How To Become A Business Executive: What It Is and Career Path

What is a business executive and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Kim Chatani

If that sounds heavy, it's because potential candidates will need at least a bachelor's degree in computer science or information technology. If they want top-tier salary, however, getting a master's degree might be worth their while. Considering this field earns anywhere from $59K to $160K with a median salary around $116K, the extra schooling could certainly impact their paycheck. With a projected job growth of 10% as of 2021, there's no time like the present to consider secondary education.

What general advice would you give to a business executive?

Kim Chatani

Assistant Professor, Concordia University Irvine

The career path for graduating students is full of unpredictability, as we have seen during this COVID 19 pandemic. In addition to academic excellence, graduates will face challenges that will test their core principles and beliefs. My advice is to view each challenge you meet with a long-term perspective while addressing the immediate concerns in a balanced way. Your career will span decades, and what you may face during the first several years will only be a fraction of your professional career. View how your immediate decision may impact you in the long-term.

ScoreBusiness ExecutiveUS Average

Salary

4.9

Avg. Salary $63,101

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.6

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.47%

Asian 6.31%

Black or African American 6.12%

Hispanic or Latino 14.97%

Unknown 4.33%

White 67.81%

Gender

female 40.12%

male 59.88%

Age - 44

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44

Stress level

9.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.2

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.6

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a business executive

Explore business executive education requirements

Most common business executive degrees

Bachelor's

67.0 %

Master's

17.3 %

Associate

7.3 %

Start to develop specific business executive skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	22.11%
Customer Satisfaction	11.57%
Revenue Growth	10.23%
Emerging Technologies	8.06%
Healthcare	5.36%

Complete relevant business executive training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New business executives learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a business executive based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real business executive resumes.

Research business executive duties and responsibilities

Manage origination initiatives associate with business accounts, treasury products, and loans while adhering to bank compliance procedures.
Consult with businesses to supply accurate product and service information in healthcare territory.
Utilize visualization techniques, forecasting, modeling, statistical analysis, and predictive analytics to design and maintain internal business solutions.
Require extensive knowledge of trusts, annuities, mutual funds, stocks, capital markets and mortgages.

Get business executive experience

Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a business executive. The most common roles before becoming a business executive include account executive, sales representative team lead and internship.

Prepare your business executive resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your business executive resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a business executive resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable business executive resume templates

Build a professional business executive resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your business executive resume.