How to Write a Construction Planner Resume (With Examples)

Updated June 10, 2023

It's crucial to know how to write a resume that's relevant to the position you're pursuing. Hiring managers within the construction sector often look for candidates who have specific skills and experience. Learning what information hiring managers look for in resumes for construction planner positions can help you include it in your resume and increase your chances of securing job offers.

In this article, we discuss what a construction planner resume is, describe the duties of a construction planner, explain how to write your resume for this position, share some tips on how to make an effective resume, and provide a template and example.

What is a construction planner resume?

A construction planner resume refers to a document a candidate writes to apply for a job position in the construction industry. Candidates use this document to highlight their abilities to plan construction projects, prepare estimates of labour, equipment, and material, and analyze tenders. Successful resumes for construction planner positions detail the candidate's experience and describe the duties they executed in previous relevant roles. It's also wise to highlight skills that hiring managers look for in construction planners, such as the ability to create budgets, lead teams, maintain a high level of organization, and communicate effectively with others.

What are the duties of a construction planner?

Construction planners prepare and implement building projects. They create schedules and budgets for the work. Some of their duties include allocating resources, supervising activities on construction sites, assessing blueprints, creating contingency plans, tracking metrics, writing progress reports, and ensuring that construction adheres to legal regulations. Construction planners often work with other construction professionals, such as architects, engineers, site managers, contractors, surveyors, and estimators. When writing a resume for a construction planner position, it's beneficial to include any previous roles in which you've performed the above duties.

How to write a construction planner resume

Knowing how to format and structure a resume can increase your chances of securing a job interview. Here are some steps you can follow to write an effective resume for a construction manager role:

1. Provide your contact information

At the top of your resume, it's essential to write your name, phone number, e-mail address, city, and province or territory in which you live. It's unnecessary to write your full address. It's important to include this information at the top of your resume so hiring managers can know immediately whose resume they're reading.

2. Write a resume objective

It's important to begin the body of your document with a professional summary. This is a brief summary that explains your career accomplishments and ambitions. You can write about what you hope to accomplish by working as a construction planner and how you can help the firm in that role.

3. Describe your work experience

Begin the experience section with your most recent construction position and work backwards from there. State the position you worked or currently work in and list the dates you worked in that role. Underneath, include three to four bullet points that describe your responsibilities and achievements in that role. It's beneficial to highlight duties you performed that are similar to those of a construction planner.

4. List your education

To work as a construction planner, you only require a high school diploma, but hiring managers often prefer candidates who have a post-secondary degree. A diploma or degree in construction management, project management, construction science, construction technology, architecture, or engineering can help you secure offers for construction planner jobs. List your education experience in reverse chronological order. You can also include any certificates you've earned that might apply to the job.

5. Highlight your skills

Listing skills you've gained in your construction career not only shows hiring managers that you possess such abilities but also that you understand what skills the position requires. You can include both hard and soft skills. Hard skills are technical skills you learn for the role, such as how to operate construction equipment. Soft skills are less-defined skills that you learn and develop gradually, such as leadership or communication.

6. Proofread your resume

It's crucial that you carefully proofread your resume. Resumes that are free of mistakes show that you have good attention to detail. You can read it aloud to yourself, use a computer program to read it aloud to you, or have a colleague, friend, or family member proofread it. Once you're confident there are no typographical or grammatical errors, you're ready to submit your resume.

Tips for writing an effective resume for construction planning

The role of a construction planner is an advanced one within the construction sector. Hiring managers typically prefer candidates who have already held two or more positions within construction and have several years of experience. When writing about your previous construction experience in your resume, it's important to include detailed descriptions of your previous work. For instance, if you've worked as a general construction labourer, instead of writing that you simply helped to build houses, write that you coordinated and collaborated with several other tradespeople.

This not only shows that you were able to perform the basic duties of construction, but also that you understand the value of teamwork and coordination. It's also wise to include courses or accreditations that relate to construction work. For instance, many construction planners never operate a forklift themselves in the course of their duties, but including that you're certified to operate a forklift can be beneficial. It demonstrates your proficiency with the equipment and shows that you want to advance your career within the construction sector.

Construction planner template resume

You can use a template to structure your resume and enter your own specific information in the various sections. Here's a template for a resume for a construction planner position:

[Your name] | [Phone number] | [E-mail address] | [City and province or territory]

Professional summary
[One to four sentences to summarize your work experience, achievements, and professional goals.]

Professional experience
[Current or most recent position title]
[Company or organization name], [City and province or territory], [Dates worked]
[A bulleted list of job responsibilities and accomplishments]

[Position title]
[Company or organization name], [City and province or territory], [Dates worked]

[Responsibility or achievement accomplished]
[Responsibility or achievement accomplished]
[Responsibility or achievement accomplished]

Education
[Qualification]
[Name of the educational institution], [City and province or territory], [Graduation year]

Skills
[Soft or hard skill] | [Soft or hard skill] | [Soft or hard skill]

Licences and certifications

[Title of certification], [Issuing organization], [Date or year earned]

Construction planner example resume

Reading example resumes for construction planner positions can give you a good idea of what information to include and what skills or experience to emphasize. Here's an example resume for a construction planner position:

Wendy Choi
123-456-7890 | wendy.choi@email.ca | Windsor, ON

Professional summary

Construction professional with over nine years of experience in building and crew supervision. Knowledgeable about foundational repair and blueprint interpretation. Devoted to site safety and meeting budgets and deadlines. Looking to help firms as a construction planner by taking on and completing new projects in a timely and economical manner.

Experience

Interior build crew supervisor
Sky High Developments, Windsor, ON, October 2019—present

Coordinated interior tradespeople and assigned tasks based on abilities and availability
Estimated project costs based on the customer's requests
Executed safety and quality assessments throughout the duration of a project
Worked with the project manager to interpret blueprints, develop budgets and work schedules, and ensure teams meet deadlines

Construction labourer
Southwest Ontario Restoration Experts, Windsor, ON, June 2016—August 2019

Cleared debris from construction sites
Unloaded and carried materials to the site location
Operated light and heavy equipment
Set up braces to support safe work

Education

Bachelor of Arts in Project Management
Blue Mont College, Tillsonburg, ON, 2016

Skills

Blueprint reading and interpretation
Crew supervision and leadership
Forklift operation
Leadership
Communication

Certifications

Forklift Certification, Forklift Professional Trainers, 2018