Functional Résumé Template: How to Write a Functional Résumé

A functional résumé, or a skills-based résumé, organizes a job seeker’s experiences by skills rather than by previous job titles. For example, applicants who want to showcase their technical skills might include a technology section on their functional résumé with bullet points highlighting relevant experience. This type of résumé is a great way to feature key skills, especially for job applicants with gaps in their employment history or those who lack traditional work experience.

Both functional and chronological résumés (typically, reverse-chronological résumés) showcase work experience, but the formatting between these documents differs.

Within the functional résumé format, each skill or category of skills is a heading, with bullet points of examples and experience beneath each skill. In a chronological résumé format, employment history is in reverse-chronological order with employment dates and company names. The most recent job title should be first. Underneath each job title is a list of the soft skills, hard skills, and experiences from the work experience.

A combination résumé, or hybrid résumé, features elements of both a skills-based and chronological résumé. In this format, applicants list skills first, then include an experience section with their work history in chronological order.

There are several scenarios in which a functional resume makes more sense than a traditional résumé. Consider using a functional résumé if your work history includes:

• A career path transition: A functional résumé might be beneficial if you aim to make a career change. This type of résumé can direct focus on the transferable skills you have rather than list your previous job titles that might not be relevant to your new job search.
• Gaps in work experience: If you have a long period of unemployment, a functional résumé is an excellent way to showcase your skills without highlighting employment gaps to recruiters and hiring managers.
• Nontraditional experience: A functional résumé might be more relevant if you lack conventional professional experience but have the necessary skills in the job description. Recent graduates without work experience might benefit from this résumé format.

A functional résumé should include the following sections, usually in this order:

• Heading: The heading for your résumé should list your name and contact information, including your phone number and email address.
• Objective statement: You can include a résumé summary with a few sentences about yourself and your interest in the position.
• Skills summary: For the skills section of your résumé, select categories of skills relevant to the position. This section might include customer service, technology, problem-solving, or communication skills. Under each category of relevant skills, provide bullet points explaining your experience or skill set. For instance, a functional résumé for customer service might feature a bullet point about knowledge of CRM databases.
• Experience: Include a work history section if you have relevant professional work experience.
• Education: The education section of a functional résumé should list your education experience, training, and certificates.

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