How To Become A Resource Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a resource manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Melissa Price

Resource managers are responsible for managing the non-human resources of an organization. Resource managers rarely work on small teams. Instead, they operate at an organizational level and allocate resources to the various teams as necessary.

The most common variation of this job role is the human resource manager. They are responsible for everything from staff allocation to hiring new talent for the workforce. Sometimes, human resource managers may also hire and train staff.

Other resource manager roles are not so common because they are often grouped into another title. For example, managing financial resources could also be done by the organization's Chief Financial Officer. Office administrators handle supply resources, and employees are tasked with managing their own time.

To become a resource manager, you'll need a bachelor's degree in human resource management or a similar field. You'll also need 3-5 years' experience working in a related field, as well as excellent interpersonal skills.

What general advice would you give to a resource manager?

Dr. Melissa Price

Associate Professor

If you can identify a need and start a nonprofit or for profit business to fill that need, there is huge salary potential. For example, in natural resource management much of the work is contracted out to various sectors. If you live in a rural or remote island area such as Hawai'i, many of these contractors need to be flown in from outside the area, dramatically increasing costs. If you can develop a local business model to meet these needs, you essentially will have a corner on the market. Examples include heavy machinery, genetic analysis services, water testing services, certification training, decision analysis and facilitation, native plant nurseries, biosecurity, and helicopter services for transportation and materials delivery to remote work sites. Any preparation that demonstrates capacity for leadership positions will help you obtain positions beyond entry level technicians. Specialized skills will also help you negotiate salaries. While a solid understanding of the scientific aspects of the job are important, many higher level positions require an understanding of project management. Coursework or internships that include use of spreadsheets, preparation of reports, or team management will demonstrate that you can quickly move into project management positions.

ScoreResource ManagerUS Average

Salary

6.0

Avg. Salary $77,116

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.40%

Asian 5.71%

Black or African American 7.65%

Hispanic or Latino 11.14%

Unknown 5.09%

White 70.01%

Gender

female 50.54%

male 49.46%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.3

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a resource manager

Explore resource manager education requirements

Most common resource manager degrees

Bachelor's

64.2 %

Associate

15.7 %

Master's

12.7 %

Start to develop specific resource manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	14.09%
Resource Management	11.25%
Project Management	9.82%
Human Resources	5.81%
Customer Satisfaction	4.66%

Research resource manager duties and responsibilities

Manage security and design of SharePoint site.
Manage all costs for the region and report KPI's.
Manage the infrastructure portion of a major CIS conversion project.
Manage resources for the definition and implementation of QA processes and organization structure.

Prepare your resource manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your resource manager 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 resource manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable resource manager resume templates

Build a professional resource manager 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 resource manager resume.

Apply for resource manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a resource manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do resource managers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Resource manager reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2022

Pros

I have leadership skills I always hire employees who like to work in a team I like to see sales increase and love to see the best customer service is given