FUNCTIONAL RESUME COMPONENTS

The components of a functional resume are very similar to those in chronological resumes; the

difference is the way in which they re presented. Functional resumes focus more on skills and

abilities you ve developed and de-emphasize your titles and employment tenure.

Keep reading for advice on how to format a functional resume.

Personal Information

Include the following information in the following order

Name

Address

Phone number(s) in order of contact preference; distinguish mobile numbers from

home numbers by adding (m) or (h) after the number

Email address

LinkedIn profile address (optional)

EXAMPLE

Jane Smith

321 Fake St.

St. Charles, IL 60174

222-***-**** (m)

abqhpz@r.postjobfree.com

Professional Summary

The professional summary is a quick summation of your knowledge, skills, abilities, (KSAs) and

desired role. Start marketing right away; go back to the job description and your brainstorming

notes and start making those connections! If the position requi res a bilingual ability and you

have it, note it! If you re submitting a general resume, think about the KSAs generally needed

in your profession and highlight them.

In the example below, the candidate has both operations and sales experience but wishe s to

obtain an operational role, so they state exactly that.

***TIP*** Keep this section to a short paragraph; no more than five sentences.

EXAMPLE

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Motivated operations professional with additional experience in sales roles, seeking a

challenging operations position with an international freight forwarder to offer my

experience and knowledge to.

Transportation Employment Specialists, Inc.

Page 1

Areas of Expertise

This section showcases your knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) for an employer.

Start by grouping your job types if possible; i.e. sales vs. operations or HR vs. Accounting. You

may even want to create subcategories as in the example below with export vs. import duties.

Under each grouping, list your experiences, skills and abilit ies, using bullet points; just as you

would with a chronological resume, start with the most important KSA s to the prospective

employer, eliminating or moving down lower on the list those that are less critical to the role

you want.

EXAMPLE

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

OPERATIONS

Air / Ocean Export

Domestic and international carrier selection and pricing negotiation

Customer pick up and coordination

Documentation: HAWB/MAWB, Cert. of Origin, Carnet, L/C

TSA Certified understanding of Export Rules/Regulations. USPPI/Commerce

Department

Solid customer service skills, customer invoicing and reconciliation

Air / Ocean Import

Solid communication experience with domestic and international carriers set up

arrival and customer notices/shipment releases and ensure delivery to final customer

Direct contact / communication experience with US Customs/FDA/Agriculture

Understanding of entry process/Harmonized Tariff/ISF/7501; have worked directly with

Customs Brokers to ensure proper clearances

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & INTERNATIONAL ROUTE DEVELOPMENT

Ability to manage entire sales cycle from target prospecting to closing; proven ability to

present to all levels of corporate prospects

Manage development of domestic and international transportation solutions

Lead the qualification process of new accounts through direct prospect solicitation

Manage margin/profit percentage to insure account profitability

Route development of key traffic lanes with overseas partners, specifically UK,

Germany, Australia and China

Assist with import/export compliance issues

Transportation Employment Specialists, Inc.

Page 2

Employment History

While the focus of a functional resume is knowledge, skills, and abilities, employment history

does need to be listed.

We suggest following the example below to format this section, right down to what s bolded,

vs. italicized, etc.

EXAMPLE

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

A Great Company, Roselle, IL 1/2011 2/2012

International Freight Forwarder & US Customs Broker

Sales & Business Development

Freight Forwarder, Inc., Elk Grove Village, IL 6/2010-11/2010

International Freight Forwarder & US Customs Broker

Sales Representative

ABC Logistics Company, Itasca, IL 7/2009 6/2010

Domestic Trucking Brokerage

Director of Business Development

#1 Recruitment, Mundelein, IL 1/2007 6/2009

Recruiting Agency

Owner

That Logistics Co, Wood Dale, IL 10/2003-11/2006

International Freight Forwarder & US Customs Broker

Senior Account Executive

We Move Freight, Wood Dale, IL 6/1995 10/2003

International Wholesale Freight Forwarder

Operations Specialist

Professional Leadership

If you ve held any industry-related leadership roles, you may want to note them under their

own heading; leave this section off if you have nothing to note. In the example resume, Jane

has nothing she wishes to note, so she doesn t include the heading.

Transportation Employment Specialists, Inc.

Page 3

Education

Generally, you want to list your highest level of education; several examples of how to note

educational achievements are noted below. The one rule you should absolutely follow is to

never include your graduation year unless you re a recent graduate (1 yr. or less). You may

want to list certification dates if they are recent to show your knowledge is curren t- use your

best judgment.

EXAMPLE

EDUCATION & TRAINING

Bachelor of Arts Degree

Drake University, Des Moines, IA

TSA Certified

EXAMPLE

EDUCATION

High School Diploma

WCCHS, West Chicago, IL

EXAMPLE

EDUCATION

Harper College, Palatine, IL

Some college coursework completed

U.S. Licensed Customs Broker since 2004

Transportation Employment Specialists, Inc.

Page 4

Contact this candidate