What sets top earners apart? A deep dive into executive resumes

With the job market still on a rollercoaster in 2025, professionals at all levels may be curious about the same question: What separates top earners and executives from the rest? Does a unique set of skills drive success? The answer may be hiding within the very documents that shape first impressions and open doors to new opportunities...their resumes.

With that in mind, Adobe Acrobat analyzed over 160 PDF resumes across all job levels to uncover the key differences that separate top earners and executives from the rest of the workforce. We dug deep into the resumes of CEOs, high-level executives, and professionals across various industries to identify what truly sets them apart.

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A sleek, modern desk with multiple resumes spread out. The back of a laptop, pen, and a cup of coffee sit neatly beside the documents. Soft natural lighting from a nearby window casts a professional, focused atmosphere. The background subtly fades into a blurred office setting, emphasizing the resumes as the central focus.

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Key findings:

Two in three executives have a resume longer than one page.
More than three in five (63 percent) executives include a graduation year, potentially revealing their age.
An average executive's resume lists 12 hard skills and only three soft skills.
Top hard skills listed on an executive’s resume include staff management (44 percent), training/coaching (37 percent), negotiation (32 percent) and process improvement (32 percent).
Top soft skills listed on an executive’s resume include leadership (69 percent), effective communication (44 percent) and team collaboration (33 percent).

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Breaking the one-page rule: two in three executives have longer resumes

The traditional advice around how to write a resume is to keep it concise, ideally around one page in length. But for executives, that rule often gets tossed aside. Our analysis found that only one in three executives keep their resumes to a single page, while the majority opt for longer, more detailed documents. Executives have a lot to be proud of, so it’s hard to condense their experiences into only one page. Let’s dive into the key elements that set executive resumes apart, including those for CEO, COO, CTO, CCO, CFO, VP, and President roles.

Infographic on executive resume characteristics, including length, awards, certifications, GPA, and skills.

Hard skills vs. soft skills

But what exactly are executives putting on their resumes? We determined executives add an average of 12 hard skills compared to just three soft skills. Interestingly, the executive resumes we analyzed focused much more on highlighting hard skills like negotiation (32 percent), process improvement (32 percent) and strategic planning (29 percent). While, entry-level positions showcase customer service (19 percent) and analysis skills (12 percent).

When focusing on soft skills, entry-level resumes prominently featured communication (52 percent), team collaboration (48 percent), and adaptability (28 percent). As an early-career professional, you might feel pressured to highlight every skill you've picked up, hoping it makes you stand out. However, for executives and higher-level employees, technical expertise and proven leadership take precedence, showing that their ability to deliver results outweighs the need to showcase every soft skill they've developed.

Awards and certifications

Executives also tend to skip things that many entry-level professionals often stress over. More than half (51 percent) don't include certifications and 60 percent leave off awards, details you might think are crucial for landing a job early in your career. Even education gets treated differently; while over three in five executives still list their graduation year, only 16 percent include their GPA, which might be a must-have on your resume if you're starting out. At the executive level, it's clear that the focus shifts from following the standard resume rules to highlighting experience, leadership, and proven results. As you climb the ladder, your resume needs to tell the story of what you've achieved, not just what you've learned.

Refining your resume is invaluable to showcasing your experience effectively, regardless of your level. Adobe Acrobat's online PDF tools can streamline this process, helping you easily convert and edit your PDF resumes.

The hard skills that make the cut on executive resumes

Now that we’ve explored the broader trends in executive resumes, let’s zoom in on the hard skills that truly make an impact.

Infographic on hard skills in resumes, showing percentages by industry, job level, and top skills for executives.

Since executives often have a broader range of hard skills than people earlier in their careers, this might feel like a big gap for current job seekers. But remember, it’s not all about listing as many skills as possible; it’s about highlighting the right ones for your target role.

Resume gender disparities

One interesting trend we discovered in our analysis is that men are 28 percent more likely than women to list eight or more hard skills on their resumes. This difference may be influenced by unconscious feelings of imposter syndrome in the workplace, as many women often report feeling pressured to meet every requirement perfectly before applying for a role.

The top hard skills on executive resumes

When taking a closer look at just executive resumes, we identified the top hard skills. Staff management appears in 44 percent of these resumes, training/coaching in 37 percent, negotiation in 32 percent, and process improvement in 32 percent. These hard skills often show an executive’s ability to lead teams, drive company growth, and navigate high-stakes decisions. Interestingly, training/coaching might be the top hard skill for senior employee resumes, but it appears 37 percent less frequently than on executive resumes. Similarly, executives are 220 percent more likely than senior employees to list negotiation as a hard skill. Even if you’re not in a senior role yet, you can start looking for opportunities to take the lead, negotiate, or improve processes in your current position, as these are the skills that may help you stand out as you climb the career ladder down the line.

The soft skills that set top professionals apart

As we transition from hard skills, let’s shift our focus to the pivotal soft skills that play a key role in career advancement. These interpersonal abilities, like leadership and communication, are often the key differentiators that drive success at the highest levels.

Infographic on soft skills in resumes, showing percentages by industry, job level, and top skills for executives.

When on the job hunt, many entry-level employees may need to lean on soft skills to stand out in their resumes, especially when they have less experience or fewer technical abilities. Our analysis revealed that over one in three (35 percent) entry-level employees list five or more soft skills on their resumes. Those interpersonal skills can often make a big impact when you're just starting out. Whether it's the ability to communicate effectively, work well in a team, or adapt to new situations, these talents can help you stand out as a new applicant.

Team collaboration

Interestingly, one skill that many entry-level employees seem to prioritize the most is team collaboration. Around 48 percent of them proudly mention their ability to work well with others on their resumes, which contrasts executives, who only highlight this skill in 33 percent of cases.

Among soft skills, leadership takes the lead

Leadership becomes more important as you climb the ladder, with 69 percent of executives we analyzed listing it as a key soft skill, followed by effective communication (44 percent) and team collaboration (33 percent). Also, executives' focus on relationship-building truly sets them apart, as they are 158 percent more likely than senior employees to highlight this soft skill on their resumes. At the executive level, success is driven not only by their work but also by the ability to forge connections, manage networks, and influence people across the organization. No matter where you are in your career, prioritizing relationship-building and honing your leadership skills can make a significant difference.

Editing your PDF resume with Adobe Acrobat

If you're feeling inspired to update your resume after seeing what top-level professionals are including, we’ve got a simple guide for you. You can easily make edits to your resume using Adobe Acrobat. Since many hiring managers and job listings require applicants to submit their resumes as a PDF, if your resume isn’t already in PDF format, you can convert to PDF. Then, you can use the edit PDF tool in Acrobat for all your editing needs.

If you prefer to edit in Word, simply convert your PDF to Word, make all your edits needed, then convert it back to a PDF for easy sharing.

Whether you're aiming for a promotion or entering a new field, keeping your resume up to date will ensure you're always ready for the next opportunity.

Methodology

To explore the characteristics of executive resumes, we sourced and analyzed over 160 resumes. We categorized the collected resumes by job level: 26 percent were executive, 27 percent senior (over 10 years of experience), 25 percent mid-level (3 to 10 years of experience), and 22 percent entry-level (under 3 years of experience). By industry, the resumes were distributed as follows: 26 percent finance, 26 percent health, 25 percent legal, and 22 percent technology. The gender distribution was 51 percent female, 42 percent male, and 7 percent unknown. This research was conducted for exploratory purposes.

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What Sets Top Earners Apart? A Dive into Executive Resumes

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