Home Finance Manager Resume template
Finance Manager resume template
A clean starting structure with example content grounded in what finance managers actually do day to day, not generic filler. Download and replace the bracketed placeholders with your own details.
Which resume format should you use?
Reverse chronological
You have a steady work history. This is the format almost every recruiter and ATS expects by default.
Functional
You're changing fields or have gaps in your employment. Leads with skills rather than a job-by-job timeline.
Combination
You're early career or have worked consistently but for only a few employers. Blends a skills summary with a shorter chronological history.
This template uses the reverse chronological format: the one most finance managers should default to, since most Australian recruiters and ATS software expect it.
Professional summary
Finance manager with a track record of running the finance function end to end: budgeting, statutory reporting, cash flow and the team behind it. Comfortable moving between the detail of a reconciliation and a board-level conversation about risk and strategy. Typically the step up from senior accountant and the natural lead-in to a CFO role.
Key skills
- Financial reporting
- Budgeting and forecasting
- Management accounting
- Risk and internal controls
- Strategy development
- People leadership
- Stakeholder management
- Excel
- SAP
- Power BI
- Workday
Experience: example bullet points
- Led the annual budgeting and forecasting cycle across multiple cost centres, tightening variance to plan and giving executives earlier warning on emerging risks
- Owned monthly and statutory reporting, cutting time to close by moving manual reconciliations into SAP and Power BI dashboards
- Managed cash flow and treasury, including bank facility renewals and covenant reporting, keeping the business within agreed limits through seasonal revenue swings
- Built and led a finance team through a period of growth, restructuring roles so reporting deadlines were consistently met without added headcount
- Advised the executive team on the financial implications of major decisions, including pricing changes and capital investment business cases
- Strengthened internal controls following a gap identified in an external audit, closing the finding within the following reporting period
Education
Bachelor degree in accounting, finance or commerce, followed by CPA Australia or Chartered Accountants ANZ membership; most finance managers progress from a senior accountant role rather than entering directly, and a postgraduate qualification (MBA or Master of Finance) is common for those aiming at CFO.
Keywords an ATS is likely to scan for
Applicant tracking systems match your resume against terms in the job ad before a person ever sees it. Only include the ones that actually apply to your experience, but if a term below matches something you've done, use the same wording the job ad uses.
- CPA
- CA ANZ
- AASB standards
- statutory reporting
- month-end close
- cash flow forecasting
- treasury management
- internal controls
- management accounting
- budgeting and forecasting
- ASIC reporting obligations
- BAS and GST compliance
- SAP
- Power BI
- Workday
- board reporting
Getting past ATS screening
- Match the specific skills, certifications and terms used in the job ad, not just your own wording for the same thing.
- Keep formatting simple: no tables, text boxes, columns, headers/footers or graphics. Parsers frequently drop content placed in these.
- Submit as .docx or PDF unless the job ad specifies otherwise.
- Use standard section headings (Experience, Education, Skills) rather than creative alternatives.
- List your core skills and technical competencies in their own section so a keyword scan can find them instantly.
This is a starting point, not a guarantee of interviews. Tailor every bullet point to your own real experience and the specific job ad.