A business analyst CV that gets read.
A free, one-column Word template that applicant tracking systems can read, with example bullets to fill with your own numbers, and a short guide to tailoring it for each role.
Tailoring a BA CV
1. Read the advert like a requirements document
Highlight every tool, method and domain it names: Jira, BPMN, user stories, UAT, payments, lending. Those are the words a screener, and an applicant tracking system, look for. Use the ones you have really used, in the advert's own wording, in your summary and in the first bullets of your latest role.
2. Lead with results, not duties
"Responsible for gathering requirements" tells a reader nothing. A bullet such as "Ran six workshops with operations and IT and wrote 40 user stories with acceptance criteria" does. Start each bullet with a verb and end it with a number where you can: time saved, errors removed, users served, money processed.
3. Translate work from outside IT
If you are moving into business analysis, the analysis you already do counts. Handling complaints is finding the root cause of a problem; writing a branch procedure is process documentation; coordinating a product launch is stakeholder management. Describe it in those terms, honestly.
4. Keep it readable by machines
One column, standard headings (Summary, Experience, Education, Certifications, Skills), dates on the same line as each role, and no tables, text boxes, icons or photos. The template is built this way; keep it that way when you edit it.
5. Point to proof
Link a portfolio with a sample BRD, a process map or a user story backlog, with anything confidential removed. List certifications you hold with a verification link, and ones you are working towards as "in progress".
Before you send it
- Every [placeholder] is replaced and the guide page is deleted.
- The summary names the role you are applying for.
- Each role has at least one result with a number.
- It fits on two pages, most recent role first.
- The file is named Firstname-Lastname-Business-Analyst-CV.