How To Show Promotions On Your Resume (With Examples)

It’s safe to say that there’s no downside to getting a promotion — until it comes down to having to list it on your resume. Writing a resume can be difficult to tackle in and of itself, and it gets even trickier when you throw promotions into the mix.

It’s important to list promotions without wasting prime resume real estate or confusing your potential employers. There are a few routes you can take depending on your particular job history, so we’ll cover the essentials for every route you could possibly take on your resume-writing adventure.

Key Takeaways:

• It is important to clearly organize your promotions on your resume so that recruiters, hiring managers, and applicant tracking systems (ATS) can easily understand your work experience.

• There are four options you can use to list promotions: stacking your entries, listing your entries individually, creating a separate section, and listing the same company twice.

• Don’t use fancy formatting, tables, or columns in your resume as this can interfere with the ATS software.

• Clearly label your promotions with accurate dates.

How To Show Promotions On Your Resume

You have four options you can choose from when you wish to show your promotions on your resume. They are:

1. Stack Your Entries. Stacking your promotions on your resume is very straightforward. It is very useful particularly if your progressive roles were very similar.

2. List Your Entries Individually. Individual lists are good when promotions resulted in completely new positions at the same company. This also works for lateral moves to highlight your diverse skill set.

3. Create a Separate Section. A separate section is very useful when you have relevant work experience and promotions from over 15 years ago. Your accomplishments, if relevant, from this period can be listed in a separate accomplishments section.

4. List the Same Company Twice. In this case you create an entirely new entry for each position as if it were a new job at a new company. Though this makes each job stand out, it also takes up a lot of space on the resume.

Each of these methods have their pros and cons. For example, stacking promotions usually are not picked up by applicant tracking systems (ATS) and can result in misappropriated skills. Lets look more in depth at each option to evaluate which is best for you.

Option #1: Stack Your Entries

If the jobs you’ve had were pretty similar, your best approach would be to stack the job titles together under the company header. This method is a great way off your progressive responsibilities, achievements, and dedication to the company.

If, for example, you were promoted from junior web designer to senior web designer, but your job description didn’t change, it would look something like this:

The bullets you include should describe your most impressive accomplishments during the time you worked in these positions. Remember that your resume is meant to sell you as the best person for the job, so focus on describing your achievements instead of detailing all of your menial job duties.

You can also use the bullet section to describe the reasons why you were promoted. For example, you could say:

This way, employers can see that you earned your promotion, instead of just getting the job because someone quit and you were able to learn how to do your job from a YouTube tutorial.

As an added note, this method isn’t great for applicant tracking systems (ATS). The software that parses your resume will assign all skills and responsibilities to the earlier role, thus making your resume score lower with the ATS. It may even miss the more senior roles entirely.

Still, if you’re applying to a smaller company that’s unlikely to use an ATS, this format is easy on the eyes and works well.

Option #2: List Your Entries Individually

If the jobs you’ve had at your company were pretty different — for example, if you moved from assistant editor to web developer — list the company once, but separate the job titles and treat them like two different positions (because, well, they are).

Using this method draws attention to your achievement history and time frame in both positions. It would look like this:

Remember to use the bullet points to describe your biggest accomplishments and experience that relate to the job you’re applying for.

If the new role was a step up, be sure to explain that clearly — but even lateral moves show employers that you’re adaptable and have a wide range of strengths and skills.

Either way, the hiring manager will be able to notice that you’ve had different jobs within the same company, and ideally they’ll be tickled pink with delight to see that you’re a dedicated and loyal employee.

As a bonus, this format works really well for ATS, because each job title is clearly labeled and has its own subsection explaining your experiences.

Option #3: Create a Separate Section

If you have any work experience from more than 15 years ago that relates to the job you’re applying for, it’s useful to create a completely separate section that simply lists your job titles and the dates you held them, but without a list of accomplishments.

Using a separate section for older work experience will let you show off your career progression while still keeping your resume concise. It would look something like this:

If you do have impressive achievements from your time at one of these older jobs, you can consider listing them in a separate accomplishments section on your resume. Just make sure that it’s worth including because you only have so much space to work with on your resume.

ATS will read your prior experience section as equivalent to your work experience section. This shouldn’t be a problem, as long as your more senior and recent positions are fully fleshed-out elsewhere on your resume.

Option #4: List the Same Company Twice

You can also just list the company’s name and address a second time, but create separate sections for each job title. Then, you can list your most impressive accomplishments from each.

That would look like this:

This resume format works really well for applicant tracking systems because it’s the same as listing your experience at different companies. If you’re applying to a large company that’s likely to use an ATS, we recommend this method.

Of course, it takes up a lot of space, so consider the value of that space and perhaps cut some detail from your more junior roles.

Example Resumes Using Each Option

1. Stacked Entries Example

   edX, Cambridge, MA | June 2017-Present
   Sales Manager | May 2019-Present
   Sales Representative | June 2017-May 2019

   • Managed a team of 12 salespeople, resulting in a 23% increase in sales month-over-month

   • Contacted 10 potential clients a day via phone and 20 via email daily

   • Awarded Salesperson of the Month in March 2019

2. Individual Entries Example

   ABC Corporation, Las Vegas, NV | April 2017-Present
   Marketing Manager | April 2019-Present

   • Drove website traffic my 60% in three-month period

   • Managed a remote team of 20+ illustrators, designers, developers, writers, and editors

   • Increased app engagement by 32%, resulting in 40% more mobile sales

   Data Analyst | April 2017-Present

   • Developed strategy for marketing and product teams based on data visualizations

   • Cut costs on freelance content production by 15% using data-backed solutions

3. Separate Section Example

   Prior Professional Experience

   Starbucks | Seattle, WA
   Lead Web Developer | April 2008-June 2012
   Junior Web Developer | June 2006-April 2008
   IT Intern | January 2006-May 2006

4. Same Company Twice Example

   XYZ Inc, Green Bay, WI
   Office Manager | 04/2019-Present

   • Organized purchase of $100,000 of office supplies annually

   • Maintained relationships with 12+ vendors

   • Organized schedules allowing for 14% increase in workflow productivity

   XYZ Inc, Green Bay, WI
   Office Assistant | 07/2017-04/2019

   • Fielded 30+ customer calls and 100+ customer emails per day

   • Increased customer satisfaction rates by 13%

Why You Should Show Promotions on Your Resume

Showing promotions on your resume makes you a more attractive candidate for recruiters and hiring managers. They’re a sign that you were a strong enough employee to earn extra responsibilities. Promotions also show that you’re a reliable worker who’s able to grow with the company.

Plus, resumes are all about showcasing your value through accomplishments, and getting promoted is certainly an accomplishment. Sure, you can say you added value in such-and-such a way, but being granted a promotion shows that your employer really valued that contribution. It’s an extra detail that vouches for your stated credentials.

Ultimately, showing promotions on your resume helps you stand out as a candidate with proven loyalty, growth, and successful experience.

Formatting Tips for Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

While it’s great that applying for jobs online has never been easier, it’s a double-edged sword. Because hiring managers and recruiters have a constant stream of applications coming in, they rely on applicant tracking systems to weed out unqualified candidates.

The trouble is that these pieces of software don’t have intuition, and if your resume is formatted improperly, you may not get credit for all the awesome experiences you have under your belt.

Here are some tips for how best to please our robot overlords (in the resume department, anyway):

• Don’t use fancy formatting. It can be tempting to use special bullet points to indicate a promotion or job change within a company, but avoid it. Stick to the standard circle or square bullet points, or your information might become jumbled and unreadable.

  A good tip is to copy/paste your resume into a plain text document (like Notepad). However your resume looks there is how it’ll look to an ATS.

• Don’t use tables and columns. They’re likely to break when an ATS tries to read them.

• Clearly label the company name and time of employment. You can use the name of the month or the number (e.g., June 2012 or 06/2012). Just make sure every change in jobs clearly labels the time periods, so you’re credited with the appropriate amount of experience.

Showing Promotions on Your Resume FAQ

1. Should you list any promotions on a resume?

   Yes, you should list any promotions that you have on your resume because it can make you a more attractive candidate to hiring managers. To show your promotions on your resume, you should either stack your entries, list the entries individually, create a separate section for them, or list the company twice.

2. What is the best way to make your resume stand out?

   The best way to make your resume stand out is to highlight your relevant skills and experience, and tailor your resume to each specific job. Tailoring your resume to each job that you apply to will help you add keywords to make your resume stand out. You should also only add relevant skills and experience that you have that relate to the job that you are applying to.

3. How do you brag about a promotion on a resume?

   To brag about a promotion on your resume you should assert your accomplishments without over-embellishing on them. It’s also important that you don’t lie about any promotions or accomplishments to make yourself sound like a better candidate.

   You should also provide examples of the accomplishments. Doing this will show your success and give the hiring manager or recruiter a better understanding of what the promotion or accomplishments were for.

Final Thoughts

Moving up within a company shows that you’re a high performer, you get stuff done, and that your hard work yields results. Listing more than one job within a company helps draw attention to your accomplishments and shows that you’re willing to stick around and grow with a business.

If your resume successfully shows off all these great things about you, you’re destined to land an interview and sweep your potential employers off their feet.

Now get out there and go woo your prospective employers.

References

1. Harvard University Graduate School of Design – How to Write A Resume That Stands Out

2. Roxbury Community College – How to Show a Promotion on Your Resume

Author

Maddie Lloyd

Maddie Lloyd was a writer for the Zippia Advice blog focused on researching tips for interview, resume, and cover letter preparation. She's currently a graduate student at North Carolina State University's department of English concentrating in Film and Media Studies.