General Contractor Resume: The Ultimate Writing Guide [25+ Examples]

A lot of things should be managed during a lengthy construction process. Usually, these responsibilities take general contractor who has skills and experience to make it from start to finish.

You can be a self-employed contractor or a contractor for a big company. For those who choose to work for a company, you need also consider building an outstanding resume which will shine even on a stack of other resumes. It’s time to let your hiring manager know that you exist, you are fantastic, and you are ready to hire.

This guide will tell you:

How to write a general contractor resume example.

How to write a general contractor duties resume that gets more interviews.

Tips and samples of how to put skills and achievements.

How to describe your experience on a resume for a general contractor to get any job you want.

1. General Contractor Resume Job Description

A general contractor is a person responsible for a construction site, managers, traders, vendors and communication between all the parties of a process.

To become a general contractor, you need to know work. You need to be able to handle various task such as different remodeling parts of a building, using different tools and equipment, job site cleaning, plumbing and electrical work, replacing windows, and doors.

Besides, you need to possess an ability to lead a team, have excellent verbal and written communication skills, and create estimates of work, instruct workers and more.

2. What’s the Best Format for a General Contractor Resume?

While creating a resume you need to consider your target audience. It means that your CV should be easy to read by both a hiring manager and applicant tracking systems. Don’t use non-standard fonts or some unusual formatting. Keep your resume clean, use only one font, and subheadings to separate the sections.

There are three main types of resumes:

1. Reverse chronological format which is one of the most commonly used. It means that you list your previous places of work and duties from current until your first job. This way you will place your latest accomplishments first.
2. Functional resume format is also known as a skills-based format. It usually used by people without work experience so that they can show off their skills.
3. Combination resume format combines these two styles to display both skills and experience. Using this format, you start your CV with a summary and then place your career progress and skills.

When it comes to file format, the single best format for a resume is PDF. Opening on any computer or mobile device is convenient. With PDF all your formatting will be saved as it is.

3. What to Include in Contact Information for a Cashier Resume

It feels so natural to fill in your personal contact information compare to other resume sections. And this is the issue because most people don’t know what information and how much should they add.

Usually, contact info along with your name and job title is placed on the top of the resume. You need to add:

• Name
• Job title (General Contractor, it’s optional)
• Mailing address (some firms may still send offers via regular mail)
• Cell phone (it’s better to use cell instead of a home number because you are always available)
• Email (the best way of communication between you and recruiter these days)
• LinkedIn URL (it’s optional, the best social media network for professionals)

Link to social media networks are optional, but when it comes to LinkedIn, it’s a network of professionals where all your career progress can be seen. Make sure to fill in all the profile sections, add a beautiful picture, and get testimonials from your previous clients, in a case you decided to add LinkedIn to your contact info.

4. How to Write a General Contractor Resume Objectives or Resume Summary?

Resume summary or resume objective is a few sentences on the top of your page which aimed to make a strong first impression on a recruiter. Don’t say something a recruiter already knows or don’t mean that you need a job. Resume statement is created to become a summary of your professional achievements or a “pitch  deck.”

It serves as an introduction for a reader where you tell about yourself. To write an excellent resume summary think of 2-4 things which define you as a professional. It could be your sales record or ability to manage large technical projects, some years you work in the industry or something similar.

Ensure to align your resume statement to a company’s job requirements. This tip will also be suitable for people who send resumes in a few similar positions. Here are a few resume summary examples written great:

An adaptive, versatile, and well-organized general contractor with over seven years of experience in managing construction and building remodeling. Experienced in evaluating bids and project estimated costs. Ability to plan all stages of development including staffing.

Here is one more resume statement

Seasoned general contractor versed in on-site construction supervision. Strong ability to lead reversed teams, including union and non-union shops.An efficient manager who effectively completes projects on time within the budget. Skilled at working for unexpected deadline situations.

5. How to Describe Your Work General Contractor Experience?

The best suitable resume format is reverse chronological, as we mentioned above. For every entry write the title, company name, and employment dates. Then, below all these list bullet points with your duties and responsibilities on each job.

It’s better to quantify your accomplishments. Use numbers to show the progress of your success. For example, instead of saying ‘carefully coordinated plans to keep projects running smoothly’ you could say ‘carefully coordinated projects and saved over 20% of the client’s budget’. In the second version, you showed your hiring manager a claim demonstrating your leadership skills.

General Contractor, Moto Construction

May 2014 – till present

• Negotiated contracts of highly specialized work, such as building remodeling;
• Completed over 5000 sqft housing projects and over 9000 sqft commercial projects for all time;
• Supervised building and renovation work on six different sites;
• Lead multiple teams, including carpenters and builders;
• Maintained a professional relationship with clients.

General Contractor Assistant, Sun Construction

September 2009 – May 2014

• Checked quality of materials and wrote reports;
• Scheduled workers on shifts and reviewed their work and timing;
• Prepared necessary documents to obtain permits.

You can also count an approximate number of square feet of buildings you have worked on. This is a perfect way to display the number on your resume.

Beyond the building process, it’s also critical to have the ability to handle home repair and preparing homes for real estate market. If you have this experience, you can add it to your resume.

6. What to Include in Education for General Contractor Resume?

To work as a general contractor, you need to have a high school diploma. Bachelor’s degree is also valuable. If you have a degree in construction management, building or construction science, or civil engineering.

Remember that some items on your resume maybe not so important as others and you use limited space of a page. For example, if you have your college degree, it’s not necessary to include your high school information. It’s obvious that you obtained a degree to attend college. However, this logic could not be applied to your higher degrees, so make sure to list them all.

Check out the sample of general contractor education section:

University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE

Bsc. in Construction, 2001

You have to add the name of the university (or high school), location, years, and degree. You can also add your license or certifications in the education section, but we are going to talk about it in the next paragraphs.

7. How to Put Skills on a General Contractor Resume?

To be successful in conditions of the competitive labor market, you need to possess some specific skills. Since you should interact with clients and workers every day, it’s essential to have strong communication skills. It will help you to understand the client’s expectations.

When you interact with other workers, architectures, and vendors, it’s necessary to stay professional and be a leader. Only, in this case, you can finish the project on time and a budget.

Problem-solving skill is also a must in this profession. During the construction process, there could be stressful and stressful situations. You need to stay calm and act under pressure. Construction and technology go hand-in-hand these days, so knowing how to use a computer and other equipment is perfect.

8. List of Skills to Put on a General Contractor Resume

Let’s figure out what skills are essential for a general contractor? These are soft skills which are your qualities:

• speaking and active listening;
• critical thinking;
• problem-solving;
• negotiation;
• time management;
• communication;
• teamwork;

It’s also important to know to be a good general contractor, such as:

• English language;
• building and construction;
• mathematics;
• design;
• technology;
• computer and electronics;
• sales marketing;
• transportation;
• driving a car.

These are hard skills which you can develop yourself. Maybe some of these skills seem too obvious, but having all these settings will make you a superhero in the construction industry.

9. How to Add Certifications to Your General Contractor Resume?

Every state has its requirements and licenses for the general contractor. For example, to become a general contractor in Ontario, you need to have from three to five years of apprenticeship to get a license. If you work in New Jersey, you need to have a license, otherwise, if you keep providing construction services may lead to paying the fine.

Here you can find a list of general contractor license requirements for every state. Go to the article, choose your country and read all criteria correctly. Some countries need proof of experience, while the others need to pass an exam.

There are a certain minimum of requirements, such as 18 years ago, clean background, knowledge of the English language, having a minimum amount of experience, and business and trade examinations. The process may require up to a couple of months to complete. Here is how you should list your certifications in a resume:

• Construction Supervisors License, 2012
• Underground Utility License, ‚ Massachusetts, 2014
• CDL License ‚ OSHA – 10-hour training, Massachusetts, 2014
• Red Cross First Aid & Adult CPR, 2015
• Hoisting License, 2016

10. Closing Words

Prepare yourself to a long job hunt. Since there are a lot of applications and job postings, sometimes it takes a while to find a good job. Don’t become discouraged if the process takes longer than you expected. We hope these writing tips will help you to build an outstanding general contractor resume and get a job you deserve.