How to craft a job-winning strategy manager cover letter
A business is only successful as its underlying strategy, making the role of strategy managers vital to the well-being of a company. To earn a position as a strategy manager, you need a strong cover letter that describes all of your key skills, accomplishments, and qualifications for the job.
In this guide, we will teach you everything you need to know about writing a strategy manager cover letter. Keep reading to learn:
- How to create a strategy manager cover letter header & headline
- Why you need to tailor the content of your strategy manager cover letter
- What information to include in your strategy manager introduction
- Ways to highlight your best professional skills & accomplishments
- How to effectively conclude your strategy manager cover letter
1. How to create a strategy manager cover letter header & headline
When writing a cover letter as a strategy manager, your first essential step is to create a well-formatted header and headline.
The cover letter header comes first and should include key identifying information, such as:
- Your name and professional title
- Your professional contact information
- The name of the company & department you are applying to
- The address of the company
Here is an example of a well-formatted strategy manager header
Mary Peters, Strategy Manager
(123) 456-7890 | mpeters@email.com | linkedin.com/in/mary-peters
To: Bluepoint IT Solutions
Strategic Development Department
1234 Street Address
New York, NY 11201
Once you have created your header, you can move on to writing your cover letter headline. In this headline, you need to include a keyword related to the position, an eye-catching number or trigger word, a powerful adjective or verb, and a promise statement that tells the employer this letter is written specifically for them.
Here is an example of an effective strategy manager headline, followed by a quick explanation of its main components
My 3 Best Success Stories as a Strategy Manager & How I Can Achieve These Results at Your Business
Trigger Word/Number: 3 Success Stories
Keyword: Strategy Manager
Adjective/Verb: Best, Achieve
Promise: Your Business
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2. Why you need to tailor the content of your strategy manager cover letter
To make your strategy manager cover letter stand out from the competition, you need to tailor the content to be as specific as possible to the job you are applying to.
Tailoring a cover letter in this way requires you to research the company thoroughly, looking for key details such as:
- What the company’s current strategy development looks like
- What the company looks for in employees (values, skills, etc.)
- Who at the company is responsible for reviewing applications
With this last piece of information, you can create a personalized greeting that addresses this specific person by name. Personalized greetings are highly beneficial, as they immediately reveal to the employer that you have taken the time to tailor your letter.
Here are 3 examples of personalized cover letter greetings
- Dear Executive Manager Jack King,
- Dear Mr. Jack King,
- Dear Mr. Jack King & the Strategic Team,
3. What information to include in your strategy manager introduction
Your introduction is an extremely important component of your strategy manager cover letter, as it can be the deciding factor that determines if an employer continues reading.
To make your strategy manager introduction as compelling as possible, make sure to include:
- A brief overview of your professional history and years of experience
- Any relevant specializations you possess
- A mutual acquaintance (when possible)
Pro Tip: Mutual acquaintances establish immediate trust with an employer. If you need help expanding your professional network and gaining more mutual acquaintances to reference in your cover letters, try using LinkedIn to connect with relevant professionals, such as current employees or business associates.
Here is an example of a well-written strategy manager introduction
Dear Executive Manager Jack King,
I am a strategy manager with more than 11 years of experience working in the technology industry. For the past 6 years, I have led a team of strategic consultants, providing our business clients with thorough strategic roadmaps and performance evaluations. My colleague, Ms. Kate Mills, is a professional associate of your company and strongly recommended I apply for this position given my relevant skills.
4. Ways to highlight your best professional skills & accomplishments
After you have successfully written your introduction, the next step is to describe your most relevant skills, accomplishments, and qualifications as a strategy manager.
When describing these professional attributes, make sure the information you include is:
- Specific: When writing a cover letter, you want to avoid vagueness at all costs. For example, don’t just state what skills you possess, explain how those skills are useful for the position.
- Contextual: Describing skills and accomplishments effectively requires you to provide ample context to show an employer the full scope of your qualifications.
- Quantifiable: Whenever possible, use quantifiable information and data to describe your accomplishments. This helps show an employer the real-life value you have to offer.
Here are 6 great strategy management skills to describe in a cover letter
- Strategy formulation and development
- Environmental scanning
- Strategy implementations
- Performance and risk evaluations
- Setting business agendas
- Innovative problem-solving
Here is an example of how to describe an accomplishment in a strategy manager cover letter
As the head strategy manager at [Former Employer], I was directly responsible for developing a new digital strategy to increase the company’s online presence and digital value. To meet this goal, I sourced and hired a software development provider as the company’s new digital business partner, raising shareholder interest by 35%.
5. How to effectively conclude your strategy manager cover letter
The fifth and final step to writing the best possible strategy manager cover letter is to craft an effective closing statement. This conclusion should include:
- An enthusiastic sentence saying you are looking forward to hearing from them
- An additional sentence stating you will follow up, including how you will contact them or how they can contact you
- A formal sign-off
Here is an example of an effective conclusion from a strategy manager cover letter
I am thrilled to be considered for this position and greatly look forward to hearing from you in the coming weeks. As I know you are busy, please feel free to contact me at your leisure at (123) 456-7890 any weekday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. If I have not heard back by the 25th, I plan to reach back out at that time to follow up.
Appreciatively,
[Applicant Name]
If you have ever wondered how a cover letter differs from a resume, this article will tell you everything about the key differences between the two.
