Business Owner CV Examples to Help You Build Yours

When writing a business owner CV, you want to highlight three elements of your business ownership:

• How you became the owner, whether you came up with the concept or you were an early investor
• What your general job duties were as a business owner
• Spotlight how successful your business was 

These three points allow a recruiter to learn about the skills and experiences you’ve gained from your business ownership.

Business owner CVs will likely use the chronological format, which puts your work history front and centre. You might want to try different CV formats depending on your particular experience and skills, but to prove yourself as an effective business owner, you’ll likely need to emphasise your achievements through your work history. Here’s how your CV sections should look:

 

 

The CV header will be the same as any other CV: your full name, contact information, including your phone number and professional links, such as your LinkedIn profile, or a link to your company website.

 

 

The official first section of a CV is your professional summary. Your professional summary needs to put the fact that you owned your own business front and centre. While career objectives are often used for people with less experience, you might consider using one if you’re switching career fields and want to clarify your career goals.

 

 

Being a small business owner gives you a unique variety of skills. Here are a few skills you might consider for your CV:

• Pricing products with the market
• Project management
• Creating and implementing business plans
• Strategic planning for the future
• Bookkeeping
• General business acumen
• Customer satisfaction
• Financial management
• Human resources experience
• Interpersonal skills
• Management skills
• Merchandising
• Problem-solving skills
• Time management skills
• Business operations management
• Software expertise in products like QuickBooks
• Managing accounts receivable

Obviously, not every business will teach you all of these skills and not all of these skills will apply to the position you’re looking to fill. However, note that the list above includes both hard skills (technical knowledge) and soft skills (intangible and interpersonal skills) and understanding your technical skills and personal skills will help you succeed.

 

 

Of course, any small business owner CV sample will naturally want to spotlight your own business in the work experience section. To make the most of this, include the company name and list your job title, e.g., “Owner,” “Co-Owner” or “CEO” for each job provide bullet points that highlight achievements, such as initiatives you invested in.

 

 

Your education section is the place to include your highest academic credential, e.g., bachelor’s degree. Additionally, you can include certifications that you got while working as a business owner or working up to it (e.g., certification for project management).

Do:

• Write your job title as “Business Owner” or something similar. This will catch a hiring manager’s attention.
• Relate your job experience directly to the job you’re applying for. Discuss how being a business owner will help you in this specific job.
• Include other non-ownership experiences if applicable. If you have other accomplishments within the last ten years, it can show that you have a real track record and didn’t just get lucky.

Don’t:

• Inflate your numbers or otherwise lie about your experiences. This could end with you losing not just this specific job but also other jobs.
• Discuss negative elements of the business. You should only talk about the positives of your business experience.
• Expect the hiring manager will avoid talking about your business. You should prepare for the hiring manager to have a number of questions about your business and why you might be moving on.