Social Media
Collaboration

Data scientist skills for resume

Data scientists are hybrid programmers and statisticians. It can be tough to figure out which of your technical skill sets should be the focus of your resume.

Touch on your primary programming language and put context around the modeling techniques you use regularly.

After studying over 100 data scientist job openings, here are the top skills employers are looking for in these roles.

Top data scientist skills

Python (Numpy, Pandas, Scikit-learn, Keras, Flask)
R (Dplyr, Shiny)
SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle)
AWS (Redshift)
Supervised Learning (Linear and Logistic Regression, Decision Trees, Support Vector Machines, Recommendation Engines)
Unsupervised Learning (K-Means Clustering, Principal Component Analysis)
Customer Segmentation, Price Optimization

Human resources (HR) skills for resume

When it comes to the skills you need to get your next job as a human resources manager, it’s important to demonstrate a combination of people skills (it’s in the job title, after all), but you also have to show command of the tools needed to get the job done.

You should demonstrate which phases of HR you have experience in. Whether that’s recruiting, benefits, compensation, or a combination thereof, these should be clear.

Top human resources skills

ATS (Workday, Jobvite, Greenhouse)
Compensation & Benefits
Performance Management
Recruiting (Sourcing & Interviewing)
Employee Onboarding
Benefits Planning & Administration
Employee Coaching
LOA, FMLA, PLOA, Disability
Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint
Recruiting Coordination
Compliance (OFFCP, FLSA, Unemployment)
Employee Retention
Organizational Strategy
Labor Relations
Succession Planning
HR Analytics

Product manager skills for resume

Product managers help steer the direction of a company by working to understand new features and products customers are looking for.

A successful PM should have the technical skills to communicate fluently with engineers. They also need strong data analysis skills to determine whether new feature launches are working.

Recruiter skills for resume

Since recruiters are the first people prospective employees interact with in a company, they must have strong people skills.

Outside of that, a recruiter needs to be familiar with using an ATS to keep track of candidates as they go through the application funnel.

In addition, they need to know various tools to effectively source prospective candidates for a job opening.

Top recruiter skills

Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word
HR Information Systems (Workday, Oracle HCM, Zoho, SAP)
ATS (Greenhouse, Lever, Workable, Breezy HR, BambooHR)
Sourcing Tools (LinkedIn Recruiter, TalentNest, Connectifier)
Full Cycle Recruiting, Intakes, Sourcing, Screening, Evaluating Talent
CRM (HubSpot, Marketo, Hootsuite)

Scrum Master skills for resume

As a Scrum Master, it’s vital you demonstrate which project management frameworks you have experience in on your resume.

Scrum Masters help ensure project deadlines are hit by establishing and monitoring incremental goals along the way.

Communication and management skills are must-haves, in addition to a few technical tools.

Top Scrum Master skills

Agile Development & Best Practices
Agile Frameworks—Scrum, Kanban, XP
JIRA & JIRA Portfolio
Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Visio
User Stories, ATDD, TDD, Continuous Integration, Automated Testing
Project Planning & Scoping

Social media manager skills for resume

As the name implies, a social media manager must show prospective employers they can use social media to drive customers toward a business.

It’s not enough, however, to demonstrate experience with various social media platforms. You must also clearly understand data and analytics to prove that your campaigns can and will work for a business.

Top social media manager skills

Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, TikTok
Sprout Social, Hootsuite
Google Analytics
Google Docs/Microsoft Word
Google Sheets/Microsoft Excel
Paid Social Media Advertising
Data Analytics

IT manager skills for resume

IT managers need to possess razor-sharp technical skills while demonstrating the ability to mentor and guide employees under their leadership.

Since the number of potential technical skills an IT manager can have is vast, you must demonstrate a firm command of at least a few skills.

On your resume, it’s much better to demonstrate expertise in a few skills than a weak command of a large number of tools.

Top IT manager skills

Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
Agile/Lean Methodologies
Network Infrastructure (DNS, DHCP, SSL)
Linux/ Unix

Design skills for resume

As you might imagine, designers need to convince the hiring manager reviewing their resume of their creative ability. This is usually done via a portfolio.

Outside of your creativity, you also need to quickly and effectively communicate which tools you use to complete your design work. One of the first things a prospective employer will check is whether you have the technical skills they’re looking for in a designer.

Top design skills

Design Principles
Color Theory
Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign)
Storytelling
Canva, Vectr
Print Design
Photography

Your skills should directly correlate with the job you’re applying for so recruiters can tell what makes you special at a glance. Refer to the job description for keywords or mission statements that show what the organization values and what the job role emphasizes. Prioritize skills that relate directly to your profession over those that could enhance your qualifications for other fields.

Try to limit your array of abilities to just 6 to 10 skills per resume. If you have more to choose from, choose to meet the optimal resume skill range with abilities that specifically answer the call of the job description. You don’t want a skills list that looks too “hodgepodge,” so hone your skills to a trade-specific edge that demonstrates your expertise.

Soft skills are the tools you use to socially function with grace and efficiency. They refer to your interpersonal abilities like negotiation, communication, and team delegation (just to name a few!). Keep in mind that you don’t want to overdo your skills list and appear disorganized, so select only the most relevant soft skills to list. You can use them as context for your professional experiences.

Technical skills, or hard skills, can refer to anything from software proficiency to specialized actions or tasks you can perform that relate to your job. Physical technology or machinery, digital meeting programs, and the ability to interpret industry-specific data all count! These important skills show off your specialties and highlight your unique candidacy for the job role.

Every skills list should be technical, but yours especially so: This is your opportunity to demonstrate your expertise instantly. By naming precisely which software programs you use (think: Adobe Photoshop, AutoCAD, or Salesforce to name a few) instead of generalizing, you effectively spotlight your skills ahead of time. Recruiters often skim the skills list first since they move fast, so seize the chance to align yourself with the job!

Honestly, that depends on you! Which of your resume sections is the strongest: skills, experience, internships, or stuff like your degree and academic achievements? Resume layouts with a side column can put your skills list in a highly visible space. If your experiences are super strong, you can also list your skills at the bottom of the page. Just make sure your best qualities are the most eye-catching!

30 Essential Skills for a Professional Resume [+ Examples]

December 2, 2023
In Resumes & Cover Letters

What are the best skills for a resume? Which skills do employers expect from great applicants? There is a constant growth of skilled professionals in the job market. So, it is crucial to make your resume stand out. The skills you put on your resume are likely to be one of the key factors in the hiring manager’s decision. It is thus important that you include the best, most sought-after skills for a resume.

Best practices for listing skills on a resume

How to quantify skills on a resume

Essential skills for a professional resume

When creating a resume , it is important to include skills that are relevant to the job you are applying for. Here are some essential skills that you can consider including on your resume:

Soft Skills:

Soft skills are personal attributes that enable effective communication, collaboration, and problem-solving. They are highly valued by employers. Some examples of soft skills include:

Communication skills: The ability to convey information clearly and effectively.
Critical thinking: The ability to analyze and evaluate information to make informed decisions.
Problem-solving: The ability to identify and solve problems efficiently.
Time management: The ability to prioritize tasks and manage time effectively.
Leadership: The ability to guide and motivate a team towards achieving goals.
Adaptability: The ability to adapt to new situations and handle change.
Teamwork: The ability to work collaboratively with others towards a common goal.
Creativity: The ability to think outside the box and come up with innovative solutions.

Hard Skills:

Hard skills are specific technical or job-related skills that are required for a particular role. They are typically acquired through education, training, or work experience. Some examples of hard skills include:

Computer skills: Proficiency in using software applications, programming languages, or operating systems.
Data analysis: The ability to analyze and interpret data to make informed decisions.
Project management: The ability to plan, organize, and execute projects effectively.
Language proficiency: Fluency in multiple languages.
Graphic design: Proficiency in using design software and creating visually appealing graphics.
Customer service: The ability to provide excellent customer service and resolve customer issues.
Sales skills: The ability to persuade and influence others to make a purchase.
Technical skills: Skills specific to a particular industry or field, such as medical skills for healthcare professionals or engineering skills for engineers.

Hard Skills vs Soft Skills overview, infographic.

Transferable skills for your resume

Transferable skills are skills that you acquire in one employment setting that can be seamlessly transferred and applied to your next job or career. These skills are not specific to a particular industry and can be valuable assets when transitioning between different roles or fields. Transferable skills can be categorized into two types: hard skills and soft skills.

Here are some examples of transferable skills that you can consider including on your resume:

Communication skills : The ability to convey information clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing.
Leadership skills : The ability to guide and motivate a team towards achieving goals.
Problem-solving skills : The ability to analyze and solve problems efficiently.
Adaptability : The ability to adapt to new situations and handle change.
Teamwork skills : Possessing the skill to collaborate effectively with a team to achieve shared objectives.
Time management skills : The capacity to organize tasks and efficiently manage one’s time.
Critical thinking skills : The skill to assess and appraise information in order to make well-informed decisions.
Creativity : The ability to think outside the box and come up with innovative solutions.
Organizational skills : The ability to organize and manage tasks, resources, and information.
Interpersonal skills : The ability to build and maintain positive relationships with others.
Attention to detail : The capacity to be meticulous and ensure precision by paying careful attention to details.
Project management skills : The ability to plan, organize, and execute projects effectively.
Research skills : The ability to gather and analyze information from various sources.

To effectively showcase your skills on a resume, consider the following tips:

Create a dedicated skills section : Include a separate section on your resume specifically for highlighting your skills. This section allows you to list the specific competencies you have developed that are relevant to the job you are applying for.
Include a mix of technical and workplace skills : In your skills section, include a combination of technical skills (specific software or tools you are proficient in) and workplace skills (how you approach your work and the type of team member you are).
Tailor your skills to the job : Customize your skills section to align with the requirements and qualifications mentioned in the job description . Identify the key skills sought by the employer and highlight those that you possess.
Quantify your skills : Whenever possible, provide specific examples or achievements that demonstrate how you have used your skills in previous roles. This can help employers understand the impact you have made and the value you can bring to their organization.
Use action verbs : When describing your skills, use strong action verbs to convey your abilities and accomplishments. This can make your skills more impactful and engaging for the reader.
Consider additional sections : Depending on your specific skills and experiences, you may want to include additional sections on your resume to showcase certain skills in more detail. For example, you could have a separate section for technical skills or a section highlighting specific certifications or achievements.

How to quantify skills on your resume

When quantifying skills on a resume, it is important to provide specific and measurable examples of your accomplishments . Here are some steps to help you quantify your skills effectively:

Track your work: Keep a record of your achievements, projects, and responsibilities. This will help you gather the necessary data to quantify your skills.
Gather your data: Collect relevant information and data that demonstrate the impact of your work. This can include numbers, percentages, dollar amounts, or any other measurable metrics.
Make use of ranges: If you don’t have exact numbers, you can use ranges to provide a general idea of your achievements. For example, instead of stating “Increased sales by 20%,” you can say “Increased sales by approximately 15-25%.”
Focus on key metrics: Highlight the most important metrics that showcase your skills and achievements. These can include revenue generated, cost savings, customer satisfaction ratings, project completion time, or any other relevant metrics.
Use bullet points: Format your accomplishments as bullet points under each relevant job or experience. Start each bullet point with an action verb and include the quantifiable result or impact of your work.

Here are examples of how to quantify skills on a resume:

Project Management: Successfully managed and executed multiple projects, resulting in a 20% increase in efficiency and a 15% reduction in project completion time.
Project Management: Led a team of 7 software developers to deliver a critical project 2 weeks ahead of schedule, resulting in a 20% increase in client satisfaction.
Sales: Exceeded sales targets by 25% for three consecutive quarters, generating $500,000 in additional revenue.
Cybersecurity: Implemented a new security protocol, resulting in a 20% reduction in cybersecurity incidents over 6 months.
Customer Service: Maintained a customer satisfaction rating of 95% through effective communication and problem-solving skills.

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Job Skills to List on Your Resume (And What to Exclude)

Showcasing your capabilities is critical to professional success, especially during a job search. The first step of almost every job application process is to submit a resume. With so much riding on that first impression, reflecting desired job skills in your resume is key.

Employers and hiring managers aren't just looking for employees who have the hard skills needed for their job position. They are also looking for employees with important soft skills, so it's important to reflect both types of skills on your resume.

Here are some in-demand skills to list on your resume:

Trustworthiness.
Self-starter.
Adaptability.
Growth mindset.
Problem-solving skills.
Time management.
Virtual communication skills.
Succinct writing.
Collaboration.
Deadline-driven.
Ability to thrive in chaotic environments.
Analysis and insight.
Accountability.
Commitment.

1. Trustworthiness

On the heels of the Great Resignation and candidates ghosting during the interview, hiring and onboarding processes, many employers are targeting candidates that show signs of trustworthiness and dependability. According to a recent study by ManpowerGroup , reliability is the top soft skill that employers worldwide are looking for. One way to show this in your resume is to show a progression of responsibility with one employer or that you have worked with one manager or team in more than one setting.

2. Self-Starter

Employers want to hire employees who are self-motivated. Capture how you have identified and acted on opportunities to improve quality or speed, boost morale, increase productivity, or minimize risks. Additionally, include how you are able to lead initiatives, projects or teams even when you may not be the official manager.

3. Adaptability

Have you been able to stay productive during continuous change? A key soft skill to show in your resume is your ability to adapt and thrive. Describe how you evolved your way of working during periods of change.

4. Growth Mindset

How have you challenged yourself or motivated others around you to learn something new or expand their thinking? The ability to learn is a learned skill in itself that improves the more you do it. It is why recent students are often better equipped to acquire and apply knowledge more quickly than peers who have not been in a learning environment recently. Capture how you have added new hard skills and sought to challenge yourself with new approaches.

5. Problem-Solving Skills

Rapidly changing technology and evolving work environments have led many teams and companies into unchartered territories. Professionals that have the ability to solve problems in new or difficult situations are better equipped to tackle future challenges that may not have a best practice or rule book to follow. Outline how you approached and resolved problems.

6. Time Management

Balancing never-ending emails, Slack messages, Zoom meetings and projects is tricky. Managers want to be able to gauge productivity. Be sure to capture how you manage time, efficiency and results when writing your resume.

7. Virtual Communication Skills

It is challenging to build effective relationships without in-person interaction. Show evidence of how you have expanded or strengthened relationships in and outside of your company using virtual communication tools . This can be as simple as listing the digital tools you use – such as Teams, Slack and Zoom. You can also write more descriptive impact statements. For example, explain how you created an online presentation template implemented by the sales team that resulted in 10 new deals. You can also explain how you increased engagement in virtual all-hands meetings by creating polls and encouraging the use of Q&A features.

8. Succinct Writing

With the rise in video meetings and enterprise messaging tools came the rise in Q&A and chat responses. Success with these platforms requires mastery of the art of getting to the point – succinct and well-written questions and responses are key. How you write your resume (and cover letter) is evidence of this competency. Don't overlook the importance of concise and relevant content in your resume.

An effective resume shows – not tells – how you add value. Yes, you need to list your responsibilities, but you also need to show what happened because you were there. In other words, call out your impact. For example, if you are responsible for recruiting and hiring and you would say it is one of your key strengths, include how many people you hired, how quickly you made those hires, and how many of your hires have outlasted the average tenure of your firm or your industry.

10. Collaboration

Every job description asks for "cross-functional collaboration." This means you need to know how to play well in the sandbox with other people who aren't your immediate co-workers. To illustrate your collegial approach, describe any "enterprise-wide task forces" you were invited to join. For example, communicate how your team was able to move through the financial planning and analysis approval process two times faster than other managers because of your track record of quality work. In short, show what was accomplished when you partnered across the company.

11. Deadline-Driven

In a competitive, technology-infused environment, even results with a 24-hour turnaround can seem 25 hours past due. The most productive employees get stuff done fast and have tactics for setting and exceeding deadline-driven expectations. Give evidence of your ability to work under pressure.

12. Ability to Thrive in Chaotic Environments

When speed is king, many organizations act before all options are assessed. Employees who can survive and even thrive in cultures where priorities shift, variables change and goals are moving targets are in greater demand than those looking for stable and fixed roles. Most growing companies are in flux and they want employees who can function even without a fully developed structure.

13. Analysis and Insights

No role or industry is untouched by data and analysis. If you are a doctor, you likely keep tabs on satisfaction ratings or statistics and information about the patients you treat. Are you a delivery driver? You may have data that tracks your routes, delivery times, number of deliveries made, and lost or damaged packages. Know the quantifiable metrics for your profession and address what those indicators show about you. Including analytical hard skills on your resume gives you a competitive advantage .

14. Accountability

The best teams are known for how the members take ownership of the work and the results. Describe which aspects of your department you are accountable for and how you maintain a high level of quality.

15. Commitment

Use your resume as an opportunity to show your commitment and professional passion to your career, industry, profession and your skill development. Employees who are invested in these areas often perform at the highest levels because their efforts are not just for a paycheck but also to contribute to their larger community or reputation. Your resume should show memberships in a professional association, participation in an industry conference, noted thought leadership on related topics, classes you have taken and more.

Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills

Soft skills are traits that come naturally, whereas hard skills are technical skills related to your job and industry. Soft skills are learned throughout your whole life and hard skills are generally learned through education and training. While soft skills can be used across different industries and a wide variety of circumstances, hard skills are used for specific tasks and can be industry-specific. Hiring managers tend to give priority to job candidates with strong soft skills since soft skills are harder to teach.

Your resume should underline your unique combination of hard skills and soft skills. If your resume is too hard-skill-driven, a hiring manager may discard your resume. On the other hand, if it's too soft-skill-driven, they may not feel that you have the necessary education or technical qualifications for the role.

What to Exclude From Your Resume

Your home address. It is not needed at the time of application and it can have some privacy or discrimination risks.

Titles to contact information. For example, instead of "Phone: 555-123-4567" you can just list the number "555-123-4567." It will be recognized for what it is.

Years of experience . First, job posts never ask for "two decades of managerial experience," so writing that as the lead in your summary earns you no points for applicant tracking systems or with the recruiter. Second, a reader can add up your years of experience (or make a pretty good guess) with your work history listed on your resume. Why give up your most valuable resume real estate to words that add no value to your candidacy?

Subjective or adjective-heavy soft skills. For example: Don't use phrases such as "people person," "meticulous attention to detail" or "team player." Recruiters and hiring authorities see hundreds of resumes. Subjective descriptions do not add any value. Hiring professionals have seen or met enough detail-oriented people who leave periods off sentences and forget to check spelling. If you cannot demonstrate or validate that you have a soft skill, it doesn't help your candidacy.

Job Skills Examples

These three examples show the job skills different professionals may list on their resumes.

Account Executive Job Skills

An account executive may demonstrate collaboration skills on her resume by saying something like, "Skilled at developing cohesive, energetic and highly successful teams that consistently exceed company goals and objectives over 15%."

Marketing Executive Job Skills

A marketing executive may demonstrate his impact at his position by saying something like, "Managed a team of 10 marketing consultants responsible for event management and other engagement activities. Leadership supported team customer relationship processes (CRM) improvement of 75%."

Software Engineer Job Skills

A software engineer can highlight her soft skills by listing them in her core competencies section. For example, "Problem resolution strategist, clear/concise communicator, quick to learn new processes."

In conclusion, discerning hiring managers are looking for candidates who can walk in with the skills to do the job immediately. Make sure your resume reflects a balance of the qualifications and soft skills most in demand for the role you are targeting. A customized, well-written resume is a critical component of a successful modern job search.

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More From Forbes

30 powerful resume keywords to beat ats in 2024.

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Using the right resume keywords ensures you are able to shine a light on your skills and experience

More than 90% of employers use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to initially filter out or rank middle-skilled and highly-skilled candidates for job postings, according to a 2021 global study conducted by the Harvard Business Review.

This means that there is at least a 90% chance that your resume will not make it past the screening software.

Applicant tracking systems rely on keywords to assess candidate suitability—and these keywords are the ones that are located within your resume. The problem is, many candidates do not know how to make a resume effective because they fail to include the most appropriate keywords for their industry and role they are applying to. Consequently, they never (or hardly ever) make it past the screening stage to secure an interview.

While there are several factors that determine whether your resume makes it past the ATS or not (although a few are beyond your control), knowing what skills to put on your resume and which resume keywords to include, are a few of the most critical steps you can take to ensure your resume beats ATS.

Why Use Resume Keywords?

"A recruiter will never see that candidate’s application, even though it might fill all of the employer’s requirements," continued the HBR study. Therefore, being the perfect fit for a role is not good enough. You might tick every box and fulfil all the requirements listed on the job description, yet fall short of being shortlisted for the role, all because your resume did not effectively evidence the criteria and skills the employer is looking for.

Here is a simplified example of how an ATS works from a recruiter's point of view:

You send your resume through a job portal.
When the recruiter is sifting out 1,000 applications, they'll enter a skill such as "project management," "Power BI," or an education requirement such as "MBA," from the job description.
This filters available resumes to 300 candidates.
If your resume is optimized to include the keyword they are looking for, it will show up; if not, it will never be seen and you've just lost the potential to land a career-boosting opportunity to an AI-powered gatekeeper—ATS.

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Matching keywords is an essential step to take before sending an application, or you could risk ... [+] being sifted out at the screening stage

Where To Find Keywords To Put On Your Resume

There are number of sources you can use to find keywords for your resume. The first and most obvious of them is the job advert itself. Taking a careful look at the job description, and the key requirements/person specification/ideal candidate section, carefully identify what are the core requirements that the employer is asking for.

You might find it useful to undertake a keyword highlighting exercise by copying and pasting the entire job description and person specification into a Word document, and highlighting the technical and soft skills that stand out to you the most, which are relevant to what you already have to offer.

For example, take a look at this sample job description from Workable for a cost analyst role:

"We are looking for a cost analyst to help us audit our expenses and find ways to make our operations more cost-efficient. You’ll be the go-to person for cost analysis and you’ll get to prepare reports to help management make better decisions. To do this job well, we’d like you to be well-versed in data and financial analysis, and have strong attention to detail. Ultimately, your job will be an integral part of our efforts to ensure profitability and business success."

It then proceeds to list the following responsibilities for the cost analyst role:

Gather and analyze financial data
Determine standard costs and investigate variances with actual costs
Prepare detailed reports, both periodically and ad-hoc
Help management make important decisions based on costs and benefits (e.g. investments, market growth, pricing changes)
Create and manage budgets, and monitor spending
Conduct audits on financial processes and transactions
Monitor changes in processes or methods to calculate effects on overall costs
Estimate product costs for existing and new products
Forecast and analyze costs of processes, labor and inventory
Suggest cost-reducing or profitable solutions
Conduct market research to support future business planning

And then the advert proceeds to list requirements and skills for the role (pay close attention to this):

Proven experience as a cost analyst, cost specialist or similar role
Experience in data, operational and financial analysis
Knowledge of accounting processes and software
Strong analytical skills
A business acumen
Great attention to detail
Good communication aptitude
Degree in Finance, Accounting or similar field
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) preferred

With the above job advert, how many keywords can you easily identify?

Considering the above data, some of the likely resume keywords and skills used for the job posting above, which you would want to incorporate into your resume for a cost analyst role, include:

Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Good communication
Attention to detail
Cost analyst
Accounting processes and software (and name a few)
Financial analysis/Analyzing financial data

You can incorporate these keywords into your professional summary, skills highlights, and work experience and education sections.

ChatGPT can help you analyze a job description quickly and can even provide guidance on how to ... [+] tailor your resume for that specific role

How To Use ChatGPT To Find Resume Keywords

One time saving method you could employ to find keywords from the job advert and interspersed them throughout your resume, is to solicit the help of ChatGPT. ChatGPT is an AI-powered chatbot developed by OpenAI, that has millions of users around the world—with one of the fastest, unprecedented technology adoption rates in history.

It uses LLM (large language models) to engage with you as any other human being would, providing you with timely information and shortening the length of time it takes to accomplish administrative and content writing tasks. While it is not wise to use ChatGPT to draft an entire resume for you on its own, it certainly can be helpful at key junctures in the resume writing process, for example, when analyzing and inputting keywords.

To use ChatGPT to find the best keywords to include in your resume, follow the below steps:

Provide ChatGPT with a copy or excerpt of a job description for the role you want to apply for, and then prompt: "I am tailoring my resume to apply for this role. Please select and suggest keywords and phrases from this job advert that I can put into my resume. Include any technical skills, software tools, certifications, industry terminology, and soft skills listed in the advert."
Now that ChatGPT has provided you with a list you can then begin incorporating these words and phrases throughout your resume, ensuring you proofread with each edit so it reads naturally and doesn't give the appearance of meaningless keyword stuffing.

Powerful Keywords To Include In Your Resume

Now that you have this background understanding, here is a sample list of some of the most common and essential keywords you should consider adding to your resume, for three specific industries—information technology, healthcare, and sales. These are categorized for ease of navigation and will provide you with an idea of what to look out for, as relates to your industry:

Resume Keywords For The Information Technology (IT) Industry

Programming languages (e.g., Java, Python, C++)
Cloud computing
Network administration
Agile methodologies
ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library)
Artificial intelligence (AI)
Machine learning
Data analytics
IT project management

Resume Keywords For The Healthcare Industry

Electronic Health Records (EHR)
Clinical research
Medical billing and coding
Telemedicine
Healthcare compliance
Health informatics
Medical imaging
Healthcare quality improvement
Health insurance
Healthcare technology

Resume Keywords For The Sales Industry

Business development
Account management
Client relationship management (CRM)
Lead generation
Prospecting
Sales cycle
Pipeline management
Value proposition
Sales forecasting
Competitive analysis

Keywords include a range of technical skills, soft skills, and education requirements—and even your ... [+] years of experience

Using the right keywords can help you effectively sell yourself and shine as a star candidate to employers, ensuring your skills and experience do not go to waste or escape their notice. Through highlighting your expertise in this way (without keyword stuffing) you increase your chances of securing an interview.

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10 Good Weaknesses for a Job Interview That Aren’t “I Work Too Hard”(+ Sample Answers)

Julia Mlcuchova ,
Updated March 28, 2024 11 min read

How to answer the classic interview question "What is your greatest weakness" ? And do you really need to prepare your weaknesses for job interview?

Believe us, you do! Because knowing your weaknesses is equally as important as knowing your strengths .

When it comes to job interviews, we’re constantly encouraged to present our finest selves to seem like the absolute best candidate for the job. So talking about your flaws may seem counterintuitive.

Yet, this question seems to be one of the recruiters’ most favourite .

That's why it's a good idea to get ready for this eventuality and prepare yourself to frame the answer in your favour .

If you want to learn more, keep reading our article and discover:

Why are recruiters asking this question;
How to know what is your greatest weakness;
What NOT to say when answering;
A list of good weaknesses for a job interview;
Examples of how to answer “What is your greatest weakness?”

Click on a section to skip

What the recruiters really want to know

Top 10 good weaknesses for a job interview.

How to answer “What is your greatest weakness?” in 4 steps

What is your greatest weakness sample answers

How not to answer “what is your greatest weakness”, key takeaways: top 10 best weaknesses for job interview.

Honestly, this feels like a trap, inviting you to reveal your shortcomings and ruin your chances at getting hired.

But, regarding job interviews , nothing is ever haphazard! So, you probably won't be too surprised when we tell you that there's more to this question than meets the eye.

When recruiters ask about your weaknesses, here's what they actually want to know :

Whether you're self-aware and capable of introspection. Can you look at yourself and recognize your deficiencies? And can you be self-critical? Because both of these are key qualities of anyone's dream employee.
Whether you're reliable. Not in the sense of being able to do anything and everything. But in the sense of knowing your limits and being honest about communicating them. Because employers need to know that you won’t bite off more than you can chew.
Whether you have a “growth mindset". Next is their interest in your ability to face challenges. Do you perceive them as opportunities to grow and develop professionally? Or avoid them completely?
Whether you're a good fit for the company culture. Lastly, they want to gauge how well you work with others. For example: Would you be able to own up to your mistakes, learn from them and move on? Or are you more likely to play the blame game?

As you can see, your response can offer a glimpse into your resilience, workplace attitude and adaptability . Qualities that are invaluable in any professional setting.

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A “good weakness” is one that isn't core to the job in question , is believable, and is possible to work on .

Of course, there's no one-size-fits-all set of weaknesses because everyone's experiences and challenges are unique. However, there are a couple of common vulnerabilities that you may find relatable AND are suitable.

In case you're struggling to identify yours, this list may help you find it:

Lack of professional experience with non-essential skills.
Taking criticism too personally.
Imperfect presentation skills.
Struggling to ask for help.
Discomfort with giving criticism.
Difficulties delegating tasks to others.
Impatience with slow processes.
Difficulties with prioritizing tasks.
Inability to let go of projects.
Being too blunt.

And now, let's look at each of these in more detail. Plus, we'll also briefly discuss how you can try to fix them.

#1 Lack of professional experience with non-essential skills

In other words, not having a deep understanding of a skill that may be beneficial, but not indispensable. For example, while a project manager isn't required to have proficiency in graphic design, knowledge of Illustrator may be useful for creating simple visual materials for presentations.

This weakness is relatively safe, yet it still communicates your “growth mindset.” Plus, it's an easy fix – just mention a particular course that targets the skill in question .

#2 Taking criticism too personally

This one is pretty real and believable. The ability to receive feedback and objective criticism is necessary for any professional, yet it's not something that comes naturally to many.

For instance, you could say that in the past, it was difficult for you to distinguish between criticism of you as an employee, and criticism of you as a person . But through a conscious shift in mindset, you came to recognize it for what it really is – an opportunity to improve.

#3 Imperfect presentation skills

Another fairly common weakness is the fear of public speaking . Whether it be presentation for teams, your management, or clients, some degree of public speaking is necessary for pretty much any corporate position.

To improve upon this weakness, you can enroll into a course (such as this Harvard University course via EdX) where you can hone these skills and earn a certificate.

#4 Struggling to ask for help

You simply can't be a lone wolf in a corporate setting. So you can talk about your inability to ask your colleagues or supervisors for help because you don't want to add to their workload and seem like a burden.

But after several negative experiences you've realized that seeking assistance is the responsible thing to do, because it facilitates the completion of projects . So, you've decided to work on your communication skills , and now you’ve become more productive.

#5 Discomfort with giving criticism

If you happen to occupy a leadership position, it doesn't matter to what capacity, there are times when you have to put your foot down if something isn't working . And not everybody is comfortable with that.

There might’ve been situations where you avoided giving your junior colleagues criticism out of fear of being too harsh. But mention that you're working on this problem by going through a leadership and communication programme .

#6 Difficulties delegating tasks to others

Another weakness you could mention is reluctance to pass tasks to others . Whether it stems from your desire for perfection, not wanting to increase your colleague's work load , or your need to have things under control, this weakness of yours has caused a decrease in overall team efficiency.

But soon enough you've come to recognize your own faults. You've started by delegating small, low-risk tasks at first. Gradually, you've established open communication for any question or feedback, and learned to trust your colleagues more. As a result, the productivity, efficiency and job satisfaction of your entire team increased.

#7 Impatience with slow processes

For instance, your lack of patience manifested whenever you felt that your own work pace was hindered by your colleague’s slower tempo. And sometimes, it caused tensions within the team.

So, you did a bit of research and discovered that there are stress-reduction techniques you could learn that target your impatience management. Additionally, you developed a habit of using the extra time between projects by tackling smaller tasks which keep you occupied and productive.

#8 Difficulties with prioritizing tasks

Maybe you're that type of person that says “yes” to everything and then ends up struggling to juggle all the tasks you took on. Because of this, you've reached out to a professional who advised you to work on your time management skills .

Maybe you've gone through a training in the ABCDE method , and now you're able to categorize your tasks based on their urgency. You felt the results of your effort immediately – you became less stressed, which improved your productivity, as well as your relationship to work itself. So now you feel more confident and in control.

#9 Inability to let go of projects

Imagine this: you've managed to complete your project ahead of time and instead of marking it as complete and moving on to a new task, you just keep coming back to it. Even if the project is executed to perfection.

And this was a problem, because it prevented you from working more efficiently and not wasting any time. But, after you've completed a project management programme , you've learned how to curb this behaviour. Now, you practice setting yourself clear criteria for project evaluation which help you not to dwell on one task for too long.

#10 Being too blunt

Lastly, you can say that, in the past, you're too direct in your communication with your colleagues. You've realized that your communication skills could use some training when several of your co-workers accused you of being too harsh.

So, to fix this weakness, you completed a course that taught you how to deliver your comments in a more sensitive way. For example, to insert criticism (constructive, of course) in between two positives to make the impact of your words less biting. As a result, the awkward workplace tension disappeared and your co-workers became more receptive to your feedback.

How to answer “ What is your greatest weakness ?” in 4 steps

Essentially, you should approach the weaknesses for job interview question as an opportunity to demonstrate that you're not only aware of your faults but that you're also actively trying to overcome them .

So, the perfect answer to "What is your greatest weakness" should follow these 4 steps:

First, select a real weakness that you’ve actively worked/are working to improve. For instance, do you tend to take criticism too personally? Can you be impatient with slow processes? Do you struggle to ask for help?

Next, describe how and when you noticed this weakness. Maybe you received feedback from your supervisor? Or a project you worked on didn't go as planned? In any case, outline what exactly was the problem.

Then, you have to show that once you became aware of this weakness, you rose to the challenge and decided to work on yourself. Being aware is not enough. You must also show willingness to grow. For example: enrolling in a course, mentorship programme, workshop, or developing new habits and practices.

Finally, share the results of your efforts. Ideally, you'll be able to show how your newly sharpened tools contributed to your team or project. And don't be afraid to acknowledge that you're still working on them, if that's the case.

Although this structure is fairly simple, it works wonders! Feel free to use it when preparing your answers. And remember, the narrative is entirely in your hands!

And finally, we should take a quick look at these 4 example answers.

Notice that all of them follow the structure we've outlined above (weakness, context, improvements, results).

And if any of these correspond with your own weaknesses, you can just copy and tweak them so that they reflect your own experience.

Weaknesses for job interview: Presentation skills

“My biggest weakness is my presentation skills. It was only last year that I realized my public speaking skills needed improvement. I was really struggling to overcome my nervousness during team presentations. I realized very quickly that I have to do something to get better at it. So I enrolled in a public speaking course and practiced at every opportunity I got: presentations, reports, even family gatherings! After two months I noticed that I became more confident and comfortable during presentations. I’m by no means perfect, but I received positive feedback from our clients recently. ”

Weaknesses for job interview: Delegating tasks

“The thing I really struggled with in the past was my ability to delegate tasks to my co-workers. I’ve always felt this need to ensure that every single task is completed to a certain standard. And I used to have problems trusting my team even though they always did a stellar job. Eventually, this caused unnecessary tension among us. I realized that it was me who was at fault. So, I decided to work on myself. I improved my communication skills and made sure that my team knows that they can turn to me with any questions. After some time, our relationships and mutual trust improved. And we were able to complete complex projects well ahead of deadlines . If I recall correctly, our overall productivity improved by some 20% . ”

Weaknesses for job interview: Asking for help

“ I remember that when I started out as an accountant, I suffered from a serious imposter syndrome. I was self-conscious of my lack of experience, so I felt that I needed to prove myself. Plus, I really didn’t want to seem like a burden, so whenever I was struggling with new systems or processes, I simply wouldn’t ask anyone for help . Of course, now I know how unfounded and unprofessional this behaviour was. The key thing I’ve changed was my own mindset . I started to look at these challenging moments as opportunities to foster stronger teamwork. I feel that by reaching out to others, I learned a lot about the importance of collaboration. And it also made me more patient with newcomers ! Now, I always make sure they know that they can reach out to me with anything and not feel bad about it.”

Weaknesses for job interview: Being too blunt

“When I look back on my previous work experience, I can definitely say that I used to be pretty blunt when it came to giving feedback to my colleagues. See, I’ve always valued honesty and transparency above everything. And I thought that that’s what makes effective workplace communication. But I was so wrong! My co-workers often felt that I’m being too insensitive, and that caused tension between us. To address this, I enrolled in a leadership programme that taught me how to better phrase my concerns. I’ve found the ‘praise-criticism-praise’ technique especially useful! Soon, all that awkward energy was gone. And my co-workers actually became more receptive to my feedback and we worked much better together as a team .”

Now that we've gone over the best answers, let's also talk about how NOT to present your weaknesses.

Again, it's pretty simple, just avoid doing these things:

Saying that you have no weaknesses. Who’re you trying to fool my friend? Certainly not the recruiters! Indeed, if there's one way to communicate your lack of awareness, it's this!
Trying to pass your strengths for weaknesses. Not even Michael Scott can pull off a Michael Scott. So, skip saying you're too much of a perfectionist, or that you work too hard!
Using a skill/quality that's essential for the job as your weakness. For example, if you're applying for the job position of an accountant, don't say you're bad at maths or that you pay no attention to details.
Oversharing personal information. Just to be clear, recruiters don't care much about the details of your weaknesses. Maybe your nervousness about public speaking is rooted in a bad experience from childhood. Even if so, keep this detail to yourself. Instead, go into lengths about how to address and correct your weakness.

To sum it all up, the weaknesses for job interview question isn't a strategy to reveal your faults, but an opportunity to show that you're self-aware , introspective , and determined to continue improving on your weak areas.

When preparing your answer, try sticking to this simple, yet effective structure:

Introduce your weakness.
Provide a real-life professional context.
Demonstrate your effort and determination to improve.
Mention the results of your improvement (if possible).

In case you don't know what your weaknesses are, you can draw inspiration from our list of the most appropriate weaknesses for a job interview :

Being too blunt.

If you're preparing for a job interview, be sure to also check out how to answer these common questions:

Why are you interested in this position?
Why should we hire you?
Why did you leave your previous job?
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Why are you looking for a new job?

Julia has recently joined Kickresume as a career writer. From helping people with their English to get admitted to the uni of their dreams to advising them on how to succeed in the job market. It would seem that her career is on a steadfast trajectory. Julia holds a degree in Anglophone studies from Metropolitan University in Prague, where she also resides. Apart from creative writing and languages, she takes a keen interest in literature and theatre.

100+ common job interview questions and how to answer them.

13 min read

How to Answer: “Why Should We Hire You?” (+12 Examples)

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Examples of soft skills include: Empathy. Teamwork. Problem-solving. As a general rule, you should include more technical skills than soft skills on your resume. Since soft skills are harder to measure, they tend to make less of an impact on your resume, even if they're just as important in the workplace.
17 Best Resume Skills to Land Your Dream Job in 2024
When in doubt, you can't go wrong using these three top skills on your resume: 1. Managerial skills. If you have any managerial experience, add it to the relevant job description. Good managers can see the bigger picture, organize their teams around a common goal, and demonstrate effective communication techniques.
300+ Resume Skills to Use on Your Resume in 2024
Soft skills are transferable skills: characteristics and habits that are most associated with you as a person. They indicate to recruiters just how well you will adapt, perform, and grow within a new environment. Recruiters are constantly on the lookout for these types of soft skills: Communication. Collaboration.
150 Top Skills for Your Resume + How to List Skills in 2024
Solid understanding of website analytics tools (Google Analytics, Amplitude, Appsflyer), email systems (Sailthru, Salesforce Marketing Cloud), and ad-serving tools (Adroll, Facebook.) Finally, we cross-reference our list of 10-15 skills with the skills this specific job is looking for (underlined above).
Skills for Resume: Essential Examples Across Professions
7. Writing. Even in today's tech-heavy world, good writing skills are still necessary for communication, executing marketing campaigns, assembling documentation and creating presentations. Good skills to put on a resume for this ability include: Content writing. Editing.
How to Write a Skills-Based Resume: Template & Examples
Comb through the job description and write down all the skills required or preferred for the position. Cross-reference your skills to the skills you pulled from the job posting. Highlight the ones that overlap. Pick 3 or 4 of the most important skills that overlap and create subsections around them.
The Top 10 Best Skills to Feature on Your Resume
It builds brand loyalty, drives revenue, and ensures the company's growth in competitive markets. 5. Sales skills. Among 21 percent of job postings, sales skills are of top priority. Sales is the ability to persuade potential customers to purchase a product or service. It's no wonder that sales is a leading skill.
The Best Job Skills To Make Your Resume Stand Out
In this video, Sinéad reveals the four best skills to have in the ever-changing job market. 1. Administrative, business and finance. Administrative, business and finance skills help keep operations running efficiently. These skills may include clerical and administration skills, which involve organizing large volumes of sensitive documents and ...
Professional Skills for a Resume: Examples for 2024
Skills. Administrative: Managed scheduling, office equipment, and invoices for 12+ employees. Customer Service: Used problem solving skills to resolve complaints daily. You can include some additional details in your skills section, so it doesn't seem like you're just copy-pasting the skills from the job posting.
The Skills Based Resume: Free Template & Examples
A skills-based resume is an alternative resume format that categorizes your qualifications under job-relevant skills instead of under a specific job title as you'd see on the standard chronological resume.. Also called a functional resume, the skills-based resume focuses on how you've applied key skills by giving specific examples for each one.. If you're struggling to showcase your ...
30 Essential Skills for a Professional Resume [+ Examples]
Essential skills for a professional resume. When creating a resume, it is important to include skills that are relevant to the job you are applying for.Here are some essential skills that you can consider including on your resume: Soft Skills: Soft skills are personal attributes that enable effective communication, collaboration, and problem-solving.
150 Examples of Hard Skills for Your Resume
Here are 10 hard skills examples you should have on your resume for a content or writing role: Ability to conduct thorough research and fact-checking for accurate and credible content. Basic understanding of web development languages, such as HTML and CSS for formatting online content.
Job Skills to List on Your Resume (And What to Exclude)
Here are some in-demand skills to list on your resume: Trustworthiness. Self-starter. Adaptability. Growth mindset. Problem-solving skills. Time management. Virtual communication skills. Succinct ...
Management Resume Examples and Templates for 2024
Resume Builder offers free, HR-approved resume templates to help you create a professional resume in minutes. Start Building. 1. Summarize your management qualifications in a dynamic profile. The profile section is where you can let employers know what kind of manager you are.
30 Powerful Resume Keywords To Beat ATS In 2024
Using the right resume keywords ensures you are able to shine a light on your skills and experience. getty. More than 90% of employers use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to initially filter ...
10 Good Weaknesses for a Job Interview (+ Sample Answers)
In case you don't know what your weaknesses are, you can draw inspiration from our list of the most appropriate weaknesses for a job interview : Lack of professional experience with non-essential skills. Taking criticism too personally. Imperfect presentation skills. Struggling to ask for help.
Travel Agent Resume: Examples & Job Description [2024]
Travel Agent Resume Example: Experienced Travel Agent Job Description. Maintained high client retention, with over 74% of clients returning for repeated bookings. Designed and executed high-end itineraries that led to a 24% increase in luxury travel bookings.